《100 Luck and the Dragon Tamer Skill!》 Chapter 1: The Ominous Message! Hear me now, mortals of this world! In thirty years from now, a warmongering species shall surround your planet and lay waste to your civilization! When every human on Earth heard this ominous message resonating inside their minds, it was met with various reactions. Some passed it off as a joke played by their overactive imagination, others as a nightmare, and very few took it seriously, but those who did would soon make it clear that it was quite real. When I heard it, I was in the middle of a game called Dragon Hunt. That weird message made me lose focus for just one second. I didn¡¯t dodge in time and thus ended up as a delicious snack for the final boss in the second hardest dungeon in the game. Just like that, nearly three hours of effort spent towards reaching that point went down the drain. It wouldn¡¯t have been that bad if I was in a party, but I was playing solo at that moment. The shock was so great that I was left gasping at the monitor for five minutes until the AFK (Away From Keyboard) warning popped up in the middle of my screen. I sighed and closed it. After a few random clicks around my character, I let the system know that I was still there. ¡°Marius! Did you take out the trash like I asked you to?¡± shouted my mom from the kitchen. Groaning, I got my lazy behind up from the chair. Immediately, my aching bones and muscles warned me that I sat down for too long. I stretched a bit, trying to get rid of the pain. Once I was in the clear, I walked out of my room and went into the kitchen. Looking at the trash bag under the sink, I realized I had forgotten to do as I was told. Then again, I couldn¡¯t remember when mom asked me to take it out in the first place. Rubbing the back of my head, I replied ¡°I forgot¡­¡± Mother was next to the stove, lowering the flame beneath the cooking pot. After a long sigh, she threw a short glare at me. ¡°Sorry. I got distracted.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Go and take it out now.¡± she told me with a calm voice, but deep down, I felt the overwhelming pressure and knew instinctively it wasn¡¯t a request but an order. I walked back to my room, I clicked the screen a few more times to reset the AFK timer and then took out the trash. My family lived in a three-room apartment in a four-story building in the middle of Bucharest, the capital of Romania. I saw myself as lucky for having an elevator in the building because climbing up five stories wasn¡¯t my idea of fun, not to mention if it would have been like that, I would have been late to reset the timer no matter how fast I climbed up and down the stairs. The trash cans were behind the building. After getting rid of the garbage, I hurried back home, hoping the AFK timer didn¡¯t decide to kick me out of the dungeon. If I was in a party, I may not have had the same problem. Usually, I went to a dungeon together with a couple of my online friends and guild mates, and it didn¡¯t take more than half an hour or so to reach the end boss, but solo was a real anguishing nightmare. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± I said as I opened the door. ¡°Marius, did you hear a strange voice a while ago? The news cast reporter says many people did.¡± asked my mom as she looked towards me a bit worried. I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Erm, what voice?¡± I asked and wondered if it was about the culprit who caused me to fail against the last boss. ¡°It said something like a warmongering species will attack the planet in thirty years.¡± she told me. Now that I thought about it, I did hear something like that, but did it really say something as absurd as that? I gave a small nod in reply, not caring too much about it, but it did make me wonder if it wasn¡¯t just some kind of prank? With all the tech we had in our house, it wouldn¡¯t have been surprising if someone simply hacked our network and sent the ominous message at the same time through all the speakers. Mother showed me a troubled expression after I answered. The TV news cast wasn¡¯t making things easier either as confirmation of the same message came from all over the world. TV news channels and Internet social media exploded. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s just a mass prank, mother.¡± I told her with a wry smile, hoping she would calm down. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a prank¡­¡± she said as she took a seat in front of the TV. I sighed and shook my head. Give it some time. When the culprit of this prank is going to be revealed, things will calm down and everyone will laugh when remembering these moments. or so I thought. ¡°Mother! The cooking pot¡¯s boiling over!¡± I shouted as I rushed over and stirred the soup with the nearby wooden spoon. ¡°Thank you, Marius! I¡¯ll take it from here.¡± she told me. I sighed in relief and returned to my room. ¡°Oh, crap! The timer!¡± I realized and jumped at my keyboard to press enter. ¡°Sigh¡­ Saved at the last nanosecond¡­¡± I said as I sat down. It was time for a second round against the final boss. ________________ From the Author:Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think about it in the comments below! You can read the latest chapters at:dragomircm.com I will try to add the rest of the chapters in the following days. Chapter 2: Kidnapped Three days have passed since the world received the ominous message regarding our impending doom, yet no one discovered who sent it. The religious fanatics took it as a chance to blast out their beliefs at anyone who cared or not to listen. Even at school, people were acting weird about it. One of the teachers didn¡¯t show up for class, and some of my classmates were still at home. Everyone else simply didn¡¯t care or believed it had nothing to do with them. I was in the group who didn¡¯t care. Surprisingly, math retained its boredom factor, but it wasn¡¯t like I was weak or hated the subject, it was because of our teacher. He was a 60 years-old man who barely spoke and constantly scribbled numbers and equations on the table. He was the real ¡®life of the party¡¯. After classes were over, I decided to hit the park together with some of my schoolmates. I packed my things, and we were just about to leave the campus when all of a sudden, there was this bright flash of light. I quickly closed my eyes and stopped in my tracks. What the? I thought. I had no idea what just happened, but when I woke up, I wasn¡¯t in Kansas anymore, or Romania for that matter¡­ All I could see were hundreds if not thousands of other people all around me. They were all between the ages of 16 and 30, or so I assumed judging by their looks. There were both men and women here, even someone who looked like a typical Japanese high school girl. Is she a cosplayer? I wondered. I tried to move and talk, but not even a single muscle wished to obey me. I could only move my eyes and head, but it didn¡¯t take long before I entered in a state of panic. Oh God! What¡¯s happening to me? Why can¡¯t I move? Where am I? Who are these people? What happened? I thought as panic quickly lay its dangerous claws on my mind. From what I could see, the others were the same as me, they couldn¡¯t move. Everyone was looking around desperately for an answer, but some were simply staring up. I had no idea what would be so interesting about the sky or the ceiling, so I looked up as well. What the¡­ That can¡¯t be right¡­ I thought. Dumbfounded, I watched what was displayed above me, but it wasn¡¯t the ceiling of some warehouse filled with neon lights, it wasn¡¯t the blue sky I usually saw whenever I walked outside, no, what I saw was a world. We were staring at an unknown planet, a mysterious world with many islands on top of an endless ocean. I had no idea how big it was, but judging by the white clouds and the occasional green patches, I believed it was similar to Earth. An alien world? A hologram? What¡¯s that? I thought, but it felt like I was answering my own questions. ¡°Testing! Testing! Is this thing on? Well of course it is, I¡¯m not using a mike or anything the like!¡± the same voice we all heard three days ago caught our attention. Everyone looked towards the direction of the voice. We saw a floating white cloud and a being made of pure light standing on top of it. That entity was a giant at least ten times the size of a normal man. It didn¡¯t have a face, clothes, or any other special features, it was just a mash-up of yellow light and lightning in the form of a humanoid being. ¡°Very well then! I¡¯m sure all of you can hear me! To begin with, I am what you may call a God-Like being. To the religious fanatics among you, not a God, not God, but a God-Like being! Meaning I am very powerful, I know a lot, and to your mortal simple minds, I may actually be your so-called God. Anyway, moving on with introductions, I¡¯m sure most of you aren¡¯t interested in my life story but more in why you are here and what¡¯s going to happen to you from now on!¡± said the entity and then created what appeared to be a form of giant holographic screen in the sky. On it, Earth was displayed as seen from outer space. ¡°You all recognize this beautiful blue pearl, right? For those of you who have no idea what they are looking at, this here is Earth, the planet you have been living on until now. So, last time, I told you that a big and powerful alien species was getting close to Earth and would soon engage to conquer it. Well, as things are, many of the more advanced species out there felt that you hairless monkeys deserve a chance to evolve!¡± the image changed to a political map of Earth from present time. ¡°You are quite messy, unfortunately. Sooo many states¡­ Sheesh! Anyway, the Galactic Council sought my help in order to solve your measly little problem! And I said, why not?!¡± he then laughed, and the map changed to a political version from around the year 0 AD. ¡°So, I went back into the past and gave humanity countless trials! They were various from discovering new technologies, to conquering, to find various saints and prophets, etc!¡± as he said that the map changed to show various important figures from our past as well as their influence on the map. Powerful rulers and important religious figures were seen on that screen. It appeared that this powerful entity had a play in countless defining moments of our history. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. As he went on about the many trials he gave the human species and how close we were to destroying ourselves during WW2 and even after the use of the first atomic weapon, I looked around to see how everyone else was faring with the situation. I, for one, was quite calm and relaxed when I should have panicked like a chicken in front of a fox. It was strange, but maybe it was thanks to that weird entity¡¯s calming aura. No matter where I looked, no one was twisting their heads and looking desperately for an exit or a savior. They were all calm and relaxed. ¡°Now that I¡¯m done with the history lesson, I believe it is time for me to explain your role in all of this!¡± he announced. A gut feeling told me that I wasn¡¯t going to like what I was about to hear. ¡°You are all to be sacrificed to a man-eating dragon in order to save 10% of the human population back on Earth!¡± he announced. What did he just say? I asked myself as I looked at him horrified. We were to be what? Nonono! This has got to be some sort of mistake! What does he mean sacrificed? Will we be thrown into a volcano? Eaten? Killed on an altar? Thoughts of our imminent doom surged through my mind and panic once more settled in. I couldn¡¯t move, I couldn¡¯t flee, only move my head and eyes around. Everyone looked in fear at each other, trying desperately to get loose and run away. Meanwhile, the one who proclaimed to be a god-like entity remained quiet and watched us like helpless little sheep sent to the slaughter. ¡°I¡¯m joking! I¡¯m joking! Haaa~! I always wanted to do that!¡± he said as he leaned back in his cloud and began to laugh loudly. A joke? Who jokes like that?! I wanted to scream out, but my lips remained sealed, and I could only shoot a glare at him. ¡°Well then! Time for the real deal!¡± he said and then changed the view of the screen back to that of Earth. ¡°While ya all are here, your peeps back home will try to fix things up in their own way, meaning either have a country conquer more than 70% of the surface or create a World Government of some sort, in which more than 120 countries have to be represented equally!¡± declared the entity. Then why are we here? I wanted to ask. ¡°Oh? I can already sense that some of you realize what sort of an impossible task that is! Currently, some of your countries already declared war and began attacking, but meh! Not like I care!¡± he said with a nonchalant shrug. I didn¡¯t need to be a genius in politics to understand what a war could mean back on Earth, especially with the nuclear arsenal at their disposal. I could only hope that my family was going to be safe¡­ ¡°As for all of you¡­ Well, you are about 10 million in number and were all handpicked by me! You bunch will entertain me and the gods of the world you see up there by acting out as either heroes or villains, depending on what you will choose to become! To put it bluntly, each and every one of you will become the main character in their own story! If by the time the last one of you dies that world becomes a better place thanks to your influence, then Earth will be spared from the alien invasion, if not, well¡­ I hope your friends and family bought the ¡®Dummy¡¯s Guide on how to live under warmongering invaders¡¯.¡± he explained and then showed us the book as though he was advertising it. ¡°I wrote it myself! It has funny pictures, a few color pages, some charts, you know¡­ the basics.¡± He actually wrote such a book?! Is he expecting us to fail? Well, technically speaking, he could see the future, so¡­ I thought as I looked down for a moment, then I realized something The rest of our lives? So we will live¡­ and die there? ¡°Boring part is done, now on to the fun part! SKILLS! STAT POINTS! AAAAAAND LEVELS!¡± he shouted to the point that my ears were ringing. Levels? I asked myself as I looked confused at the entity. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think about it in the comments below! Chapter 3: Failure as a gamer I wasn¡¯t the only one confused by the God-like entity¡¯s words, I was certain of that, however, the reason I believed that was because I considered myself to be a normal human being. As such, one would be confused and afraid in such an absurd situation. Given what the God-like entity said earlier, there was a high chance for individuals who weren¡¯t aware of the Internet to be among those 10 million people. They were probably the most confused out of all of us. If what that entity said was true, then maybe the few of us who were gamers had a special advantage in this race. ¡°So, half of you have no idea what I¡¯m talking about¡­ Anyway, I¡¯m going to give you a little help with it! Status Menu!¡± he shouted and immediately a typical game character status screen appeared before me and everyone else. It looked like some sort of holographic interface complete with buttons, icons, and all sorts of things written there. Seeing something like that surprised me, but what was most surprising were my Level 1 stats: [Name]: [Species]: Human [Level]: 1 [Strength]: 9 [Speed]: 8 [Dexterity]: 11 [Magic]: 10 [Luck]: 2 [Magic Excellence]: 1% [Skills]: [Skill Points]: 1 [Stat Points]: 100 Luck 2? Well¡­ that explains a LOT of things¡­ I thought while thinking about all the previous unfortunate events that happened in my life, however, I begged to differ when it came to games. For some reason, I was rather lucky there, or maybe my understanding of ¡®lucky¡¯ was a bit flawed from the get go. Taking my eyes off my status screen to look at the others next to me, I saw a couple of people throwing weird looks at it. They aren¡¯t used with this sort of thing, are they? I asked myself and then looked at that one, single skill point. ¡°Is everyone comfortable?¡± asked the God-like being. No one answered. We couldn¡¯t move our lips, but some of us probably tried to scream. ¡°Good! Good! Now, I¡¯ll grant you, your first skill! [Hero]!¡± he declared. Immediately, a message popped up before my eyes with the details of my new skill. [Hero]: This is a passive skill which grants the user the ability to gain 10 Stat Points and 1 Skill points for each level up, allowing the upgrade and physical advancement of the individual without needing to actually train for it. 10? But I have 100¡­ I asked myself, but the entity above us would soon answer that small detail. ¡°Leveling is quite easy in this world! Basically, all you have to do is kill stuff either alone or in a party. Of course, like it happens back on Earth, constantly using a certain skill or diligently training it will allow you to sharpen it, in other words level it up. This is allowed ONLY for certain skills, though! In time, you will learn which is which. Oh, and the level thingies are available only for you all. The rest of the inhabitants of that world have it too, but they sort of can¡¯t see it. Well, I¡¯m not going into details on that, you¡¯ll see what I¡¯m talking about once you get down there! Now, moving on!¡± said the entity as it quickly explained something incredibly preposterous. So, just like he said¡­ it¡¯s basically like a game, a VRMMORPG of sorts¡­ I thought as I took another glance at my status. The incredibly low stats brought a bit of fear to my heart. If it¡¯s like a game, then¡­ I¡¯m probably too weak to even do battle against other lvl 1 mobs¡­ ¡°As you all probably noticed, you have 100 Stat points there instead of just 10. That¡¯s my second gift to you! You can use the points now, but be careful! If you don¡¯t do so before I count to ten, they will disappear! In order to use them, just think something along the lines: Add X points in Y stat. For example: Add 2 points in Speed!¡± he explained and when he said that, two of my points were automatically placed in the speed stat, now I had 10. ¡°Good! Now place the rest! Ready? Set! Go!¡± he shouted. I need to think this through and fast! Let me see¡­ Let me see¡­ Strength? No¡­ Agility? No¡­ I thought as I looked over my main stats. ¡°Time is ticking!¡± announced the entity. I know! I wanted to scream. Add¡­ erm¡­ er¡­ My mind was stuck. As a gamer, I couldn¡¯t make such a rash decision. I didn¡¯t know what sort of gear I received at the beginning. If I got a mage staff, and I was filled up with strength, my damage would be at a minimum. Adding everything to Magic was a No go either. Mages were powerful in all RPG, but they were also granted the title of ¡®Sir Squished-a-lot!¡¯, and I didn¡¯t wish to become a slime or goblin¡¯s lunch. ¡°5!¡± announced the entity. Damn! Add 98 points to¡­ to¡­ ¡°4!¡± ¡°3¡± Add 98 stat points to Luck! I shouted in mind. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°2¡­ 1!¡± I heard a ding then and the following message: Max Luck stat achieved. Great¡­ I made the noobest mistake ever! 100 Luck? Seriously?! I groaned and screamed at my stupid mind. I should have just picked 50 strength and 48 Speed, or bring Luck to something like 10, which was the usual default and then add the rest in Magic or something like that. 15 Luck, 30 Magic, 10 Excellence, 30 Strength, 30 Speed, and 26 Dexterity. That actually sounds balanced¡­ Why didn¡¯t I pick that? Why? Stupid brain! Why? I asked myself as I looked at my ridiculous stat window: [Name]: [Species]: Human [Level]: 1 [Strength]: 9 [Speed]: 10 [Dexterity]: 11 [Magic]: 10 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1% [Skills]: [Skill Points]: 1 [Stat Points]: 0 I will die at the first mob¡­ I can feel it. I thought to myself. ¡°Great!¡± shouted the entity. Not great at all! I shouted back in my mind, but I immediately realized he wasn¡¯t talking to me. ¡°With all of you picking some rather balanced stats, let me tell you now about the beauty of your 1 single skill point! In your Skill window, you have a bunch of cheat-like skills! One of a kind too! Pick one and stick with it!¡± he told us. Maybe I won¡¯t screw this one up? I asked myself as I opened the window and boy were there a lot of skills there. Moving the window was easy, I just had to say in my mind: ¡®up¡¯ or ¡®down¡¯ and the window complied. As I scrolled, only one skill caught my attention: Dragon Tamer. Just a while ago, I was happily playing a game with dragons, but I had to slay them, not tame them. It made me a bit curious though. The entity did say that these were unique, one-of-a-kind skills. Thus, believing I had nothing to lose, I opened the details for that specific skill. Select the Dragon Tamer skill. Show me the details for this skill. I thought, and the window changed to details about the skill: [Dragon Tamer]: This is a passive, buff type skill. When a Hero develops any sort of friendly or intimate relationship with someone of a Dragon origin, this skill will allow the creation of a special bond between the two of them. The bond is indestructible by any other skill unless the Hero wills it. The Hero gains 25% of the Dragon¡¯s Stats, and the Dragon will gain the ability to level up 2X faster when in the presence of the Hero. Sounds interesting, but not something which I would pick for my first go. Let¡¯s see what else is there¡­ I thought and when I closed the window and went back to the skill selection screen, I saw only [Dragon Tamer] being displayed there. I paled. ¡°Everyone chose a skill! This is perfect! By the way, don¡¯t nag about not wanting the skill. It¡¯s your fate that led you to the skill, so deal with it!¡± the selfish entity declared. I just wanted to look at the details, not make it mine! I wanted to scream, but there was nothing I could do. Things were getting serious. Not only did I waste my only skill point, but I also wasted all of my stat points. I was a goner! I was going to end up killed by a slime and resurrected as an Imp! I was certain about it. ¡°You got your first skill, you selected your stats, and with that said, I wish you all to have fun and may your deeds either save or doom planet Earth! By the way, I made it so that you can jump into a noob friendly area perfect for your selected stats and skill! So, do not worry about landing in the Dragon Kingdom or something like that. Oh, and stay away from Albeyater! Good bye, heroes from Earth! Hahaha!¡± laughed the entity as all around me people started to vanish in a bright white light. Crud¡­ I thought. A moment later, I found myself standing on something dark and furry. I could move, and I could finally open my mouth to talk. I wasn¡¯t on Earth, but on the weird planet I saw earlier. ¡°Status.¡± I said, and the menu appeared before me. This actually happened¡­ Ugh¡­ I groaned and annoyed by my own stupidity, I punched the furry thing as hard as I could. Wait¡­ furry? I blinked surprised. ¡°Grrr!¡± I heard a growl, and its owner didn¡¯t sound very happy. With a gulp, I turned around and saw this little doggy, not big, just about 6 m (19.6 ft) tall with four heads equipped with razor-sharp teeth. 100 Luck my foot! I grumbled in my mind. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think about it in the comments below! :) Chapter 4: Seryanna A loud and angry growl was heard right behind me. A pair of sharp teeth tried to take a bite out of my succulent flesh just as I ducked under a tree. Only the splinters remained from it as I continued to run through the dense forest. What was I doing exactly? Running for my life as fast as my legs could carry me. Apparently, I was so lucky, I ended up dropping on the back of a huge demon looking dog with four heads that could breathe fire, shoot water, lightning, and summon powerful wind attacks. His black fur, razor-sharp teeth, and big red eyes made him look fierce and incredibly dangerous. Branches and old fallen trees were pulverized under his mighty paws adorned with dangerous looking black claws. As for me, I had no idea why I was still alive, but as long as my legs were intact and I could run, I tried my best to get away from that thing. Honestly speaking, I felt like a lvl 1 character facing the end boss of the game. Normally, I should have been dead by now, but my Luck was probably keeping me alive because the huge growling doggy behind me kept missing his attacks. In a game, it makes sense if you have a high dodge, but in reality, you miss once, you miss twice, but then it gets ridiculous, especially when your opponent is a scrawny little human. ¡°Someone save me!¡± I shouted desperately as I jumped over a fallen tree. Upon landing, my foot slipped and my whole body went the other way. ¡°Huh?¡± I fell and rolled down a steep slope. If there was a bush or some low branches in front of me, I somehow managed to direct my body straight into them. Even when I tried to stop myself and grab a branch or something, I wasn¡¯t able to. At the very least, I didn¡¯t bash my head on any of the countless rocks spread across the slope. The same applied for all the big trees around me. When I reached the bottom, I finally stopped, but I did so by smashing right into someone. ¡°KYA!¡± screamed the other person. Ouch¡­ I groaned and felt the whole world shaking and swirling around me. My head hurt and my entire body ached. I had only a few nasty cuts and bruises, but nothing to require seeing a doctor, however, if I kept slamming into things and monsters like that, there was a high chance of me ending up dead before the end of the day. Although it was hard and painful, I tried to get up and clear my head. That huge monster was still out there, maybe right behind me. I had to run away, but when I opened my eyes, I realized I wasn¡¯t alone. She had beautiful, captivating, and charming dark-brown eyes. Long, lush, red hair with black tips flowed behind her, sprawled around because she was sitting with her back on the ground. Her facial features were at the level of a popular actress or maybe a model, in any ways, very attractive. Despite her looks, she was wearing a gray plated mail armor, but unlike those I saw in many games and animes, this one was of the practical type. Her whole body was protected by it, and the chest part didn¡¯t let your fantasies go wild. She¡¯s¡­ beautiful¡­ I thought as I looked mesmerized in her eyes. ¡°Get off of me.¡± she said calmly, but her clenched fist warned me of an incoming attack if I didn¡¯t do as she said. ¡°Sorry! I¡­ er¡­ Urk!¡± my stomach finally revealed its true, ugly form. All the tumbling and moving down the slope confused my poor inner ears and stomach. I dashed to the left on all four and relinquished the tasty chicken soup I had that morning. It was unsightly, but not like I could do anything about it. This is¡­ shameful. I thought as I wiped my hand and pulled back from my own puke. ¡°Are you alright?¡± the woman asked me after she got off from the ground and dusted off her armor. She was calm, and didn¡¯t look bothered by my unsightly appearance. ¡°I think¡­ There was this huge black dog with four heads. I ran, then I fell and rolled down that slope¡­ Erm, I think I lost it.¡± I said and then looking down I added ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to bump into you.¡± Her expression didn¡¯t change as I explained my circumstances. Of course, I wanted to leave out the matter of how exactly I managed to get inside that forest. ¡°Apology accepted, but please cover your vomit with dirt, otherwise, it will attract monsters. Have a good day.¡± she explained and then walked away from me. Wait, what? I thought as I saw her leaving so calmly. I wanted to chase right after her, but I had the feeling it wasn¡¯t a good idea not to listen to her advice, so I quickly covered up the remains of my last meal. ¡°Wait up!¡± I shouted after her. She wasn¡¯t walking too fast, but the moment when I got too close to her, she unsheathed her sword and pointed it at my neck. I stopped and raised my hands like a criminal in front of the police. ¡°Why are you following me?¡± she asked with a serious look in her eyes. ¡°Huh? No, I¡¯m¡­ you see, I have no idea how I ended up in this forest! I¡¯m just a pathetic little weak human! I need help, and you mentioned earlier something about monsters. If there are any more of those 6 m tall dogs, I really don¡¯t want to end up as their lunch!¡± I explained myself by taking a most humble tone of voice. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.I learned at one point that it was better to act humble and modest towards one who might be stronger or a possible ally. Being friendly, helpful and kind afterwards deepened the relationship, and it was highly unlikely that they wouldn¡¯t help you in the end. The same applied even better when you were strong, but then, you had to make sure you weren¡¯t take advantage of. ¡°Human? No, that can¡¯t be¡­¡± she said shaking her head. ¡°Erm, why?¡± I asked. ¡°Boy, we are currently in the Seculiar Forest on the Dragon Continent, in the middle of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater! There are no humans here! It¡¯s impossible for such a weak species to survive here!¡± she explained with a rather high tone of voice. ¡°What? But you, aren¡¯t you a human?¡± I asked a bit confused. As far as I could see, she had no tail, wings, humongous breasts, slit eyes, or forked tongue. She looked like a human knight or warrior of sorts. Furrowing her brow, she pushed the tip of the sword closer to my neck, making me flinch. ¡°Don¡¯t insult me! I¡¯m a proud dragoness, not a human!¡± she declared in a tone of anger. Please don¡¯t kill me. I said in my mind. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. After she calmed down, she pulled her sword back and sheathed it in her scabbard. ¡°Let¡¯s say I believe you. Let¡¯s say you are a¡­ human. Why are you here? How did you get here?¡± she asked as she looked straight into my eyes. In that moment, I gulped and knew that if I lied, I would end up being tossed over the edge or straight into that dog¡¯s mouth. She was also on guard, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword, but she was ready to draw at the slightest sign of danger. ¡°A powerful being kidnapped me from my home land dropped me in the middle of this forest. I had no say in the matter, and I really have no idea how to return home¡­¡± I told her, but although I skipped some important parts, I technically didn¡¯t lie. The dragoness looked at me for a long moment, probably debating if I was lying or not. Chances were she was pondering about how she was going to skewer me for being a human. In either case, my legs were currently shaking, and I was literally sweating bullets of how afraid for my life I was. That was the first time ever someone threatened me like that, but then again, Europeans weren¡¯t famous for carrying swords around, threatening people left and right. Of all the places I could land, I just had to be dropped in the number 1 most dangerous place I was warned not to go to! I thought and then gulped. ¡°Very well, you can tag along, but be warned, I¡¯m heading deeper into the forest! If we get attacked by large groups of monsters, I won¡¯t be held responsible if you get yourself killed as a result. Furthermore, I¡¯m currently searching for a certain mushroom with a dark-red cap that grows only near a griffin¡¯s nest. It¡¯s called Bloody Mushroom, so if you see anything like that, you will let me know immediately. That being said, human, do you still wish to follow me?¡± she asked seriously. I gulped. Let me see¡­ Don¡¯t follow, and I end up as dog chow. Follow her and I may end up as dog chow and griffin chow. On the other hand, she¡¯s a dragoness or claims to be one. The fact that she¡¯s alone in this scary forest means that she¡¯s confident enough in her own strength to go in and out without missing a limb or two. Hm¡­ I thought as I weighed the two options in my mind. However I looked at it, the answer seemed to be quite clear. I was safer together with her than wondering on my own in one of the most dangerous forests on this continent. ¡°I¡¯ll follow you! I¡¯ll keep my eyes open for any red mushroom I see and hand them all over to you!¡± I replied with a nod of my head. ¡°Hmph, very well! My name is Seryanna Draketerus, a recently made knight!¡± she declared with a hand over her chest like a soldier on attention. ¡°A pleasure to meet you, erm¡­ Sir Seryanna, my name is Alkelios Yatagai.¡± I said with a smile. Huh? What did I just say? My name isn¡¯t Alkelios Yatagai it¡¯s¡­ what was it again? Erm¡­ Did I forget it? Is it like one of those other world transportation conditions? Forget everything high-techy and stuff? No¡­ I can still remember other things like technology and history¡­ Then why? I thought hard until I remember what was written on my status screen right next to my [Name]. That stupid God-like entity changed my name! I shouted frustrated in my mind. Well, it didn¡¯t matter right now. My next objective was to survive and get out of the forest safely. If I could contact others from my world and maybe form a party with them, I figured it would help me a lot, but could I trust them? For now, my only party member was the dragoness in front of me¡­ who was not there anymore. ¡°Ah! Wait up!¡± I called out and hurried after all. Thus, I began my adventure as a lvl 1 Hero through the most dangerous forest out there. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapters! :) Chapter 5: Too weak, for now? The one walking in front of me, the dragoness by the name of Seryanna Draketerus, was really scary! There was this strange powerful aura around her, the type which told you to stay away, or else you¡¯ll end up as minced meat ready to be served to some kind of fearsome monster. It scared me and made my hair stand on end. If I could compare it with something, maybe it was like being in the middle of a cage with lava on top while hundreds of professional assassins were ready to jump on you. Their blades were sure to slice up your fragile flesh, but the poisons and all sorts of other toxins would keep you alive long enough to experience all the excruciating pain their torture had to offer you. Of course, you would be aware of all that before everything happened. Well, that sort of fear and danger were what I felt at that moment. As for why I was in that sort of predicament, it was quite simple. In order for us not to be pestered by dangerous beasts below her power, Seryanna released a powerful, threatening aura all around her. It did the job, unfortunately, it also scared off all the small critters that could become our dinner, such as rabbits. When I first felt that fearsome presence, I trembled like a trapped mouse in a room full of hungry cats, but as hours passed by, I got used to it. Eventually, my body and mind sort of ignored it, but me focusing on trying to get used to it might have had something to do with my sudden adaptation to her presence. ¡°How much farther until we reach that place?¡± I asked at one point while holding my stomach to stop it from growling. It had been a couple of hours since we first met. My stomach was running on empty, and my feet hurt. I wasn¡¯t wearing my comfortable modern clothes, but typical first-level clothing. I had a leather vest, a pair of leather shoes, a linen shirt, and a pair of simple pants tied around my waist with a rope, making long travel a real nightmare for me. At the very least, I didn¡¯t complain about it to her. As for why I was wearing such shabby clothing, well, they were the basic items with which I got dropped into this world by a certain God-like entity. Regarding my skills, the 100 Luck part allowed me to avoid sharp rocks just in the nick of time. With those type of shoes on my feet, hitting them wasn¡¯t a joke. It would have hurt really bad if I did! ¡°Tomorrow. For now, keep your eyes open for strange plants. I¡¯ll take care of any monster that will attack us.¡± she replied with a stoic expression on her face. ¡°I¡¯ll try¡­¡± I said, but I was more worried about where I stepped and if a monster wanted to jump on me to give me a more than needed hug with its deadly, sharp claws. Speaking of plants, I did see quite a few peculiar ones. They had all sorts of twisted leafs and petals, strange designs, and most of them felt like they had been pulled out of a fantasy artist¡¯s catalog. Of course, I didn¡¯t recognize any of them, and Seryanna was walking past them without a care. I could only assume they weren¡¯t important, or rather, she didn¡¯t see them as something she needed. The details she mentioned about the mushroom reminded me of a poisonous one often used in games, I think the name was Amanita. But that thing had white spots on the cap. The one Seryanna was looking for was completely red. When we reached a small river, I was about to approach it and have a drink from the crystal-clear water, but she stopped me. Picking up a small pebble, she threw it in the water and a huge snake with a perfectly camouflaged skin swam away. I almost soiled myself when I saw the slithering critter. ¡°How do we¡­. huh?¡± I asked, but she offered me the quick answer by walking towards a fallen tree acting as a bridge. Unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t situated conveniently close to us. That thing was half an hour away of walking distance. We could see it from afar because it was huge, almost six meters in diameter and long enough to spread into the forest on both shores. To get up there, Seryanna only had to jump once, but I was a human. There was no way I could jump that high, I couldn¡¯t even do a slam dunk. Seeing that, she clicked her tongue and helped me by literally grabbing me by my neck and tossing me up there like some useless potato sack. I had to admit, that woman had quite an arm strength to her. ¡°If you see eyes on the surface, duck.¡± she told me as we crossed. I paid attention to my surroundings, but I certainly wished none of those monsters wanted to chomp me down. ¡°Say, how strong are the monsters here?¡± I asked after we crossed the river safely. ¡°That¡¯s odd¡­ I never crossed this river before without getting attacked at least once¡­¡± she said as she looked back, completely ignoring my question. ¡°Maybe we¡¯re just lucky?¡± I said, but then I remembered my 100 Luck. Could it be? I asked myself. If this was a typical RPG, and Luck influenced the chances of getting attacked on the bridge in the form of an event, then no matter what I rolled, I would be able to get the maximum chances of NOT getting mauled down by giant snakes and other monsters. Seryanna didn¡¯t dot on the river thing for too long because it was visibly getting late, and she didn¡¯t want us to camp out near the shore. How many hours does a day have in this world, anyway? I asked myself as I looked up at the sky. As far as I knew, the duration of a day was strictly dependent on the rotating speed of a planet around its own axis. Considering the probability of the world being Earth-like, but with a larger surface, there was the chance that a day was much longer than what I was used to. When we stopped in the spot where we were supposed to set up camp, I decided to ask her. ¡°Sir Seryanna, this might be a dumb question, but how many hours does a day have?¡± My options were rather simple: ask, and you might get an answer; don¡¯t ask, and you would forever remain clueless to the truth. There was also option three: start counting the seconds, which I would rather not do. ¡°Odd question¡­ 32 hours.¡± she replied. ¡°Dragon or human?¡± I asked a bit skeptical about the answer. She squinted her eyes at me. Was it a warning? ¡°Hours are hours, they are neither draconic nor human.¡± ¡°So, 1 hour means 60 minutes, and 1 minute means 60 seconds?¡± I asked again, testing my luck a bit. ¡°Yes. It has been like that ever since Chronus offered time to our world.¡± she explained. ¡°Chronus? As in father of Zeus?¡± I asked, wondering if Greek mythology somehow extended to this world. ¡°What?¡± she squinted her eyes and furrowed her brow. ¡°Wrong?¡± I asked. She nodded. ¡°Chronus is the primordial god of time. Zeus is the god of lightning and virility. Cronus is Zeus¡¯s beloved father. But indeed, some primitive groups still believe Chronus, the god, is the same as Cronus, the titan, not to mention the fact that Cronus is a barbaric monster who ate his own children. But enough of this. We shall set camp here and continue our journey tomorrow. The sun won¡¯t be up for another 12 hours, so you can rest first.¡± she told me and just like that, she began setting up the camp. ¡°OK. Sorry for asking something silly¡­¡± I told her. ¡°It matters not. Humans are not known for their intelligence or kindness towards those different from them.¡± she stated harshly. Somehow, I get the feeling that my mission here won¡¯t be very easy, especially if humans are indeed as she describes them to be. On the bright side of things, I know now that this planet is much bigger than Earth, and it shares parts of its mythology. Is it because of that God-like being who sent us here or could those gods have actually been real all along? I pondered as I stepped aside and watched her gather a couple of rocks for a small fire pit. Speaking of which, I didn¡¯t see a backpack on Seryanna. As far as I remembered, during the medieval period, people never traveled light through forests or while on a long journey. A fire striker was an absolute must, so was a blanket for the long cold nights. Thinking about it carefully, this planet had longer nights and days than Earth, so it was very unlikely for people to travel unprepared. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°Instead of standing there like rock, can you go and gather some firewood?¡± she told me. ¡°Oh? Yes, sure¡­ erm just dried branches and sticks right?¡± I asked. Raising an eyebrow, she threw me a weird look. I may have said something strange, but she didn¡¯t say anything else, just shook her head and returned to gathering rocks. With a sigh, I began to look around. First thing I did was to take a stick and start poking around. Last thing I wanted was a snake bite in a world where antivenom was probably hard to come by. Well, I do have the 100 Luck thing, maybe nothing will happen to me? Oh, how I do wish it to be so! I thought as I began to pick up some sticks and broken off branches. While looking around, I spotted an interesting plant. It had the shape of a blue Venus Flytrap, but it didn¡¯t feel dangerous at all. At first, I thought about picking it up directly, but then my brain warned me of it being a possible trap. I stopped and simply looked at it from afar. Lifting my stick, I poked it, but no gas or anything else popped out of it. There were no strange, moving vines laying around, and the top leaf of the trap didn¡¯t move either. Curiosity tickled me to go for the grab, but my gamer instincts were screaming at me: It¡¯s a TRAP! I¡¯ll leave it alone and tell Seryanna about it¡­ I thought and continued my search for firewood. When I returned to the camp with my arms full of sticks, I was met with a surprising scene. The knight dragoness was standing by the side of the fire, but her top armor was laid beside her. She wore something similar to a thick silk shirt underneath, and I had to say, those big balloons of hers weren¡¯t there when I first saw her. The armor did its job of hiding her ero-potential. As a note, she was sitting on a chair and behind her, I could see two camping tents for us to sleep in. Next to them was a simple staff with a blue crystal on top. As for what she was doing, she was slicing off the meat of what appeared to be a giant spider. ¡°Erm¡­ Is that? And all of that?¡± I asked as I stayed as far away from the dead thing as I could. ¡°Oh? You are back? You didn¡¯t encounter spiders did you? One attacked me as soon as you left, I killed it and managed to ward off the rest.¡± she said as she raised her head up and wiped the sweat off her forehead. Small beads flowed down around her neck and into her slightly exposed cleavage, while her long red hair was tied behind in a ponytail. I gulped. ¡°Yes¡­ I gathered the wood, and what do you mean by spiders?¡± I asked tilting my head to the left. ¡°This part of the forest is infested by these giant spiders. I¡¯m surprised you had the guts to head off so deep into the forest.¡± she explained and pointed at the carcass next to her. ¡°Erm¡­ Infested?¡± I asked blinking surprise. I didn¡¯t even see even a bug back there, let alone a giant spider. ¡°Yes, but if you have a warding crystal like that one or a Cupula Flower at hand, you should be fine.¡± she told me. ¡°I had none¡­ Wait, you¡¯re telling me I ventured inside a deep forest filled with giant spiders? Why didn¡¯t you warn me about it?¡± I asked her as I placed the firewood next to her, trying my best to avoid the hairy legs of the spider. ¡°I was busy. Besides, I didn¡¯t tell you to go that deep inside the forest. If you searched around the camp it should have been fine, but I figured you would eventually come back running and screaming if you met with a spider.¡± she told me calmly. ¡°Erm¡­ But¡­ Sigh¡­¡± I tried to say something, but there was no counter argument. She was sort of right, and there was no need for her to carry my weight around, especially since I wasn¡¯t of any use in combat. Speaking of flowers¡­ I thought as I remembered the strange blue Venus Flytrap. ¡°Erm, does the Cupula Flower look anything like this, but blue?¡± I asked making a simple drawing on the ground. ¡°Hm? Yes. How do you know how it looks like?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°There¡¯s one of them back there. Maybe that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t get attacked?¡± I asked. ¡°Definitely. You sure were lucky. Tomorrow morning I¡¯m going to go and pick it up.¡± she told me and then went back to slicing the meat off the spider¡¯s exoskeleton. I took a seat on the other side and tried to avoid having my eyes stare at her moving chest while she used the sharp knife to cut into the monster. At first, I was wondering what she was going to do with it, but once she started the fire, I understood it was to become our meal. It tasted like chicken, the meat wasn¡¯t too hard, but I did need to chew it more than usual. As I was enjoying my meal: spider meat on a stick, I noticed something peculiar about our campsite. Seryanne didn¡¯t bring a backpack with her, but the quantity of items around me, starting from the weird scepter to the tents in the back felt a bit odd. Where did she hide all of that? I asked myself, but my eyes went straight to her cleavage. Shaking my head, I got rid of the perverted thoughts and decided simply to ask her. ¡°Erm, I just noticed, but where did all of these things come from?¡± ¡°Hm? My purse.¡± she replied calmly as she stoked the fire. ¡°Purse?¡± I asked, and in that moment, I remembered the old saying: A woman¡¯s purse is like an endless abyss filled with more things than you can count or carry. Of course, that was always used as a joke because men usually couldn¡¯t find a thing in there even their lives depended on it. There were two things the men of Earth feared the most: losing the car keys in their wife¡¯s purse and the TV remote when the game was about to start. As a gamer, what I feared most was losing internet connection and power outage. Then again, I was 18 and in my last year of High School. Car keys in a woman¡¯s purse was the least of my concerns. I had exams to think of and a whole lot to prepare for my future, unfortunately, none would come to pass with me being tossed in a Fantasy world. ¡°This.¡± she lifted a small ring with a red stone attached to it. ¡°That¡¯s a purse?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°What? No. This is just a ring. The spell [Purse] is then cast on it.¡± she explained. ¡°Purse? Why not Item Box?¡± I asked thinking about the inventories from games. ¡°Because it¡¯s attached to a ring and not a box.¡± she explained it as though it was something normal. I gave up on trying to understand the ¡®why¡¯ and ¡®who¡¯ of the spell and decided to simply accept it as what it was: an ultra convenient way to carry items. As the sky darkened and the light of our fire grew strong, I began to think back at my family. I was wondering what they were doing at that time and how they came to terms with my sudden disappearance if at all. With a long sigh, I looked up at the tree branches, thinking about gazing up at the sky, but I couldn¡¯t see anything up there. Everything was hidden behind countless layers of leafs and branches. It was normal, I was in the middle of a forest. ¡°Sir Seryanna¡­¡± I said. ¡°What?¡± she asked me from the other side of the fire. ¡°Do you think I will be able to survive in this world?¡± I asked her. She remained silent for a long moment. ¡°You are too weak¡­¡± she replied. It was a very discouraging answer, especially when coming from someone like her, but I didn¡¯t let it get me down. As long as I had that 100 Luck and Dragon Tamer Skill, maybe there was still some hope for me yet. And this was how my first day in this strange, new world ended. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! :) Chapter 6: The Bloody Mushrooms Slowly opening my eyes, I stretched and forced my body to wake up. My mind was a bit confused as to where I was, but the memories of the previous days slowly flowed back, and I remembered I wasn¡¯t on Earth anymore. With a heavy sigh, I got up and scratched the back of my head. I yawned a bit and noticed that it was still dark outside. Oh yeah¡­ long nights. I remembered what Seryanna told me regarding the length of days and nights of this world. One thing was certain though, even if the bed wasn¡¯t that comfortable, I still slept for quite a few hours. Honestly speaking, I was expecting to wake up in the middle of the night to the sounds of a certain redheaded dragoness fighting giant black spiders. Seryanna didn¡¯t mention anything about waking up after a few hours and taking turns as a guard, probably because I was too weak right now to be of any help. If something attacked us, I would probably end up dying before reaching her tent and waking her up. As I stepped outside, I found the dragoness looking at the fire while holding her sheathed sword in her arms. The way it pressed between her breasts gave her a rather tempting look, and it tickled my imagination a bit, however, if I slipped a single word out, and she found out that I held such thoughts towards her, I was sure I was going to end up as mincemeat. ¡°Good morning, Seryanna.¡± I said with a smile. She immediately glared at me. Did I say anything wrong? I asked myself. ¡°That¡¯s Sir Seryanna.¡± she corrected me. ¡°Oh! Sorry, my apologies, milady.¡± I made a small bow. ¡°Your apologies are accepted, but don¡¯t let it happen again. I¡¯m neither your friend nor your lover to be called directly by my name.¡± she retorted. Achaaa! This is like the thing with the Japanese people, right? If you are a stranger, especially a foreigner, then you must always use honorifics to address others. I think ¡®san¡¯ was the general one ¡®chan¡¯ and ¡®kun¡¯ for female and male friends, respectively, and ¡®sama¡¯ for someone held in high regard, like a boss. Using no honorifics means a close relationship between the two, close to intimate or very good friends, and it must only be used if the other person allows you to. I think there was also a rule about first and last names. A friend can use the first name, but the last name with an honorific is the standard use for work colleagues or recently met people. Maybe I should ask her just in case? I thought and then took a seat on the chair placed on the other side of the fire. ¡°Sir Seryanna, is it alright for me to call you by your first name, or should I call you Sir Draketerus? I don¡¯t know which is the proper and respectful way to do so.¡± I asked with a humble tone of voice. She looked at me for a moment and then lowered her eyes to the fire. ¡°Sir Seryanna is fine. Draketerus is my family name, but if you add Sir to it, then it can be perceived as an offense unless spoken by a royal.¡± she explained calmly. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡± I said and then remained quiet. We were waiting for the sun to show up from its vacation. Another hour or so would pass by until then, but as far as I knew, it was utter madness to travel through the forest at night in a small group like ours, however, so far, no monsters appeared to have attacked us. The warding crystal was either very good or my Luck was to blame for it. Eventually, when the lazy sun made itself present, she packed camp, showing me how easily she could store any item in her purse. All she had to do was point the ring at the desired item and then chant something quickly. At the end of the chant, she added the name of the item as she perceived it. Unfortunately, I wasn¡¯t able to remember the chant no matter how many times she used it. For me, it appeared to be rather complicated, but when I asked her about it, she denied such a thing, stating that even children could use it. This only made me reach the conclusion that it may have had something to do with either the Hero passive skill or maybe that game-like interface I was using. ¡°We should be able to reach the Griffin area today.¡± she announced one hour after we left the camp site. ¡°I see¡­ Sery¡­ Sir Seryanna, do you make this trip often?¡± I asked her, seeing as she appeared to be rather familiar with the forest and the path to the Griffin nests. ¡°Yes. Once a week.¡± she told me. After I managed to get over a rather large tree, which she hoped over with ease, I asked her ¡°Why are these mushrooms so important?¡± She stopped in her tracks and looked back at me. After a moment, she told me with a calm yet serious tone of voice ¡°They are a necessary ingredient for the treatment used to cure my grandfather.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ But shouldn¡¯t you be able to buy that from a pharmacy?¡± I asked foolishly. Furrowing her brow, she looked at me and then asked ¡°Pharmacy? What is that?¡± ¡°Erm¡­ er¡­ Drug Store? Herbalist? Potion Store? Something like a combination of those three?¡± I replied trying to remember some old names used for the modern-day shop where you could get most of the pills you needed plus baby powder. ¡°No¡­¡± she shook her head ¡°My grandfather lives in a small town that¡¯s quite far from both a city with a herb farm and the capital. If I could, I would have bought it directly from there.¡± she told me. ¡°So, every week, you spend almost four to five days just searching for this mushroom?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes¡­ I never found more than one or two. Like I said, it¡¯s quite rare to find.¡± she lowered her head and closed her eyes for a moment. ¡°We should keep going¡­¡± she said when she opened her eyes. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded and tried to stay close to her, she walked fast. I wonder if this world has something like a cure-all plant I often saw in games¡­ Sigh, it would be nice to find it, then she wouldn¡¯t need to make this long trip every week. Still, I have to admit¡­ I¡¯m impressed. Four to five days a week journeying into this dangerous forest with the sole purpose of finding a mushroom to help cure her ill grandfather. I hope we will find more than just two of those mushrooms¡­ It will be nice, but what are the odds of that happening? I thought while trying to keep up with her. Not long after that, I found myself in front of a big boulder. Of course, she hoped right over it, but I had only two choices: climb it or walk around it. I chose the latter. Stepping on the ground carefully, I chose the left path. ¡°I¡¯m going around it!¡± I called out to her, hoping she wouldn¡¯t leave me behind. ¡°Humans are too weak¡­ You should be able to jump over something so small.¡± came her reply with a click of her tongue. Woman, it¡¯s almost 3 meters high! What am I? A kangaroo? I wanted to retort, but I let out a sigh and simply accepted the fact that she was a dragoness, and I was a small human. After I went past the boulder, I noticed something behind the tree right next to Seryanna. It was a beautiful and quite captivating yellow flower with a rather strange glow to it. The top petals formed small upside down bells, and the ones under it had a spiral shape with a white line crossing through the middle. It was so beautiful, you could stare at it for hours and not get bored with it, but from where Seryanna stood, it was completely invisible. Actually, I would go as far as to say that only by going across the big boulder next to me could you spot it. Strange¡­ I thought to myself as I walked closer to get a better look at it. Seryanna watched me stray away from the path and furrowing her brow, she approached me. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she asked. ¡°Look!¡± I pointed at the flower. Turning her head, she squinted her eyes and searched for it. When she spotted the plant, she made big eyes and gasped. From that reaction alone, I could tell that it had to be a rather valuable one. ¡°This is a very rare plant¡­ I don¡¯t know it¡¯s name, but I saw it once in an herbalist¡¯s shop¡­ It costs about 20 gold coins.¡± she told me. ¡°So, is it valuable?¡± I asked, pretending not to know. ¡°Yes, quite so.¡± she replied with a small nod of her head. Hm, Cha-Ching? It¡¯s Cha-Ching right? Yes! Cha-Ching! I was smiling on the inside. With that flower alone, I could get a decent start in this world, but then the next thought hit me. Rich and weak equals easy prey for thieves and bandits. I better not get too greedy or else I¡¯ll end up as dragon food. I thought and gulped. ¡°Should we take it?¡± I asked. ¡°If you wish.¡± she told me. ¡°Huh? If I wish?¡± I asked, blinking surprised. ¡°You are the one who found it. It¡¯s yours.¡± she straightened her back and nodded once as to reassert that she made a wise decision. ¡°But¡­ you were the one who¡¯s dragging my sorry behind through this dangerous forest.¡± I said quickly. ¡°Indeed, you are weakling, and I could claim this valuable flower as my own, but what is yours it¡¯s yours. I am honorable dragoness, not a human!¡± she claimed. That hurts¡­ I thought as I felt the stings of her hate. ¡°Sigh, very well¡­ But! If it turns out that you actually need this plant more than me, I¡¯ll give it to you as payment for taking care of me. Deal?¡± I asked. ¡°Very well. I won¡¯t decline.¡± she told me. With a smile, the deal was set and all that was left to do was to pick up the flower. She was the one who handled it, but she let me carry it. Instead of cutting it at the root, we picked up the root as well just to make sure that it wouldn¡¯t wilt by the time we returned. Thus, I gained my first item: an flower worth at least 20 gold coins of draconian currency. The rock between my toes didn¡¯t count¡­ I felt a bit weird carrying a pot in my hands, but Seryanna solved the problem by temporarily lending me a backpack. At first, I asked to use her [Purse], but she refused, saying that magical plants should never be carried in ordinary ¡®purses¡¯. To carry plants, I had to carry a special ring enchanted with the spell [Herbalist¡¯s Pouch]. The difference between the two was that the latter could actually carry only plants and seeds. It also had the special property of keeping magic plants safe and healthy by allowing the user to feed them with his own magic. We continued on our journey for another three hours, but at that point, Seryanna had to make a pit stop, so she made me wait in the middle of nowhere until she was done. I was a bit more rude and just used the first bush I stumbled upon. I instantly missed having soft toilet paper at my disposal. Big rough and itchy leafs weren¡¯t very pleasant to use. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. While I was waiting, I began to think back at my family and what they might be doing. It hadn¡¯t even been more than a day, and I already missed my home, soft bed, even my mother¡¯s yells for not taking out the trash. Father was probably calling every police station in the country by now unless the God-like actually didn¡¯t forget to let them know who exactly he brought to this world from the billions of humans on Earth. It was a bit hard to accept the fact that I would never see them again. I kept wondering if maybe there was a special spell I could use at one point. Still, if I made friends, found someone I loved, and made a life for myself here, would I try to return? That was a question that kept bothering me and which would probably would for a long time from now on. I should stop thinking about that for now¡­ I thought and then sighed. It would be quite bad if something attacked me while I was distracted by such thoughts¡­ Hm, it would be bad, but I do wonder just how strong I am compared to these monsters¡­ even the weakest among them. I also wish I could find out if Seryanna¡¯s kills actually add to my XP, but so far, we had yet to encounter even small critters. Maybe it¡¯s thanks to Seryanna¡¯s threatening presence? I can barely feel it now. Maybe I got used to it. Speaking of which, are we considered a party? Ah! I better stop all this useless thinking and keep my eyes and ears sharp before something actually jumps on me! I shook my head and straightened up bit. Sir Seryanna returned when she was done and continued to walk ahead of me without saying a word. I don¡¯t believe that would have been a good time for a pick up line, so with the flower pot in my backpack and my mouth shut, I followed her. For another hour, the scenery didn¡¯t change by much. The same type of rocks, same type of moss, same type of dirt, and same type of big trees like those found deep in the Amazon forest, but about ten times sturdier. There wasn¡¯t any sign of wild life though, not even those huge spiders Seryanna claimed to be infesting the forest. I was beginning to wonder if she was just making that up or if by ¡®infested¡¯ she meant ¡®one for every 10 square kilometers¡¯. ¡°Grrr!¡± the growling came from behind me. I gulped and slowly turned around. ¡°Erm¡­ Ser¡­ Seryanna?¡± I called out. In front of me stood a three meters tall black wolf. Sharp, black teeth threatened to rip me to shreds. Red, piercing eyes warned me that I could never run away from its gaze. Strong muscles and powerful paws that ended with sharp, black claws told me that I couldn¡¯t fight it. It¡¯s shiny, black fur made out of thin metal wires told me that I couldn¡¯t defeat the monster before me. ¡°GRRR!¡± the beast raised the volume of its growl. I stumbled back and fell on my behind. I was frozen in fear, and my body didn¡¯t react to my brain¡¯s urges to make a run for it. A single move, a single pounce was all the beast needed in order to slash me to pieces . ¡°Ser¡­ Seryanna¡­ help me¡­¡± I managed to squeal, but it felt like I could barely speak at all, like I was whispering. Did she hear me? What if she didn¡¯t hear me? Seryanna! HELP! I called out in my mind, but my lips barely moved. ¡°ROAR!¡± The beast opened its jaws, showing me those black teeth and sharp red tongue. ¡°HYA!¡± shouted Seryanna as she cut the air in front of the monster. The wolf jumped back and let out a threatening growl, but the dragoness didn¡¯t flinch. She glared at the beast and then dashed towards it. The wolf opened its jaws and sprayed something towards her, but the attack missed the target. The plants touched by that substance immediately showed signs of corrosion and wilting. Chanting something quick, she pointed her hand at the wolf and a fireball with a 5 cm diameter formed at the center of her palm. She shot it straight at the beast, but it dodged to the left. The fireball exploded and to avoid the blinding light, the wolf closed its eyes for a moment. Seryanna was waiting for that exact moment, and with a single slash of her sword, she cut the wolf in half, right where its heart was. It couldn¡¯t even yelp anymore. The two halves fell on the ground and twitched for a few more seconds before they laid still in a pool of dark blood. ¡°Are you alright?¡± she asked me once, but I didn¡¯t reply. Only when she did so for the second time did I realize that she was talking to me, and also that she was about to slap me. ¡°I¡¯m fine! Please don¡¯t hit me!¡± I said raising my hands up. ¡°Hmph! So it seems. I didn¡¯t expect the wolf¡¯s stare to affect you this much. You are weak.¡± she told me as she walked off. It hurt to be called weak, but what was I supposed to do? My Dragon Tamer skill wasn¡¯t doing me any good until I actually made a dragon my friend. So far, it seemed like I would be making lots of enemies, especially if Seryanna was a template for typical draconian behavior and attitude towards humans. ¡°Wh-what about the body? Aren¡¯t we going to skin it or something?¡± I asked as I followed her. ¡°It¡¯s a Corrupted Spike Wolf. Its fur is made out of metal needles, its flesh is poisonous, but its claws and teeth are about two silver coins each.¡± she told me, but looking back, I saw she left the beast intact. ¡°So, is it alright to leave it like that?¡± I asked again. ¡°That one was a weak scout. Once the pack senses that it has gone missing, it will follow its scent. Upon discovery, they will feast on the wolf¡¯s remains. If when we return we will find the teeth and claws intact, I will pluck them out.¡± she explained and then urged me to walk a bit faster. With a silent nod, I followed her, but looking back, it made sense. In a game, you could instantly loot the corpse of a monster, but in reality, it was a rather long and laborious process not just anyone could pull it off. Thinking about it, maybe Seryanna didn¡¯t know how to properly skin the wolf or acquire other parts. In general, gathering skills are rather good for making a few extra coins. Combat is usually the primary thing, so maybe¡­ hm¡­ Maybe the first thing I need to learn is something related to gathering? Mining, skinning, and herbology should be basic skills. No, I can¡¯t be sure the names will be the same, I¡¯ll have to be REALLY careful this time. For all I know, that idiot God-like being could have named it: Potato Salad¡­ I thought while following Seryanna on the path towards the mysterious Bloody Mushrooms. Out of curiosity, I looked at my stats to see if being near the wolf when it died granted me any XP at all. Unfortunately, I was still at level 1. Nothing changed. For the next hour or so, I kept praying to find those mushrooms faster, for them to be plenty enough to satisfy the grumpy dragoness, and most importantly, that no monster attacked us on the way there. Becoming monster chow wasn¡¯t on my To Do list for this world. I wanted to get out of the forest as quick as I could, find a noob town and then slowly raise my level. Hm, if Seryanna were to become my friend, then she might be willing to help me raise my level. Nah! I¡¯m sure that if I ask her, she¡¯ll point the sharp sword at me and then go: Me use pointy thing and stabby stab stab you till you bleedy bleed bleed! Or something like that¡­ I thought and the let out a sign. Ten minutes later, I stopped in my tracks and asked her. ¡°Hey, Sir Seryanna? How many of those mushrooms you said you usually found?¡± I asked her. ¡°One or two. Why?¡± she asked me as she stopped and looked back at me, I wasn¡¯t looking at her, but at a small clearing dyed in red from all the blood spilled on it. ¡°I think I found a few¡­¡± I said and pointed at the clearing. On the other side, at the base of the huge trees, hundreds of those mushrooms were waiting for us to pick them up. They were surrounded by white bones dropped there by the monsters called griffins from their nests up in the trees. There were a lot of them surrounding the small opening, but there was no sign of the actual beasts in them or in the skies above us. The area was clear. ¡°You¡­ You found them¡­¡± said Seryanna. Looking at her, I was about to say something, but her expression caught me off guard. Soft tears formed in the corners of her eyes. Her gaze had softened, and a smile finally adorned her beautiful lips. The Seryanna in front of me looked gentle, pure, quite different from the battle-hardened knight she portrayed until now. If I dare to say, she showed me a rather humane side to her. Badump! My heart skipped a beat, and I gulped. ¡°So much¡­ Alkelios, you found so much¡­ With this, my grandfather could be cured¡­¡± she told me through her tears, but she didn¡¯t bother to wipe them off. She let them flow over her soft cheeks and around her gentle smile. ¡°Yes, but I didn¡¯t do much¡­¡± I said, but I could feel my cheeks and the tips of my ears turning red from staring at her for so long. Looking away, I shook my head and closed my eyes for a moment. Pull it together, Alkelios! Don¡¯t fall for her! Don¡¯t fall for her! I thought to myself. Jumping to conclusions and letting my heart be swayed by her charming smile and rather gentle side to her wasn¡¯t something I wanted to end up doing. I had to remember that she was a draconian woman who hated humans. She might have accepted my presence for now, but there was no telling how she would behave once we returned to civilization. I had to keep my head straight and heart unchained by her charms. I let out a sigh and then turned around. She wasn¡¯t there anymore. She was gone. Blinking surprised, I first looked left and then right. I spotted her out there, in the middle of the clearing. With a serious look in her eyes, she approached the mushrooms. The dragoness had regained her composure. ¡°Ah! Wait up!¡± I called out and went after her. We found the mushrooms. All that was left now was to pick them up and then head back to her town, back to civilization. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! :) Chapter 7: Friendship The Bloody Mushroom wasn¡¯t categorized as a Magic Plant, so Seryanna was able to pick up and store as many as she desired inside her [Purse], however, she didn¡¯t take more than twenty. A lot more were left behind, but from what she explained, that much was enough to help cure her grandfather. The disease he suffered from was curable, but if left untreated, it could prove fatal. I also carried two of those mushrooms in my backpack, just in case something happened to the ring. Although Seryanna highly doubted such a possibility, it did happen before, so she didn¡¯t want to see a repeat of her past experience. When I asked her about the full story, she simply glared at me and kept silent. It must have been a rather embarrassing one as far as I could guess. Once we finished picking up those mushrooms, we heard the calls of the Griffins announcing their return to their nests. We hurried out of there because if they saw us snooping around, they would have attacked us. Seryanna was confident in her strength and didn¡¯t doubt that she could defeat them, but she needed them alive in order to procure more mushrooms in the future. About one hour after we left the clearing, we took a small break and checked the state of the mushrooms. Seeing so many of them brought a smile on the dragoness¡¯ lips. ¡°On our way back¡­ erm¡­ should I try looking for any other plants which we could sell or use?¡± I asked her. She furrowed her brow and thought about it for a moment. ¡°Yes, we probably should. Hm, look for¡­¡± she stopped and looked as though she remembered something important. ¡°I forgot to harvest the Cupula Flower¡­ Remind me when we get back there.¡± she told me. ¡°Sure. So, what should I look for?¡± I asked her. ¡°Hm, if you see anything interesting, please let me know. I may not recognize all the plants around here, but there are some I know for sure. We can bring the others to the herbalist in town.¡± she explained the plan. ¡°Alright!¡± I said with a smile. Once the break was over, we continued our journey through the forest, but this time, our objective was reaching the exit and returning to civilization. The gathered plants on the way were supposed to be a delightful bonus. Of course, that was unless we managed to pick up only poisonous and useless ones. As I walked, I wondered if we could indeed find some good plants and hoped they wouldn¡¯t be as expensive as the golden one in my backpack. If I were to pick, I would have desired to find something that can be sold easily for a few silver coins or used for a potion or two. I had no idea what sort of potions could be made, but judging by the blue crystal Seryanna used to ward off the spiders, I guessed some of them were used to infuse semiprecious stones and offer them magical properties. ¡°I think I found something!¡± I said at one point when I saw a dark-green fern. The difference between it and the other ferns was in the shape of the leafs as well as it¡¯s darker color. ¡°What?¡± the dragoness asked. ¡°That!¡± I pointed at it. After a quick look, she picked it up and placed it in my backpack. ¡°What do you think it is?¡± I asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s different, and you found it.¡± she told me bluntly. By the time we were ready to set up camp, I found a few types of mushrooms, some other plants, including a Cupula Flower and a Rosiette. The latter one was a tiny, red, bell flower which was used in high-grade healing potions. It was interesting to see so many different types of plants with so many possible uses. Honestly speaking, I was wondering if any of those could even cure cancer or if the healing potions handled that. If among all those 10 million people a doctor from our world was brought, then maybe they were already making breakthroughs in medicine. One thing I found interesting was the fact that I could stay up for more than 20 hours without feeling tired at all. It was strange, but that time felt the equivalent of 14 or 15 hours back on Earth, but thinking about it logically, I did travel for quite a distance and didn¡¯t feel that tired. Maybe that God-like did something to me? I asked myself as I was helping Seryanna set up the camp. ¡°Is it normal for humans to stay awake for more than 20 hours?¡± I asked the dragoness after we sat down in front of the camp fire. She looked at me for a moment and then shrugged. ¡°I do not know how humans work. Since you can, maybe?¡± she told me and then took out some spider meat to cook over the fire. ¡°Is that so¡­ I guess you haven¡¯t seen too many humans around¡­¡± I said hugging my knees and looking down at the embers inside the bustling flames. ¡°You are the first, but I have heard of your kind from many. Your knights never keep their word. Your kings never think of their people. Your nobles enslave others. Your peasants never dare to rise up above their meager conditions. You are pirates at seas and infidels towards your own wives. Your armies pillage and rape wherever they set foot.¡± she explained harshly as she looked at me with squinted eyes. ¡°You hate me too?¡± I asked her directly. She didn¡¯t answer, but I could tell she was struggling a bit with the idea. I didn¡¯t exactly fit the normal definition of a human. It¡¯s sink or swim now, isn¡¯t it? I thought as I decided to make the first move. I got up, walked around the fire and sat down next to her. ¡°What?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. I looked into her eyes and put on a serious expression. ¡°Besides breathing, have I done anything to earn your hate?¡± I asked. She blinked surprised. ¡°N-No¡­¡± she replied stuttering a bit. ¡°Then, you don¡¯t hate me, right?¡± ¡°N-no, but I don¡¯t like you either.¡± she declared. ¡°It¡¯s normal. We just know each other for a few days¡­ I¡¯m not an idiot to think that you would fall for me so quickly!¡± I shook my head. ¡°W-What are you t-talking about? A dragon would never fall for a human like you!¡± she declared, but her cheeks were already catching a bit of pink in color. Is she embarrassed? I thought. ¡°Why? Just because I¡¯m a human?¡± I asked squinting my eyes at her. ¡°YES!¡± she shouted. It hurt a bit, but hate towards my species was normal, especially if they acted like a racist and xenophobic bunch. Even back on Earth, humans usually hated each other for simply being a bit different. It didn¡¯t really matter what color your skin was, where you worked, what console you liked, or to what god you prayed to, in the end, only one difference was required to earn you the full hate of an entire group. Anyone who was weaker than that group wouldn¡¯t dare move against it either out of fear of being targeted by their hate or to avoid looking bad in the eyes of others. If I were to give an example, maybe the way bullies acted? I never was bullied in school, but there were a few who threw their cold glares my way just because I didn¡¯t like a certain artist with the name of an appetizer. It wasn¡¯t my fault I found the heavy metal and rap genres far better than manele. Well, getting back to the story, I was faced with a dilemma. If she truly hated the human species, and the way she characterized them was the general view, then I had absolutely no chance of gaining any friends for my ability unless I proved that I wasn¡¯t like that. But how? I thought as I looked in her charming dark-brown eyes. My heart skipped a beat for a moment, and I clenched my fists. ¡°I don¡¯t believe it.¡± I told her. ¡°What?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. ¡°If I am such a pest, such a destructive insect in your eyes, if I am not worth breathing, if I am what you believe I am, then¡­¡± I knelt before her. ¡°raise your sword and cut me down!¡± I shouted. She flinched. I am so going to end up dead! Stupid brain! You watched too much anime! I shouted in my mind, but I was frightened of the possibility of ending up killed just like that. Technically speaking, we were in the middle of the forest. There was no one for miles who could pin my murder on her, but if the other dragons saw me in the same manner, then without her help, I was bound to end up dead. ¡°Cut you down? Are you mad?¡± she asked me a bit annoyed by the thought of doing the deed. ¡°Maybe, who knows?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I will not cut you down, rest assured!¡± she declared and looked away. ¡°Then you don¡¯t hate me! Yes!¡± I said with a gleam of joy on my face. ¡°W-What? I guess so¡­¡± she said blinking a bit confused. ¡°This means that I still have a chance with you!¡± I showed her a big smile. ¡°What? Do you even know what you are saying? I¡¯m a dragon! I¡¯m a knight!¡± she said grabbing me by the collar of my clothes and glared at me. ¡°And you are beautiful too. Do you think I care about you being a knight or a dragon?¡± I asked her as I looked defiantly in her eyes. Oh God! Please don¡¯t kill me! Please don¡¯t kill me! On second thought, God, please don¡¯t let me soil myself! I whimpered in my mind. If she pulled me up and forced me to stand, I might have fallen to my knees because this dragoness was emitting quite the killing aura. I felt like a man at a beauty convention who just told all the girls there that they looked a bit chubby, or my father, who once commented on how bad grandma¡¯s soup tasted when she was right there behind him. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°GRRR!¡± she seriously growled at me. ¡°You know, you might be right about most humans being like that, but could someone without a status, money, or power, a weakling like myself dares to speak such words to one such as you? I have no way of fighting against you and even if I could, I wouldn¡¯t! Even if I had the power to conquer continents, I wouldn¡¯t! Even if our roles were reversed, I wouldn¡¯t force myself upon you! I am not like THOSE humans!¡± I declared with my fist clenched, eyes locked with hers, but feet trembling like there was no tomorrow. ¡°GRRR!¡± she growled again at me. Aya? Am I dead now? I¡¯m dead¡­ I¡¯m certain about it¡­ I thought and tried hard to think of what else to say. ¡°A relationship between me and you isn¡¯t impossible!¡± I shouted and closed my eyes. I waited for my imminent doom, but nothing happened. Am I dead yet? I asked myself. Opening an eye, I saw Seryanna blushing and looking down. Is she embarrassed? I thought. ¡°You¡­¡± she said and looked up at me. ¡°Do you have any idea what you are saying? Humans and dragons are mortal enemies¡­ I never even heard of a human liking anything else except elves, dwarfs, or maybe one of the beast kin. Even then, their kingdoms and fellow humans forbid it!¡± she told me. ¡°Well, I¡¯m pretty sure they are just jealous.¡± I joked. ¡°Grrr!¡± she growled at me and then let me go. ¡°Listen, I¡¯m not an idiot, I know a romantic relationship would be rushing into things¡­ Besides, I don¡¯t know if you like someone or not.¡± I said and sighed. I scratched the back of my head and continued to speak ¡°My point is that I do like you, I find you attractive, although not yet in a romantic way. I hold some respect towards you because of your strength, devotion and honor. That being said, I don¡¯t think it would be bad if we were friends? Hearing what you just said about humans, I¡¯m starting to wonder if I should even attempt to go back there, maybe I¡¯m better off here, you know? But if that¡¯s so, I can¡¯t do it alone, I need people to help me out because I¡¯m an idiot when it comes to many things. I need friends.¡± Seryanna listened carefully and looked into my eyes for any hint of me lying to her. She held a serious look on her face, but so far, she wasn¡¯t willing to reach for her blade. A single swipe would have been more than enough to cut off my head or simply injure me and leave me at the mercy of the wild monsters all around that forest. ¡°Are you an idiot?¡± she asked and then her expression softened a bit. ¡°Maybe I am one too.¡± she sighed ¡°For a moment there, I thought you were going to confess to me¡­¡± she looked relieved. ¡°Yeah, too early for that. I¡¯m still hoping for you to confess to me.¡± I joked, showing her a small smile. ¡°Like that will ever happen!¡± she giggled. ¡°Still, I¡¯m glad you aren¡¯t mad at me or thinking of killing me.¡± Raising an eyebrow at me, she asked ¡°Mad, I am a bit about you thinking that I would kill the one who helped me find the mushroom for my grandfather.¡± ¡°Oh! I completely forgot about that¡­ I thought you would have found them anyway.¡± I told her. She shook her head and showed me a small smile ¡°I think I passed by that place more times than I could count, but I never thought of searching there. You even found so many other herbs as well. I actually don¡¯t deny the fact that without you, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to finish my journey so fast!¡± ¡°No way! I¡¯m sure it¡¯s just luck that I¡­¡± I stopped and blinked surprised. Could it be? I thought for a moment. ¡°Luck or not, it doesn¡¯t matter. You were there, and you helped me. That¡¯s what matters to me. As for the other thing, I actually never heard of a human acting as friendly as you do towards another species. Maybe those stories never reached my ears, but I do find it quite strange. You aren¡¯t threatening either. You are weaker than a bunny.¡± she giggled. In my mind, I was looking at a movie that showed a cute little fuzzy bunny with 20 points of strength beating the hell out of me. I had the feeling that it was quite possible for that to happen. Then again, what if a bunny was actually the name of a vicious man eating monster? ¡°Then are you willing to protect this foolish little human against the ferocious bunny, Sir Seryanna?¡± I asked with a small bow. ¡°Maybe? But if you turn out to be like those foolish humans I kept hearing about, I¡¯m going to be the one hunting you down!¡± she smirked at me. ¡°I understand. So does this mean I can be your friend?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe?¡± she giggled. I got up and made a half bow with one leg in front of me, imitating a true gentleman. ¡°Sir Seryanna, will you be willing to be my friend?¡± I asked. She smiled and nodded. ¡°Yes.¡± [DING!] [You have made a new friend: Seryanna Draketerus] ¡°What-What¡¯s this?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°What¡¯s what?¡± I asked. ¡°Can¡¯t you see it?¡± she asked pointing at something invisible in front of her eyes. Could it be? I asked myself. ¡°A floating message¡­¡± she told me. ¡°What does it say?¡± I asked. ¡°Ah! It¡¯s gone now.¡± she blinked surprised. ¡°Is that some kind of spell?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm, probably my skill¡­¡± I told her. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of such a skill, but it said something weird. That I¡¯m your friend now, and I will be getting stronger two times faster. How can that be possible?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Well, my ability allows me to help my friends grow stronger much faster than usual. I don¡¯t think it works unless we consider each other friends. You can call it a bonus of our relationship.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°This is a very powerful ability you have¡­¡± she said with a nod. ¡°Yup!¡± I smiled and nodded. ¡°So this is what you were after all along?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Part of it, but being your friend after what we¡¯ve been through doesn¡¯t sound too bad now, does it?¡± ¡°You have a strange way of making friends. A simple ¡®do you want to be my friend?¡¯ would have sufficed. Next time, don¡¯t ask for them to be your mate, just ask them that.¡± she sighed. ¡°Noted! But yeah, I just panicked a bit¡­ Sorry!¡± I apologized. ¡°No need. I found it funny! Usually, males come to me with such words only when it¡¯s mating season. Afterwards, they completely forget about it.¡± she told me with a shrug. ¡°I¡¯m a human, therefore, I¡¯m in heat all year round!¡± I laughed. She squinted her eyes and took a step away from me. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Seryanna, I¡¯m not going to attack you, but don¡¯t hate me if I fall in love with you.¡± I smiled. She blushed. ¡°Stupid¡­¡± she looked away and then blinked surprised. ¡°AH! The meat! I forgot about it!¡± she said as she rushed to pull the nearly burned meat away from the fire. After we ate, I went to bed, but not before I checked out my stats. I remembered that I gained 25% of the stats of each Dragon Friend I made. [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 1 [Strength]: 11+313.5 [Speed]: 10+247 [Dexterity]: 11+251 [Magic]: 12+188.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+6.75% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 0 [Stat Points]: 0 My first reaction when I saw the status screen was: Would you look at that? I gained two points in strength and two in magic! Yay! My original stats looked like a joke when compared to the bonus I got from Seryanna, unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t see her stats yet, but from what I could guess, they were probably at the following values: [Name]: Seryanna Draketerus [Species]: Dragon [Level]: ??? [Strength]: 1254 [Speed]: 988 [Dexterity]: 1004 [Magic]: 754 [Luck]: ??? [Magic Excellence]: 27% ______ Note from the author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! By the way, at the end, those aren''t actually Seryanna''s stats that Alkelios sees in her status window, just what he guesses they might be. Hence the ??? for [Luck] and [Level]. :) Chapter 8: The cats out of the bag! Once again, morning greeted me with a dark sky outside, but for the first time in two days, I felt a terrible pain rushing through my body. It wasn¡¯t too bad, more like the feeling I got after pushing myself too hard at the gym. My muscles were rejoicing when I moved, but at the same time, they were cursing me for daring to move. The good ol¡¯ muscle fever was a paradoxical sensation, which felt rather good. Getting up from my simple bed, a blanket spread across a patch of grass, I crawled out of the tent and stretched my arms and legs a bit. The refreshing feeling rushed over me immediately and then was followed by pain. I groaned a bit and shook my hands and legs, hoping to get rid of it, no chance though. It wasn¡¯t to the point where I was allowed to complain about it, but it was a bit annoying. It might have had something to do with my stats rising drastically or the fact that I walked for such a long distance. There was no sign of injury on my feet though, no scars or blisters as one would expect, which made this pain even more strange. I decided to ask Seryanna about it, but it was then when I noticed that I was alone in the camp. There was no sign to be seen of the beautiful dragoness. Looking around, I blinked surprised and wondered Where could she be? Nature called? I shrugged and walked over to the burning fire. Using a stick, I stoked it a bit and waited patiently for her return. Another five minutes passed, and there was still no sign of her. The thought that she abandoned me here crossed my mind, however, her chest armor, leather gloves, arm guards, and shin guards were still there. If she left, there was no reason for her to abandon her armor like that. What I thought next was that something might have happened to her. A chill ran down my spine while I thought about it. No way! That can¡¯t be! I thought as I looked around and then called out to her ¡°SERYANNA?!¡± I waited¡­ and waited, but no answer came back. Gulping, I clenched my fists and prayed to whatever god was out there and listened to me to help me find her and that she was safe and sound. Without a second thought and half afraid for my own life, I rushed into the forest. ¡°SERYANNA?!¡± I shouted again. There was no sign of her in that direction, so I turned left. I couldn¡¯t run too far away from the warding crystal, otherwise the monsters would attack me. By then, I had forgotten about the pain in my legs, I just wanted to find her safe and sound. ¡°SERYANNA?!¡± I shouted again as I jumped through a bush. My pulse kept going up alongside my fears. My thoughts quickly went into the dark side of my imagination as I thought about what could have happened to her, and what might happen to me if she happened to be dead or heavily injured. The boost I got from becoming her friend might have been great, but it was still only 25% of her total stats. I wasn¡¯t an idiot, I realized that for a level 1 that was something incredible and probably none of the humans from Earth could reach these sort of values without another cheat-like ability. Even so, was it enough for me to face the monsters lurking in this forest? I doubted it. I highly doubted it. ¡°SERYAN¡­ Omph!¡± I shouted, but then I bumped into something. I was knocked back and landed on my behind. My hands hurt for some reason, but it was too dark to realize what was going on. If I hit something sharp, it was a good thing I was running with my hands up and protected my face from danger, but my chest also hurt a bit. ¡°Ouch!¡± I said as I moved my hand over my arm. Color left my cheeks upon realizing that I had something stuck in me. Wherever it hurt and stung, I had something sharp like a needle or spike impaled into my flesh. Blood poured out of my freshly made wounds, and the realization that I got injured rushed to my mind. I was frightened. I was terrified. ¡°HISS!¡± The sound sent a chill down my spine and forced me to look up. What I saw wasn¡¯t a snake or a slithering critter, but an eight legged shadow. It was quite dark, but even with the little light I had, I could tell it was a spider. You have got to be kidding me! I was looking for a hot dragoness not a freakish-looking, eight-legged monster! Hm? Wait a sec¡­ It can¡¯t be, right? I thought and then after gulping, I asked ¡°Seryanna? Is that you?¡± The monster hissed and raised its front legs up. It was the sign that told me it would attack. I remembered it from a documentary show I watched once on a TV streaming website. It was the first warning every arachnid gave off. Some even raised their bodies on their back legs to appear bigger to a potential enemy. ¡°HISS!¡± ¡°I¡¯m dead¡­¡± I thought and right then, I saw another shadow jumping at the spider, and one of its giant legs fell off. The spider hissed and attacked the other shadow. I tried to follow it, but it moved too fast. Even with my increased stats, I was not yet used to controlling my power. There were moments when I felt like I recognized the one fighting, but there were others when I saw nothing but a blur. In the end, the battle was won in darkness, and only the later shadow came out victorious. At that time, I only stood there like a statue, not daring to move nor cry for help. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Seryanna¡¯s voice came from the shadow. I blinked and realized it was her. The beautiful dragoness saved me again. ¡°Seryanna! Praise the Heavens!¡± I cried as I jumped towards her and hugged her tightly. ¡°You¡¯re alive! You¡¯re alive! I saw you were gone and then¡­ I thought you died and this thing¡­ it jumped out and¡­¡± I said while pressing my face onto her chest. ¡°Alkelios! I¡¯m alright, now please¡­ let me go! This is embarrassing¡­¡± she said as she looked away. I blinked surprised and looked up at her. ¡°What is?¡± I asked like a dolt. ¡°Are you blind? I¡¯m¡­¡± she tried to say, but her voice sounded strange. That darkness was keeping me from seeing too well, however, I realized through touch alone what she meant. My cheeks weren¡¯t touching cloth, but skin. I wasn¡¯t embracing a lightly dressed woman, but a half naked one. Seryanna wasn¡¯t wearing anything on her top, and her hair was wet too. ¡°Huh?¡± I said surprised, but didn¡¯t jump back immediately. ¡°I was taking a shower, then I heard you screaming like a frightened little girl and came rushing to your help. I saw the white spider aiming for your life, and I killed it¡­ Now, please¡­ can you let go of me? If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll hit you!¡± she warned me. ¡°Ah! Sorry, it felt a bit too good to hug you like that.¡± I said bluntly. ¡°Stupid¡­¡± she blushed and looked away. Or at least, I thought she did. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I can barely see anything! Aaand now I remembered that I got stabbed by needles¡­ YOUCH!¡± I screamed as my brain finally started to process the pain of those needles moving around in me, especially when I hugged Seryanna. ¡°Sigh¡­ Let me finish up, and I¡¯ll take them out for you. Meanwhile, go in that direction. You will find the camp.¡± she told me as she pushed me in the right way. ¡°Thank you¡­¡± I said as I looked back. She wasn¡¯t covering her top, but thanks to dim light and dark shadows, I could barely see the beauty of those treasures. Even so, it would have been bad if I kept staying there like that, but I had to admit, she really did scare me. Her being gone scared me more than that spider did, but if I had to guess why, it was probably because I felt like we were closer now as friends. Even though I was the weaker one, I worried for her. After I got back to the camp, I realized the horror of my current state. I had white, chitinous, sharp needles sticking out of me like spikes on the back of a porcupine. Some were buried in my flesh rather deeply and hurt bad. I feared the possibility of an internal bleeding, but it was surprising that it hurt only so little. Gulping, I grabbed hold of one of the impaled needles in my right side and pulled. The razor-sharp pain climbed fast on my nerves and bombarded my brain. I grimaced and cringed my teeth, but the struggle was not over yet. There were more, and I had to get them all out one by one. When it was all over, my body was aching all over both from the pain of my injuries and that of my muscle fever. The bleeding wasn¡¯t bad, but I had to stop it somehow, however, before I got the chance to look around for something to use as a temporary bandage, I heard a rustle behind me. Turning around, I saw Seryanna coming out of the dark forest, carrying behind her what could only be described as a white, giant, harry tarantula. It was dead, and a white substance was oozing out of its wounds. As for the beautiful dragoness, with just one glance, she made me gulp. Her long, red hair was soaked in water, her body a bit wet, allowing her thin blouse to stick to her skin, giving a perfect contour to her big chest. Instead of a bra, she was wearing a piece of cloth tightly wrapped up around her breasts, squeezing them a bit, but at the same time hiding more of her natural beauty. On thing was certain, I still could remember the soft, pleasant touch of her bare skin when I hugged her earlier. At that moment, there was no cloth to hide her away, and my imagination could only make me wonder if her bottom was also left uncovered. I probably caught her right when she was in the middle of bathing. ¡°You are staring.¡± she told me squinting her eyes and covering her chest with the hand she held her sword with. I was drooling a bit too, but that was only man¡¯s natural instinct, there was no fault in that! ¡°Sorry¡­ you just¡­ you are very beautiful.¡± I said and turned around to hide my blushing cheeks. ¡°Thank you¡­¡± she said softly and then proceeded to drag the carcass of the spider closer to the fire. I kept still and waited for her to be finish up or cover herself some more, but what she did was walk over to me. Taking my hand, she began to look at my injuries and glanced over at the spikes on the ground. Meanwhile, I was trying to focus my eyes on something else but her chest. For someone of my age, I had quite a bit of restraint, but the one thing that probably kept me from acting like a fool was the following thought I kept repeating in my mind: Don¡¯t look, don¡¯t dare, don¡¯t try. She hates humans, remember that! Don¡¯t be a jerk! Don¡¯t be an idiot! Don¡¯t do something to lose her friendship! If she¡¯s gone, you die. If she hates you and the friendship is dissolved, you lose the massive boost of stats! Remember: you are in the friend zone! You are in the friend zone! ¡°Drink this.¡± she suddenly told me. Looking back at her, I saw her holding an opened small bottle with a red substance inside of it. There was no doubt about it, that was the well-known healing potion I saw in plenty of games before. With a bit of hesitation, I brought the red liquid to my lips and drank the whole thing in one gulp. It was bitter as Hell! The games were wrong, they were so wrong! Potions didn¡¯t taste good, they tasted so bad I wished I didn¡¯t have a tongue! ¡°Ugh¡­ the taste¡­¡± I groaned as I handed the bottle back. The injuries inflicted upon me by the needles began to heal rather quickly. The pain was gone too, and by the looks of things, I was going to be all better in just a couple of minutes from now. ¡°Of course it tastes bad, it¡¯s made out of Blood Cow Pee.¡± she said. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. Say what now? I thought. ¡°PEE?¡± I asked raising the tone of my voice a bit. Furrowing her brow, she looked at me as though she didn¡¯t understand what was wrong. ¡°You made me drink cow pee?¡± I asked baffled and immediately felt like gagging up. ¡°Yes¡­¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Wait, not pee, but pea.¡± she explained. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Huh?¡± I didn¡¯t understand. Letting out a sigh, she opened her purse and took out something from there, it was a small, red seed. I looked at it curiously. ¡°This is a Blood Cow Pea.¡± she told me. ¡°Huh? Oh! PEA!¡± I said and then laughed. She giggled and placed the seed back in her purse. ¡°You are funny. Why would you even believe I would let you drink something as disgusting as that?¡± she asked me while taking a seat next to the fire. I sat down next to her, crossing my legs and throwing away a pesky pebble. ¡°The two sound so similar, it was an honest mistake!¡± I defended myself, but I had to wonder though, why was that actually so? I thought in Romanian and spoke in Romanian, but the language she was speaking sounded completely different. Technically speaking, I wasn¡¯t supposed to make such a mistake, the two words sounded completely different. I did find it a bit funny that I noticed it only until now. ¡°Hey, Seryanna, what language are we speaking in right now?¡± I asked her. ¡°Eastern Draconic, why?¡± she replied and squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Really?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, and I have to say, I¡¯m surprised a human like you can actually speak it so well, that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t really believe at first that you were a human.¡± she explained. ¡°Oh, true, true. You didn¡¯t actually believe me at first that I was a human.¡± I said with a smile as I remembered he incident. ¡°Indeed. You speak perfect draconian, and it¡¯s not so unusual to meet other dragons who in their sealed form, or when they are young, they look exactly like humans do.¡± she explained. ¡°So, most dragons actually look similar to humans? How can you usually tell yourself apart?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm, before I answer to that, tell me why a human like you can speak my language so well. You even seem surprised by this as well. Also, I¡¯m starting to doubt you actually came here because of a teleportation accident. Your skill and your ability to understand my language so perfectly aren¡¯t something you gain from something like that, it doesn¡¯t make sense!¡± she explained shaking her head. ¡°I see¡­ The cat¡¯s out of the bag. Well, you were bound to find out sooner or later, you are my very first friend in this world, after all. I do have to say though, you are a very beautiful and very powerful first friend!¡± I smiled and pushed in a compliment just to make her feel better and not decide to cut me into pieces for lying. ¡°Thank you, but please¡­ the truth.¡± she told me, but I did notice the small blush changing the color of her cheeks. My compliment worked. ¡°Well then, I am indeed a human, but I¡¯m not from this world. I was brought her by a God-like entity. Don¡¯t ask me his name ¡¯cause I don¡¯t know it¡­ Well, ten million of us were brought here to be exact.¡± I began to explain. ¡°T-Ten million? That¡¯s an invasion! The king has to know about this!¡± she said as she got up. ¡°Wait a second! Wait! I¡¯m probably the only idiot who landed here! Most of them are probably deep within the human continent fighting weak monsters.¡± I told her. ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. ¡°The God-like entity offered us some unique abilities, but each has a different one. I have no idea what sort of abilities they have or if there are individuals stronger than me or not. Honestly speaking, I think I got quite the boost thanks to you. Also, just you alone could probably defeat them before they got a chance to even use a single spell.¡± I explained and shrugged. ¡°I see¡­ so they are all a bunch of weaklings.¡± she said and sat back down next to me. ¡°Compared to you, quite so. The God-like did warn us not to step on the dragon continent though. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s because of this war between our species.¡± ¡°That might be so. The relationship between the dragon kingdoms and the human ones is quite tense at the moment. Although we are in a cease fire, a war could break out at any given moment.¡± she explained. ¡°Yes, so¡­ my abilities, if I can call them that¡­ are a maxed out Luck stat and a skill called Dragon Tamer.¡± I told her, and she immediately squinted her eyes at me. ¡°What is a stat?¡± she asked. Blinking surprised, I told her ¡°Erm, stat points? From leveling? You know, when you kill something, you gain experience and then you level up and get stat points and skill points?¡± I told her. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± she shook her head once ¡°When we kill something, their life force and some of their Magic Energy is absorbed by us, but experience is something earned through battle. We grow strong by fighting. Life force makes us powerful and the more we absorb, the more powerful we are. I never heard of anyone having these levels and skill points.¡± she explained. ¡°What?¡± I looked at her confused and then thought back at what the God-like told us. I couldn¡¯t remember him mentioning anything about the inhabitants of this world not having skill points or levels. ¡°Hm?¡± It was then when I remembered. The God-like did say something about that, but he kept it short. No wonder I couldn¡¯t remember it right away¡­ That idiot God-like! I thought and then sighed. ¡°I think it¡¯s something available only to us, since we don¡¯t have this life force and Magic Energy thing, or maybe we do but aren¡¯t aware of it yet. Sigh, well¡­ I¡¯m guessing for me it¡¯s that life force thing you mentioned. But how should I explain points¡­ erm¡­ Let¡¯s just say 1 point is a very small quantity of life force, maybe?¡± I tried to explain, but it was quite hard to speak of video game mechanics to someone who had no idea what a game was. ¡°Then let¡¯s just presume that what you call leveling is what I call getting stronger. What does maxed out Luck mean? Also, what are the details of this Dragon Tamer skill? It doesn¡¯t sound very¡­ honorable.¡± she told me and gave me a suspicious look. Thinking about it, ¡®tamer¡¯ did sound a bit fishy. ¡°Maxed out Luck means that I have the best Luck out there. I guess it¡¯s the reason why we haven¡¯t encountered dangerous monsters that often and also found so many Bloody Mushrooms. Deep inside, I prayed and wished we found many of them so you wouldn¡¯t need to make so many trips weekly. The same goes for the other plants as well, that¡¯s why my backpack is nearly full right now. As for the Dragon Tamer, it sounds sketchy, but it actually says that I need to have a friendly relationship with a dragon, not actually tame one like you would a pet. If you become my enemy, the bonus in power I get from you and the buff you get from me will vanish as well. In other words, thanks to this skill, I¡¯m guaranteed to be on your side from this day forwards!¡± I explained to her as best as I could from what I knew so far. She looked at me for a moment, but didn¡¯t reply right away. What I had just told her might have come as a shock to her, but I hoped she got the hint that through my naive honesty and specifics of the skills, I had no intent on becoming her enemy, ever. ¡°In other words, if one were to become your friend and join you in your party, then they would only have benefits to gain¡­¡± she said at one point. ¡°Yes, but it can also be quite dangerous for me. If I didn¡¯t know you were a kind and good dragoness, I might have hesitated to say all of these things. I¡¯m not a naive fool, but I do believe that as friends, one of the most important things we need to have is trust. If I can¡¯t trust you with something like this, I don¡¯t really have the right to say that I¡¯m your friend, right?¡± I explained with a smile. Once more, Seryanna kept quiet and looked at me straight in the eyes, trying to spot the truth from the lie. I was honest to her though, for more than the reasons I mentioned in my words. First off, she was a knight. If that part was true, then honesty, justice, and loyalty held a great value to her. Lying or trying to be dishonest would only lead me to the pointy end of her sword. At the same time, it was a terrible gamble. Saying all of that also revealed my weakness. Without dragons, I had no way of getting stronger. Without getting stronger, I had no way of defending myself or going on the journey to defeat the Demon King or whatever baddie was out there and tried to make everyone¡¯s lives harsh. Before trying to make the world a better place, I had to become stronger, and Seryanna was my perfect opportunity and ticket for that, plus she was a beautiful, hot woman with an hourglass shape. ¡°I believe you.¡± she said, and I let out a sigh. ¡°That¡¯s why I swear upon my honor as a knight that unless you wish to or the king himself requests this of me, I shall not let a single word about your abilities leave my lips! Nonetheless, it would be wise if you didn¡¯t randomly spread this knowledge around. You truly are lucky you met me and not a bandit or something the like, otherwise, it would have been another outcome to this conversation.¡± she spoke with a firm tone of voice to let me know that she was serious in her words. ¡°I understand. Then, I won¡¯t reveal this information to anyone else unless you agree to it!¡± I told her with a smile. Yes! I did it! Lifeline secured! Banzai for me! I thought at that time. ¡°But tell me, why were you sent here?¡± she asked me. ¡°The God-like told us it was a test to save our original world from an invasion.¡± I shrugged ¡°Well, it was also to make this world a better place, some way or another. If by the time we die in this world, we did something to improve it, then we helped tip the scale a bit in our homeworld¡¯s favor. If not, well, that¡¯s just bad for the people back there.¡± I shrugged again. ¡°That sounds like a hero¡¯s job. You don¡¯t look like a hero.¡± I shrugged. ¡°We do what we can. Besides, who knows what the future has in store for me?¡± I smiled. Letting out a sigh, she said ¡°True¡­ I guess I should tell you now how we are able to tell our kind apart. In general, we have wings or draconic eyes. Some even have a tail, but that¡¯s available only for those who have awakened their Flame. Despite being a knight, I have yet to awaken mine and still look quite similarly to a human, but because I lived around the Seculiar Forest, I¡¯m much stronger than even some awakened dragons. The only difference between me and you is the row of scales on my back and on the side of my thighs¡­¡± she then blushed a bit. ¡°Scales? Hm, earlier I didn¡¯t¡­ erm¡­ What I want to say is¡­ erm¡­ sorry.¡± I said and looked down. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I am not ashamed of my body, and it was too dark for a human to see, although, I would have rather you didn¡¯t hug me like that¡­ it was a bit embarrassing.¡± she said and looked away with a pink blush on her cheeks. ¡°Sorry, I panicked. I really thought for a moment that something really bad happened to you and even though I am actually quite weak when compared to you, I wanted to at least try and help you¡­¡± I told her and looked down at the fire. It felt a bit bad to realize that I acted o foolishly, but also because I may have disconsidered her own strength by thinking I could actually do something to help. ¡°It¡¯s alright, thank you for thinking about me. Even among dragons, there aren¡¯t that many out there who would risk venturing into this forest at night, especially if they are much weaker than me. They would rather wait and try their luck when the sun is up.¡± she showed me a soft smile. Her words made me feel a bit better. ¡°So, you really have scales on your back?¡± I asked after a moment. ¡°Yes, but I will not show them to you.¡± she threw me a sharp look. ¡°Of course, I wasn¡¯t asking to.¡± I quickly defended myself and showed her a foolish smile. ______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! This story will be tagged mature from now on for a some Gore and Violence Scenes in the future. Chapter 9: Of levels and overpowered skills For some reason, that night I had a very HOT dream. When I say hot, I don¡¯t mean I went all tomb raider style with a whip in one hand and jumping on sinkable platforms over a lava pool, but in the sense that I dreamed of Seryanna. White nightgown, sultry look in her eyes, the body movements of a vixen, and the rest was pretty much history. When I woke up, I was hugging and kissing an imaginary friend. My brain took a few minutes of loading time before it managed to process what was happening. The color in my cheeks went from pink to red, and I slapped my forehead. What a dream¡­ I thought as I remembered quite clearly every single detail about it. The big difference between the beauty in my dream, and the one in real life was their outside anatomy. The version in my dream was a full human version with no dragon or monster parts like scales, tail, and draconic eyes. I was also 100% certain it was a side effect of what happened when I wandered off into the forest because what I remembered most of that moment was the soft sensation of her skin touching mine, the unique scent of a woman, the suppleness of her breasts, and the sound of her voice. The giant, scary, hairy, white tarantula in the back didn¡¯t even register unless I focused on it. ¡®T was but a mere background detail. Usually, I walked out of the tent right after I woke up, but seeing how that ¡®morning¡¯ I was a little bit more excited than usual, I decided to wait until I cooled down. Practicing the multiplication table, remembering some scary stuff, trying to figure out what politician was bald and who wasn¡¯t, and doing some basic stretching helped lower the flag. When I was out, I was met face to face with Seryanna. She was standing at barely half a meter away. Luckily, she was dressed this time. ¡°Erm¡­ Good morning?¡± I said with a forced smile. ¡°Good morning to you too, Alkelios. I was just about to wake you up.¡± she said and then lifted a bucket filled to the brim with cold water. ¡°Erm¡­¡± I squinted my eyes at the tool commonly used to drag people from their peaceful dreams. ¡°You have slept for more than eight hours. The sun will be up soon.¡± she said and then turned around. My eyes landed right on her behind. I gulped and shook my head. Me and my teenage hormones¡­ I grumbled in my mind. The second thing I noticed after stepping out of my tent was the carcass of the giant tarantula. Seryanna did well in stripping it of its flesh and sharp needle hairs. However, what I noticed about it and didn¡¯t see in the others were a few organs left to dry above the fire. ¡°Cooking breakfast?¡± I asked as I pointed at them. ¡°What? Oh! No, those are poisonous, but if prepared right, they can be sold as alchemy ingredients. The only good part about a spider is the white meat. If it¡¯s colored in any other way, then it¡¯s poisonous. Some spiders release their own venom inside their bodies right before they die. It¡¯s a revenge mechanism.¡± she explained as she walked over to the chitinous exoskeleton and checked it out. ¡°Revenge mechanism? Don¡¯t animals usually have a defense mechanism?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Yes, they do, but some monsters have a revenge mechanism as well. The most common one is self-poisoning. Demons usually ingest explosive crystals, which they detonate upon their death. I heard that giant monsters sometimes create a Magic Energy bomb. These are quite common on the Dragon Continent, but I understand that they are rare on the human one.¡± she explained while moving around, checking the parts of the monsters for any visible problems. ¡°A very bothersome thing¡­¡± I said. ¡°Indeed! Most hunters are trained to act fast and kill the monster before it can activate this mechanism, so that the spoils of their battle don¡¯t go to waste.¡± she placed two pieces of white meat over the fire and near the drying organs. ¡°Something bothers me, though¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± she asked. ¡°This spider is quite different from the last one you caught. It also entered the area of the warding crystal. Shouldn¡¯t that thing keep these scary things out?¡± I pointed at them. ¡°Yes, but this is a Syllian Spider, a rare breed which normally isn¡¯t found around these parts. Their chelicerae and needle hair are very valuable for a blacksmith, while the organs are needed by alchemists. The interesting thing is that I was actually planning on going to hunt one of them after I dropped off the Blood Mushroom. For the treatment, I need the venom bag of one of these spiders as well as the soft tissue under their carapace, so meeting one is quite a fortunate thing. Maybe it¡¯s thanks to your luck skill?¡± she explained. ¡°How can it be thanks to my luck?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°Well¡­¡± she furrowed her brow and looked down at the fire for a moment ¡°Maybe because you wished to help me in my quest, you activated it? We could have met any other species, but we met this particular one, which I needed. Isn¡¯t it thanks to your luck?¡± she asked and turned her gaze towards me. ¡°Hm, so¡­ You are saying that¡¯s it¡¯s something like a passive skill with an active ability?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Maybe¡­¡± she shrugged, showing that even she wasn¡¯t sure about it. ¡°Then, if I wish for something, I¡¯ll get it, but it might depend on time, location, and probably stuff like that? And if I don¡¯t wish for anything, it simply puts me in a ¡®lucky situation¡¯ depending on my current circumstance and the people around me?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, I do hear rumors once in a while of adventurers having more encounters and finding more items with certain members in their groups. There¡¯s also a temple for the God of Luck where one can make various offerings to improve their luck, but they say that after a while, you lose that blessing and need to obtain it once more.¡± she explained and then shook her head ¡°But I never thought those rumors to be true.¡± ¡°I see, well¡­ when we get to a safer location, would you mind helping me figure it out by seeing if I can make it so that we can encounter certain monsters or other things? You know, form a party with me or something like that?¡± I asked with a smile as I laid my proposition on the table. ¡°I don¡¯t mind. You helped me a lot, but aren¡¯t we already in a party?¡± she asked tilting her head a bit to the left. ¡°Erm, don¡¯t we need to cast a spell or something for that?¡± She giggled when she heard me ask that. ¡°No, silly! You only need to think of me as part of your group and I of yours. When you first met me, and I agreed to tag along, I already formed a party with you. Didn¡¯t you feel the tingly sensation around your left wrist?¡± she asked me with a smile. ¡°Erm, no¡­ Hm, wait. It might be because of this strange system of mine.¡± I lifted a finger up and said ¡°Let me try something.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± she nodded. ¡°Form a Party with Seryanna Draketerus!¡± I said out loud. A messaged popped up in my mind. There was also a small yellow dot next to my name, just like you would see in some MMOs to signify the leader. ¡°I never received a message like this before.¡± she said a bit surprised. ¡°Hm, I wonder? Seryanna¡¯s Status.¡± I said, and the following window appeared before me. [Name]: Seryanna Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Flame [Awakened Status]: 2 of 4 Conditions attained. [Level]: 273 [Strength]: 1254 [Speed]: 988 [Dexterity]: 1004 [Magic]: 754 [Luck]: 12 [Magic Excellence]: 27% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <2X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed> [Current Debuffs]: [Unawakened One] < -60% All Stats; -1000 Magic Energy; Elemental Attacks deal 20% more damage; Dragon Form Sealed; Half-Dragon form Sealed; 40% Less appealing to the opposite sex;> [Unlucky One] < -50% Luck> ¡°What is it?¡± she asked me after she saw me staring for a while at the window visible only to me. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ I¡¯m looking at your stats¡­ You have two debuffs. One is called [Unawakened One] and the other [Unlucky One]. The first one drops your Luck by 60% of your initial stats, and the second one by 50%, but that doesn¡¯t make sense. If you add them up, you get 100% Luck debuff, but your luck is 12, therefore, the last one must be removing 50% of the remaining stats, not the initial ones, so¡­ if I¡¯m right, your true Luck is 60, not 12. You are also 60% weaker than you should be¡­ and 40% ugl¡­ less beautiful. Although, I have the feeling the last one¡¯s broken. I don¡¯t see how that works, you are already quite beautiful in my eyes.¡± I explained shaking my head. She blushed faintly, but didn¡¯t make any remarks on my compliment. ¡°Sigh¡­ I know about the first one, but I didn¡¯t know of the last one. Usually, when you awaken you do get a lot stronger and faster, but you also become more appealing to other dragons. It¡¯s the sign of maturity, of being an adult.¡± she explained. ¡°But it says here that you need to accomplish 4 out of 4 conditions to awaken, but you only have two so far.¡± I pointed at the status screen, but of course, she couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°It does?¡± she asked blinking surprised. ¡°Erm, you didn¡¯t know about this?¡± I asked. ¡°N-No¡­ What else does it say?¡± she asked and took a step closer to me. ¡°Well your level is 273, which would explain why you can slaughter those spiders, and you are a Superior Draconian of the High Flame. The rest are stat points. Oh, and you have my buff as well, but what I find odd is that it doesn¡¯t say 2X level up, but 2X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed¡­ Guess that¡¯s the translation in your terms.¡± I scratched the back of my head and then closed the window. ¡°I see¡­ It doesn¡¯t say what conditions I need to fulfill does it?¡± she asked. ¡°Nope.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Well¡­ this much is still good. It¡¯s better than nothing¡­¡± she let out another sigh. After we had our breakfast, we packed everything and crossed the river. While we did so, I kept praying none of the monsters felt like attacking us, and none did. I was starting to get the hang of this ability of mine, so with Seryanna¡¯s permission, I started to experiment, wishing for various monsters to appear before us. They were all weaker than the pretty dragoness, but all of them appeared in front of us at one point or another, some sooner, while others later. One thing I tried out was to pray to find a suitable weapon for myself. ¡°I wonder what I¡¯ll get? Maybe Excalibur?¡± I said with a confident smirk as I followed Seryanna. ¡°I doubt a demon sword is something you would wish for.¡± she giggled. ¡°What? Excalibur is a demon sword?¡± I asked a bit surprised. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m guessing you aren¡¯t asking for that but a Godlike or Holy Sword, right?¡± she jumped over a large trunk. ¡°Yes¡­¡± I replied a bit disappointed and jumped after her. ¡°Hm? I think I found your hehe sword.¡± she said with a giggle as she picked something up. ¡°Show me! Gimme! Gimme!¡± I said excited and eager to acquire my first weapon in this Fantasy world. I wonder how powerful it is? Maybe it¡¯s some sort of secret weapon, or a mecha sword! Or a plasma sword! That would be so awesome! I squealed in my mind. When Seryanna turned around, she offered me the result of my prayer. It was a half-broken wooden sword children usually used for practice. There were no runes on it or any sign of it being powerful. Down to its very core, it was just a harmless piece of wood. ¡°Here you go, oh brave warrior!¡± she offered it to me as one would a real sword, but I could hear her snickering. ¡°Very funny¡­¡± I said and took it. Nothing happened when I picked it up, so I tossed it away in a nearby bush. I must have used the wrong formula for it¡­ I thought as I walked after the giggling dragoness. About half an hour later of hoping not to get a wooden broken sword this time, I finally managed to find an actual steel sword. Unfortunately, it was already being wielded by a draconian bandit. You know what they say: be careful what you wish for. I thought as I watched the man looking with big eyes at us. Although armed only with a simple steel sword and wore basic leather armor on top of a pair of linen pants and shirt, he had dark-brown lizard eyes, a long, spiky tail and a pair of wings on his back. All those were signs of an awakened one. For a moment, I thought he might represent a danger towards us, but I quickly remembered that I wasn¡¯t together with just any dragon, but with an actual knight. Seryanna unsheathed her sword and stepped in front of me, showing not even a single sign of fear. ¡°Stay behind me.¡± she told me with a calm tone of voice. I gulped and nodded. Here¡¯s a good wish. I hope this guy will be beaten quickly by Seryanna! I kept repeating in my mind. ¡°Oho! And here I thought I¡¯d be lost for days in this damned forest! Who would have thought that I would find such a busty babe out here? Boy, hand over the girl, and I won¡¯t get rough with ya!¡± he threatened me and saw Seryanna only as a simple woman. I could only blink surprised at first. Is he joking? Maybe he doesn¡¯t see her as a possible danger because she doesn¡¯t show the signs of an awakened one? I thought. ¡°Erm¡­ dude? I¡¯ll give you a hint. Simple clothes on me, plated chain mail armor on her. Bag on my back, sword in her hand.¡± I told him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Huh?¡± by the time he realized Seryanna was the dangerous one, it was already too late. The dragoness moved in, and with a single strike, she disarmed him. The sword flew out of his hand and into a nearby tree. Realizing he just got disarmed, he tried to charge up a magic spell, but Seryanna¡¯s punch came flying straight into his nose. The 1254 points in strength showed themselves as he got tossed into the tree behind him, shattering into small splinters half of its trunk. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± he groaned and dropped on the grass, unconscious. ¡°Hmph! Weakling!¡± she puffed and left him there, walking away while sheathing her sword. ¡°Ah! Wait! Shouldn¡¯t we do something about it?¡± I asked quickly as I went to get the sword impaled in the tree. I took it out with ease to my surprise. ¡°I can¡¯t. I made a peace deal with his group.¡± she said and pointed at the stitched mark on his left shoulder. ¡°Erm¡­ another world, remember?¡± I asked pointing at myself. ¡°Oh, yes. Erm¡­ how should I say this. Sometimes, knights and city guards make deals with the large bandit groups they can¡¯t control to keep them out of the small towns and villages. As long as they don¡¯t behave bad inside the walls, they won¡¯t act against them. This keeps other bandit organizations from popping up and reduces crime rate in the city. It¡¯s a win-win situation unless they directly attack us. There¡¯s also another catch. Purse rings of this capacity aren¡¯t that easy to come across. Regular stores don¡¯t have them, and where we are going now, only the bandits carry them. I made a deal with them. I don¡¯t kill them, and I get to use this ring as long as I desire. This, however, doesn¡¯t keep me from beating them when I come across them.¡± she shrugged. ¡°I see, well¡­ Can I take his sword?¡± I asked. ¡°Feel free. It¡¯s probably stolen, but unless it belongs to a merchant or has any specific signs on it, then it won¡¯t be reclaimed. If it does, you are obligated to return it or ask to buy it from the original owner.¡± she explained. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°No tag means finders keepers and losers weepers, right?¡± ¡°Indeed. At least out here, in the forest. The city is teaming with guards, and a thief is usually caught fairly quick.¡± she turned around and continued to walk. ¡°Really? And here I thought you usually killed them all.¡± ¡°As a knight, I am entitled to pass on judgment to the likes of them, so I may kill them if I find it necessary or if the situation calls for their immediate elimination.¡± ¡°Erm, so knights are sort of judge and jury?¡± I asked. ¡°What¡¯s a judge?¡± she stopped and looked back at me with a raised eyebrow and furrowed brow. ¡°The guy with the hammer thingy that hits the table thingy when the criminal is¡­¡± she tilted her head a bit, showing that she wasn¡¯t getting any of what I said, so I stopped and thought about how to put it in a more sciency-fancy way. ¡°Erm, back in my world, the criminal is usually taken in front of judge. After analyzing the evidence brought against him, the Judge can either declare his sentence as a guilty party or exonerate him from the crime if he was proved to be falsely accused. I think in the USA, they had a jury as well, but I have no idea what their purpose is¡­¡± I shook my head and shrugged. ¡°But in other words, the judge is someone who passes judgment to the criminal only after he analyzed all the evidence pointing at his crime.¡± It was hard to explain the complicated juridic system of Earth, actually, I doubted I could. Most of the things I knew about it were from watching the news occasionally and streamed TV series. If I were to be asked to give a detail report about how the entire thing worked, I would most likely fail horribly. ¡°This judge of yours sounds like something the King or Lord of the land usually does.¡± she said, and we left it at that. For the rest of the day, we collected various interesting plants we found along the way as well as killed weak monsters I called out with my luck. Seryanna finished them off rather quickly and then we proceeded with gathering their useful parts. She tried to teach me how to do it, but it was clear I wasn¡¯t handling the knife very well. I just needed some practice and a bit of getting used to with all the gore. For the moment, I was just glad I never was weak to seeing blood even back on Earth. With so much fighting and gathering to be done, I completely forgot to ask her about the various rules in this world as well as how far the human kingdoms were from this one. Remembering how the planet looked like from above didn¡¯t help much. From all I knew, this could have been a rather big island or an actual continent the size of Asia. This was how another day came to pass, and I found myself laying down in my tent, looking up at the cover and listening the crackle of embers in the campfire. As I stood like that, I realized I didn¡¯t actually take a look at my own stats. With so many monsters we killed, I knew I leveled up a few times, but I had no idea how much. ¡°Show my status¡­¡± I said. [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 63 [Strength]: 16+313.5 [Speed]: 14+247 [Dexterity]: 20+251 [Magic]: 16+188.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+6.75% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 62 [Stat Points]: 620 Huh? I thought as I looked at my level. In just a few days, I went from a level 1 to 63. That was a 62 levels increase. We didn¡¯t even kill that many monsters, but seeing how this was the most dangerous forest, I felt it was quite normal. Then again, I only wished for the weakest monsters to appear before us. I was certain there were some even Seryanna would wish to avoid, for example, the four headed dog I had the pleasure of meeting the first time I arrived in this world. The first thing I thought about doing was assign some stat points. Although magic sounded good, I currently didn¡¯t know even the simplest of all spells: Fireball, however, I was aware that ignoring those stats wouldn¡¯t be a good idea. There was probably a big difference between my buffed stats and basic stats. Maybe there were some requirements for various skills as well. The last question that popped into my mind was the following: My stats seem to grow normally so far, and my strength increased quite a bit. Should I actually put points in my stats now or wait until it becomes very hard to increase them? I decided to stay away from stat points for now and focus instead on my skill points. As soon as I selected those points, a message appeared before me: That¡­ that freaking God-like! I growled in my mind, but instead of shouting like some annoyed 12 years-old, I decided to take a deep breath and relax. Instead of complaining about an impossible to change system, I had to think of a way to better use that said system. Let¡¯s see¡­ This means I can add 6 skills and make 12 improvements, right? I thought. Opening the skill window, I was showed my current skills: [Hero] (Passive) [Dragon Tamer] (Passive) [Veggie know-how] (Passive) (34% Learned. Assign 1 skill point to reach 100%) [Skinnathron] (Passive) (2% Learned. Assign 1 skill point to reach 100%) [Grabby Grabber] (Passive) (15% Learned. Assign 1 skill point to reach 100%) [Smooth Talker] (Passive) (1.5% Learned. Assign 1 skill point to reach 100%) I blinked surprised when I saw all those weird names. Skinnathron? What the heck is that? It sounds more like some sort of machine or an ability one has in a post-apocalyptic game. What? Was ¡®skinning¡¯ already taken? What about Grabby Grabber? And Veggie know-how? Seriously? I sighed and closed my eyes for a moment It was most likely the God-like¡¯s way of being funny, although, through his attempts, he could only end up confusing us. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if some poor fellow ended up getting a useless skill by mistake because he thought it sounded cool. Then again, I was probably part of that group, however, I was starting to doubt the part about [Dragon Tamer] being completely useless. Letting out a sigh, I looked through the details of each skill. [Veggie know-how] was the ability to identify herbs and plants used in alchemy. Once learned, I would be able to easily identify only those sort of plants. [Skinnathron] was Basic Skinning skill commonly found in most video games, but with a fancy name. This skill allowed me to skin most critters and monster except for bosses and certain legendary ones. I could technically still do it, but there was a high chance I would ruin the product. [Grabby Grabber] referred to the ability of gathering plants and materials of all kinds. Translation in normal language: Gatherer. As for the last one, [Smooth Talker], it was a skill that made my compliments 50% more effective. I decided not to waste my skill points with any of these, seeing as how I could gain them with ease by continuing to perform the respective task just as you would back on Earth. Regarding the skills which I could choose from my list, I was certain they were all unique one way or another. My intuition told me this pick a skill once in 10 levels wasn¡¯t supposed to be wasted. Therefore, I decided to add my luck in the equation and try to influence what I picked. ¡°Let¡¯s see now¡­¡± I said and closed my eyes I wish to find a good gathering skill, a good spotting skill, a good appraising skill, a good attack skill, and maybe something to help travel around faster. Oh, and something related to alchemy or potion making? I thought and repeated those words a few times before I opened the menu. Browsing the kilometer-long list, I went by instinct and pure luck when picking the first skill. It was already proven that logic in regard to how the God-like named these skills wasn¡¯t going to help me out much. If I could see the details of each skill WITHOUT actually choosing that skill, it would have been great, but the system didn¡¯t allow such a convenient thing. On the bright side of things, ALL of those skills were unique and if what the God-like said was true about all 10 million of us sharing the same list, then it all depended on luck if one picked a cheat-like skill or not. Out the giant list of weird names, which weren¡¯t in alphabetical order by the way, I picked the ones I thought sounded ok-ish. I got six of them for the grand total of 45 points. Regarding how big the list was, let¡¯s just say I would have broken a few mouse wheels trying to scroll to the bottom only once. It was a scroll to infinity and beyond! Either way, these were the skills I picked: [Kitty Eyes]: Changes the Hero¡¯s irises to those of a feline when this ability is used. Can see anything in a 10 m radius around the Hero. Cost: 50 Magic Energy points. [Identificus Processus Juridicus]: This skill allows the Hero to Appraise anything. Cost: 10 Magic Energy points. [I_R Roboticus]: Allows the Hero to mine anything. Allows the Hero to gather any type of herb. Allows the Hero to harvest any material. Passive. [Bartender]: Allows the Hero to create all types of potions of the Basic Rank up to the Advanced Rank. Requires Alchemy Laboratory. Requires the right Amounts and Types of ingredients before intuitively offering the formula of the potion. Requires a Storage type Item or Skill. Cost: Depends on Potion. [Speedy Rooster]: Summons Gragh¡¯jaggar, the armored giant chicken mount of level=Hero, stats Hero-100 points except Luck. Can carry up to 5 persons. Cost: 250 Magic Energy points. [Lightning Chicken!]: Summons a giant Lightning Phoenix of min level=999, max level=Hero. Cost: 585 Magic Energy points. 1 minute initial duration, afterwards it costs 100 Magic Energy per Minute. Those names¡­ was all I could think after I picked the skills and saw the descriptions. They barely fit at all, especially the last one. Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t even use the last 3 on account of Magic Energy cost. I got some really cheat-like skills with this go, but those requirements were absolutely ridiculous! Least to be said, I tried to use the first skill: [Kitty Eyes]. The way to do so was quite simple: I just had to think about the skill¡¯s name and then say: Activate. The Magic Energy was taken out of my pool, which was identified as the value of [Magic] in the stats window. Everything around was perfectly visible in the utmost detail even if it was night. Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t see inside Seryanna¡¯s tent or under the ground, only where I would normally be able to look normally. The spell seemed to ignore the current location I was in, but it did make me wonder if it could only get past the first room or it actually didn¡¯t matter? The first thing I did with my new acquired ability was to check for nearby monsters. There were none as far as I could see. After that, I looked at the pretty dragoness sitting down by the fire. She was writing down in some sort of journal, but although I could see the letter perfectly fine, I had no idea what they meant. Maybe my language ability didn¡¯t include writing as well? After staring to my heart¡¯s content at her cleavage and nice round rump, I decided to try the Improve skill thingy the God-like mentioned in his message. With my recent purchases, I was left with only 17 Skill Points, and I could improve my skills only 6 times. I had to pick carefully. I went first with [Dragon Tamer] which was my main Skill. Two points went into improving the basic function, but it only raised X2 to X3 level up boost. That was nice too, but I wanted to improve the stat gain bonus. Still, one thing tickled my noggin. The God-like said: improve, not advance, upgrade or something like that. Why improve? I thought. It was already clear that he had a very bad naming sense, although there was a high chance of it being intentional from keeping us from hogging or jumping at the OP skills like the [Lightning Chicken!]. ¡°Upgrade [Dragon Tamer].¡± I said, but nothing happened. ¡°Hm. Advance [Dragon Tamer].¡± I tried again, and this time, it worked. [Dragon Tamer] [Level 2]: This is a passive, buff type skill. When a Hero develops any sort of friendly or intimate relationship with someone of a Dragon origin, this skill will allow the creation of a special bond between the two of them. The bond is indestructible by any other skill unless the Hero wills it. The Hero gains 25% of the Dragon¡¯s Stats, and the Dragon will gain the ability to level up 3X faster when in the presence of the Hero. [Advancement I]: The Hero can sense the direction in which he can find his [Selected] Dragon friend. Number of dragons that can be sensed at the same time: 1. This was actually quite great. I had something like radar now. I tested it out on Seryanna, and a small transparent white arrow pointed the way towards her. ¡°Sweet!¡± I said with smile, and I couldn¡¯t help advancing this skill again. What I got now, was another interesting Advancement: All dragons gain 10 stat points upon level up and every ten levels gained in the presence of the Hero allow the dragons to gain an improvement in any of their skills. The Hero can choose where to add the stat points. If bond is broken before applying them, they will be added automatically to the stat with the highest value. All of these only cost me 6 skill points, leaving me 10 points to add to make three more improvements. I decided to upgrade and improve [Kitty Eyes] once. The Level 2 improvement cost me 4 points and the advancement cost me 5 skill points, leaving me with a total of 2 left, however, now I could see everything in an 25 m radius around me, and I could also detect anything invisible. This ability could prove quite handy. I was excited about my new skills, but instead of jumping out and telling Seryanna about it, I decided to play it cool and simply go to bed for the night. I saw absolutely no reason in rushing with this. When I get to level 65, I¡¯ll try to improve [Dragon Tamer] again¡­ The faster she levels up, the more points I gain from the buff! I thought as I closed my eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep. ________ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter! EDIT: The skill name [I_R Roboticus] was missing. I had to use _ to connect I and R, because otherwise the site took it as Italic code. This chapter marks the end of the "daily updates" of this story. It''s exactly 1 chapter behind the one on my website. Chapter 10 is already posted there. I won''t post chapter 10 here until I''m done with chapter 11 on my website. Usually, this story is updated weekly on my website, but in general, it depends on my time and real life worries. Anyway, thank you for understanding! :) Chapter 10: Be careful what you wish for! Morning dropped by like a rock or rather a bucket of cold water. ¡°Whoa! That¡¯s cold! Huh? What?¡± I shouted as I got up soaking wet and shivering like a puppy in the cold season. Looking around, I thought for a moment that it was raining and my tent had a hole in it, or we got flooded by the river, but we were too far from it. Unfortunately, the only thing wet there was a skinny shivering human, meaning me. ¡°Good! Now go and wash with this water, then get changed into these. We¡¯re going to pick up the pace today. No more monster hunting, just running.¡± said the redhead dragoness. Next to Seryanna was another bucket filled to the brim, and in her hand was an empty one. She was already wearing her usual armor and looked ready to go, meaning either I got up late or she got up too early. Before I had the chance to complain, I was left alone in my tent, soaking wet, and shivering from all of my joints. I blinked a few times until my brain loaded all the information, and out of curiosity, I lifted my left arm up and took a sniff. ¡°Oh by the gods! That smell could kill a dragon!¡± I said with a loud voice. ¡°That¡¯s why I want you to wash yourself before you cause a genocide in the city. The grave is already overcrowded. Hehe!¡± Seryanna joked and giggled. ¡°Even I¡¯m not that lucky.¡± I smiled thinking about the potential XP boost and got up from my wet bed. Taking the bucket and spare clothes, I walked outside and went behind one of the bigger bushes. Is she going to try to sneak a peek? I thought while undressing, but I highly doubted she was into that stuff. The water was as cold as it could get. I shivered from all of my joints trying to keep my body heat up. Considering the fact that I didn¡¯t have any soap, shampoo, or hot water, I tried my best to finish fast and get the stench of sweat off of me. On one note, I was glad I wasn¡¯t forced to take a dip in the monster infested river a few ways back. I was sort of picturing Seryanna able and willing to grab me by the back of my neck like she would some stray kitten and then toss me in the river while holding her nose. By the time I reached the shore swimming for my life, I would already be sparkly clean, and there she would be as well, waiting for me with a smile and a clean towel. Well, good thing we were far away from the river. After I was done, I changed into the clothes she offered me and stepped out of the bush. ¡°You can burn those.¡± she told me and pointed at the fire. I squinted my eyes at her. I wasn¡¯t THAT smelly! I thought. ¡°I¡¯m serious. There¡¯s no reason to wash those clothes. We¡¯ll get you new ones in the city. Also, here!¡± she then tossed me a root of sorts. ¡°Chew on that to get the stains off of your teeth. Don¡¯t swallow it though.¡± she told me. ¡°Oook?¡± I said and walked over to the fire. The flames ate my old clothes like a starved monster. At least someone here didn¡¯t care about how bad I smelled, then again, it wasn¡¯t very polite to be around a lady and smell worse than your grandpa¡¯s dirty socks. I let out a sigh and stuffed the root in my mouth. It was bitter and tasted like dirt, but it didn¡¯t make me puke yet, so that was a plus. I could handle it, but not get used to it. Thanks to this experience, I already knew what sort of skill I wanted to get next, something to help me clean myself up in a jippy. While I was chewing on the root, I decided to use [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on it. I did it just like the night before. I thought about the skill and then said ¡°Activate.¡± (Jurian Root): A typical root used by most species to clean their teeth. It contains a high concentration of Vitamin C and Fluorides. [Bartender]: It can be used in Low Health Potions, Toothpaste (all grades), and Chitin Shiner. Interesting. So I can make toothpaste. I wonder what the ingredients are. I thought as I selected that combination and saw the list of ingredients. The very first grade required a mortar and pestle, boiled purified water, and bone powder. I was sort of expecting the first two but not the third. Apparently old-style toothpaste required some sort of abrasive in its composition, but was bone powder really good enough? Upon checking the details on bone powder, I found out it was actually made from cow or sheep bones ground into a fine powder. A mortar and pestle were needed for this process as well. In other words, I had to see what each potion was made out of and then properly refine all the components before mixing them up. Once that was done, I needed the right tools in order to mix them all up accordingly. Well, I could always get the materials I needed and simply test it out, but if memory served me right, there were many substances and potions which could prove potentially dangerous if handled inappropriately. But yeah, I doubt I¡¯ll be making nitroglycerin or sulfuric acid any time too soon. I thought and then let out a sigh. By now, Seryanna was already done with packing up. I had to hand it to her, that ¡®Purse¡¯ ring of hers was incredible! If I wasn¡¯t wrong, you could even store an entire car inside it. Speaking of which, I wonder if the technological level depends on each species or if it¡¯s a general one? I asked myself as I followed the pretty dragoness. ¡°We¡¯re going to run faster now. If you have a quarter of my stats, then you should be able to keep up with me. Simply focus on putting more power into your legs. Do you understand, Alkelios?¡± she asked me. I gulped and nodded. It wasn¡¯t like I had any other choice but to try. Simply focus and remember that you can go beyond your limits, right? I told myself as I saw her spring forward. Although I hesitated a bit at first, I gave chase after her. My speed was indeed faster than that of an Olympic runner, but far below hers. In her moves, she was as graceful as a gazelle and as fast as a cheetah. Looking at how I moved, I knew there was something I was missing, but I already had a hard time keeping up, and I was afraid of the possibility of putting too much force and winding up smacking straight into a tree. Maybe that¡¯s exactly it? I¡¯m afraid, and she isn¡¯t? I thought and with a gulp, I decided to test it out. Taking a deep breath, I placed all of my strength into my feet and jumped as high as I could. I went two times higher, almost ten if not fifteen meters up in the air. When I came down, I grabbed a branch and held tight to it. My fall was stopped and then I swung forward, throwing myself from a height of nearly seven meters, but I landed safely on my feet without breaking any bones. Incredible! I thought and unknowingly displayed a huge grin. I was like a superhuman, but Seryanna was four times stronger than that. ¡°How is it?¡± she called out to me from on top of a branch some distance away from me. ¡°I think I¡¯m getting the hang of this!¡± I shouted back. She probably smiled, I couldn¡¯t tell from this distance. After that small experiment, it was much easier for me to keep up with her, however, her experience in using this strength and speed was shown through the delicate moves she made through the trees, while I moved like an angry gorilla, smashing into branches and raising the dirt with my each and every step I took. The only thing missing on my side was going ¡®Uki! Uki!¡¯ all the time. Still, I had to admit, we were covering quite a lot of ground like this. ¡°Hey, Seryanna?¡± I called out. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked and moved closer to me. ¡°Why didn¡¯t we move like this as soon as you knew I had the strength to do it?¡± ¡°This is a much safer part of the forest because it¡¯s closer to the city. Back then, we couldn¡¯t move like this even if we wanted to. The spiders spread their webs through the crowns of the trees. You can¡¯t usually see them from the ground, but they are up there, trust me.¡± she explained. ¡°You learned that the hard way?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Yes. First time I traveled through that part of the forest, I jumped straight into a spider¡¯s web. If I didn¡¯t use a fire spell to burn my way out, I might have ended up as their lunch.¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°Sounds tough, but what do those spiders usually eat?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Giant grasshopper that live on top of the trees and the various monsters on the ground. They prefer draconian meat though. That¡¯s why adventurers are in a terrible danger in there if they don¡¯t have a warding crystal.¡± she explained. ¡°Or 100 points in Luck.¡± I added with a smirk. ¡°Or that.¡± she smiled and moved farther away from me. We continued at that pace for about two hours until I was starting to feel really tired. Seryanna didn¡¯t even show a drop of sweat, but I was surprised I managed to run for two hours straight let alone the fact that I was jumping like a superhero. I thought we were going to stop and have a break, seeing how I was huffing like mad, but Seryanna walked up to me and offered me a strange green vial. [Identificus Processus Juridicus] ¡°Activate.¡± (Low Stamina Potion): A low-grade potion mainly used to restore one¡¯s fatigue after a great deal of effort. If used more than three times a day, it can lead to side effects such as: vomiting, drowsiness, muscle pain, diarrhea, headaches. [Bartender]: Low grade potion made from: Synger Herb, Tomatoes, Boiled Water, and Guano. Tools needed: Simple Alchemy Lab. I squinted my eyes at the vial and then at Seryanna. ¡°You want me to eat bat poo?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s a stamina potion. It tastes bad, I know, but it will restore your fatigue.¡± she explained. With a groan, I took it from her hand and gulped it down in one go. The taste was simply horrible, and I guessed the tomatoes were used to dampen it, but I couldn¡¯t tell if it was effective or not. ¡°Still, guano? Bleah!¡± I said and stuck out my tongue. ¡°Guano or bat poo as it¡¯s called is very healthy when prepared accordingly and as long as it¡¯s not from Vampyrian Bats.¡± she explained calmly before she stored the empty vial in her ¡®Purse¡¯ ring. ¡°I see¡­ Still gross though!¡± ¡°Hehe! Not that much. You get used to it. By the way, how did you know the ingredients?¡± she asked me curiously. ¡°A new skill called [Bartender]. It allows me to make any sort of potion as well as recognize what component is used in what potion. So far, I can only make low grade potions or so it says.¡± I spoke with my tongue stuck out trying to get the nasty taste off of it. ¡°Interesting. You could make some very good money with it if you train it.¡± she told me and then returned to running fast through the forest. I let out a sigh and followed after her. After two long jumps, I caught up with her. In another hour or so, we finally reached what looked like a sign of civilization: a road. It wasn¡¯t asphalted, it was a plain ol¡¯ dirt road, but since there wasn¡¯t any grass on it, I could tell it was used quite often. Tracks of carriages and some steps of heavy armor similar to Seryanna¡¯s could be seen on it. ¡°From here, we don¡¯t need to jump any more. We should reach the city today.¡± she told me. ¡°What¡¯s the name of the city, by the way?¡± I asked. ¡°Andromeda.¡± she told me. ¡°I see¡­ Wait what? Andromeda city? Are you sure?¡± I was confused by the name because for me it was that of a galaxy. ¡°Yes.¡± she furrowed her brow at me. ¡°Didn¡¯t your grandfather live in a town?¡± I asked trying to avoid any questions regarding as to why I found the name of the city strange. ¡°Yes, Tomeron town is an hour away from Andromeda. We need to make a stop in the city to rent some Khosinni.¡± she explained as she started walking in that direction. I followed her and asked a few things about the city as well as what I should and shouldn¡¯t do. Apparently, as long as I didn¡¯t mention the fact that I was from another world, I was fine. For now, we were going to use the excuse that I was a hired hand for my ability to identify plants. Once inside the city, Seryanna planned on not wasting any time and going straight to her grandfather¡¯s house in Tomeron town. I planned on following her because she was my lifeline for surviving in this world and certainly not because I had the hots for her. Andromeda city was an adventurer city with a small dungeon, while Tomeron was a farmer town capable of producing basic vegetables as well as well as some fruits. It survived mostly based on trade with Andromeda and nearby draconian villages. Since draconians didn¡¯t use slaves, they relied mostly on hired work, which could be done even by wandering adventurers. Art was sold for a high price, and it was considered a luxury, and that was about it as far as Seryanna could explain about the inner workings of the two. Another thing I found out was that a Khosinni was a six-legged monster horse capable of running at the same speed as we did but for longer periods of time or even faster than us. I really wanted to see one now. They reminded me of the mounts in the game I played, Dragon Hunter. One hour or so later, we slowed down the pace and walked normally, so I could recover my breath. The difference in strength and stamina was clear seeing as how Seryanna wasn¡¯t even huffing or showing the slightest sign of being tired. ¡°So, anything troublesome I should watch out for?¡± I asked after a few minutes. ¡°The snake in the bushes over there. Its venom is very annoying even for a draconian, but I understand it¡¯s deadly for humans.¡± she replied pointing in its direction. The critter was there indeed, a one-meter long snake with three horns on top of its head and with scales as black as coal. It didn¡¯t seem bothered by us and as far as I could tell, it was assessing us as possible prey. Squinting my eyes at it, I said ¡°Thanks, but that¡¯s not what I was talking about.¡± ¡°Then what?¡± she asked furrowing her brow and looking back at me. ¡°I was referring to possible troubles I might run into in the city or in the town. You didn¡¯t tell me anything about stuff like that. Do I need to watch out for thieves, certain weird armored folk, or someone with a strange crest? Stuff like that?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Oh!¡± she blinked ¡°Just thieves. I did say I was robbed a couple of times, didn¡¯t I? There are many in the city, but fewer in the town. Ever since I cut off a thief¡¯s hand when I caught him, there have been fewer attempts on me.¡± she explained with a smile. ¡°I understand. Sounds reasonable. Wait what? You cut off his hand?¡± I asked for confirmation. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. I gulped and reminded myself that she was a knight in a medieval world. Her duty demanded that she would be both judge and jury for those whom she caught breaking the law. ¡°Makes me wonder what you will do if you caught someone trying to grope your breasts or touch your bottom?¡± I said out loud what should have remained in my noggin. ¡°No much. As long as I am not another dragon¡¯s wife, I am seen as a possible mating candidate for all men. This happened once or twice, but since I am not awakened, I am not as beautiful as I could be in their eyes. Besides, I never did let them have more than one touch before I threatened to break their bodies in half.¡± she explained with a shrug. ¡°Those men must have rotten eyes! You are already stunningly beautiful!¡± I declared lifting a finger up like some preacher on a podium, while trying to ignore the possible danger if I didn¡¯t behave like a gentleman with Seryanna. ¡°Hehe! Thank you, but I believe this is only the side-effect of your abilities, or you simply don¡¯t ask for much from how a woman looks like.¡± she said with a smile. ¡°No no no! Trust me when I say this, but even a movie star would feel threatened by your beauty! You are strong, kind, just, and caring too! I mean, you seriously have some charming plus points flying around you right now.¡± I said stepping in front of her and walking backwards. She blinked surprised when she heard me, and blushed a bit. I think I was starting to win a few points with her, maybe I even raised a flag? Well, I did like her, although love was a bit stretching it for now. To fall in love with her not even a week after I dropped in this world would have been a bit weird maybe? Besides, dad always told me to compliment a girl as often as I could, but never just for the heck of it because they always know. They have an inbuilt radar for these sort of things called ¡®woman¡¯s intuition¡¯. ¡°Thank you, I guess, but you should¡­¡± before she managed to finish what she had to say, I tripped on something. It didn¡¯t hurt, but I was on my back, on the ground, and with my feet up. ¡°BAAA!¡± the sheep said and moved away from under my feet. ¡°Wha?¡± I said a bit confused. ¡°Here.¡± she offered me her hand and pulled me up. ¡°Are you alright?¡± she asked a bit worried. ¡°I¡¯m fine, thank you¡­ The sheep must have been a stray or something. Is there a herd nearby, I wonder?¡± I replied dusting off my clothes. ¡°No, that¡¯s not a Tamed Sheep. It¡¯s a Prankster Sheep that lives in the wild. Although they can eat meat, they don¡¯t attack anything else other than stray wolves.¡± she explained. ¡°In this world sheep attack wolves, not the other way around?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. A wolf can take down a sheep, but only if they attack as a pack.¡± The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Alright, but why is it called a Prankster Sheep?¡± I raised an eyebrow and pointed at the forest. ¡°They have the habit of coming close to adventurers and playing pranks on them. They are harmless most of the times and flee before anyone can catch them.¡± ¡°So, if wolves are part of a sheep¡¯s diet, what do wolves eat here?¡± We started walking again. ¡°Roots, mushrooms, sometimes sheep, adventurers, rabbits, and beetles.¡± ¡°Roots and beetles?¡± ¡°Yes. The beetles are rather big, almost three meters in size, but very slow.¡± she shook her head. ¡°I see¡­¡± This world is very very strange. I never heard of sheep hunting wolves back on Earth. Actually, that¡¯s impossible! Those are frail herbivores! I told myself. With my knowledge about the natural food chain shattered to pieces, I continued to debate on what sort of things I was to expect in the city and later, in her town. The first thing that came to mind was the potential danger of those thieves Seryanna mentioned, but I simply prayed they wouldn¡¯t spot or take us as today¡¯s targets. It would have been a real shame to lose all the rare herbs we found, especially the Bloody Mushrooms. After half an hour, we started to run again, but before we entered the city, I wanted to suggest something to her. ¡°Seryanna?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes?¡± she looked back at me. ¡°Do you think it would be safer to give me the ¡®Purse¡¯ ring? With my luck, I¡¯m sure not to get pickpocketed, but you said it already happened a few times to you.¡± She looked at me for a moment and then down at the ring. It was a rather risky move on her side, seeing as how she knew me for only a few days, but she was my friend, and she also knew about my abilities. Without her, I was like a ship dead in the water. ¡°Very well. Here!¡± she took it off and gave it to me. I placed it in my pocket and then added on top of it some leafs from a food spice plant we found in the forest. This way, the ring was somewhat protected. All that was left was for me to wish I didn¡¯t get pickpocketed and that our journey through the city would end safely. This way, my 100 Luck was triggered instead of Seryanna¡¯s 12 Luck. Sometime later, about two hours or so, we finally arrived in front of Andromeda city¡¯s gates. I was bushed and sweating like a horse, but it was all good, seeing as how we reached it in time. ¡°We¡¯re finally here.¡± said Seryanna, who wasn¡¯t sweating at all despite wearing more clothes than me. ¡°How¡­ Huff! Huff! How come you aren¡¯t tired?¡± I asked as I rested on my knees. ¡°This was merely a light jog for me.¡± she replied as if it was common sense, and I just stood there with a questioning expression on my face. The city itself didn¡¯t have a lot of tall buildings. For some reason, I was expecting huge buildings fit for full-sized dragons to go through, instead I saw stone and wood buildings with two floors at most from the ground up. The architecture was surprisingly familiar and similar to the one in medieval Europe, at least as far as I could tell from the rooftops popping up behind the tall stone wall. The gate itself was a sliding wooden door behind the wall. It wasn¡¯t made of metal or anything, but the guards in front looked rather strong. Either that or they were both grumpy and loved to glare at people. In regard to their looks, they were pretty much the typical anthropomorphic characters I often saw in games: half-man half-dragon. They even had a pair of wings on their back, large draconic heads, and they easily passed two meters tall. The color of their scales was green and blue respectively. As for weapons, they were using the classic sword and shield combination. ¡°You see those two?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°Hard to miss, but yes.¡± I replied. ¡°They are in half-dragon transformation. It is a requirement of all guards to at least be able to use that form. They are far weaker than me though.¡± she explained, and I raised an eyebrow at her. If those two scary scaly dragons are weaker than you, just what exactly is the norm around here? I¡¯m confused¡­ I thought, but forced myself not to ask the question. I had to remind myself that I was in the presence of a Knight not a Guard. ¡°Good day, Sir Seryanna! May the stars shine bright above you!¡± said the blue-scale one. ¡°Good day, Bob. We have just returned from the Seculiar Forest. May we pass?¡± she asked politely. Bob? BOB? Seriously? I thought in my mind as I squinted my eyes at the big dragon. He didn¡¯t look like a ¡®Bob¡¯ at all, more like a ¡®Schneider¡¯. ¡°Of course, erm¡­ and he is?¡± he asked. ¡°This is someone I hired to help me look for herbs. I¡¯ll take responsibility for anything he breaks inside.¡± she explained. Things I break inside? I¡¯m not a misbehaved dog, you know? I commented in my mind. ¡°Is that so? What¡¯s his name?¡± he asked. ¡°The boy¡¯s name is Aleklios.¡± she replied for me. ¡°Very well, I¡¯ll remember his face and name just in case he gets lost inside.¡± ¡°Thank you. Have a nice day Bob and Marley!¡± said Seryanna and walked passed them. Marley? I raised an eyebrow again. ¡°You too, Sir Seryanna!¡± called out the man with green scales. It took all of my self-control not to burst into a loud laughter when I heard his pipsqueak voice. It was very high pitched, almost as if someone hit him between the legs, but maybe that was just me. They were dragons after all. It could have been possible that for Seryanna and the rest, their voices sounded rather normal. We walked past the guards and entered the dragon city Andromeda. I felt excited, but at the same time a bit fearful. Although they looked human, none of them were. Scales, horns, wings, and displays of powerful magic set them aside from what I had in mind. From my Fantasy RPG games, I was used to seeing a simple rural village or city filled with simple folk. Some fat merchant trying to sell me the lid of a barrel as a shield for a couple of silvers; a farmer loading hay into a cart; a guard patrolling in simple leather armor and wielding a simple copper sword; a few children running around, playing tag; and stuff like that. What I got instead, was a beautiful dragoness leading me through a city filled with dragons wielding powerful magics. The first thing I saw wasn¡¯t a child playing tag with another, they were playing catch with a fireball, laughing and giggling. When one of them failed to catch it, the thing exploded, leaving a small hole in the ground, but then they fixed it up with magic. I almost had a heart attack when I saw the scene. On the other side, I saw a merchant selling armor and weapons from the most simple and plain-looking to ridiculous-looking ones that moved and spoke. Thinking about my simple steel sword, I felt a bit ashamed. ¡°Step right up! We have armor and weapons of all kinds! This here is the sentient spear of Emperor Rank with enchants to raise your strength and speed! Or this life ring here! Wear it in pairs and you share your life force! Plus, it increases your body¡¯s regeneration and magic absorption! If you don¡¯t like that, we have these here boots that can help you fly! Cheap price too, just 120 gold coins!¡± was that merchant¡¯s selling line. The hell? was all I could say in my mind as I looked at those things. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Alkelios.¡± said Seryanna when she noticed I stopped to stare at the shop. ¡°Those things¡­ those are¡­¡± I was trying to say awesome, amazing, but then she gave me a line that made me raise an eyebrow. ¡°Those cheap things? If you want a proper armor and sword, I¡¯ll introduce you to a friend of mine. He can make some really decent stuff for a good price. The things you see there are for beginner adventurers.¡± she explained calmly. Wha¡­? Beginner? THOSE ARE BEGINNER? I thought in my mind. ¡°I see, same as your armor, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Haven¡¯t you appraised it yet?¡± she asked me. ¡°No.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Do it.¡± she smiled. I gulped. Focusing on the chest armor she was wearing I activated [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill. (Great Knight Draconian Armor): Draconian armor made by a Legendary Blacksmith. It can only be equipped by those selected as knights to the Royal Family of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater. Special stats: [Increases All Stats by 50%],[Immunity to High or Low Temperatures],[Immunity to Mind Control Spells], [Increased Magic Regeneration by 25%]. Special skills: [Passive: Reduced Weight: 35%], [Passive: Increased damage to all Charge attacks], [Passive: Absorption of Magic from Magic Attacks: 10%], [Passive: Protection Buff (Absorbs Damage 10%)], [Passive: Telepathy link to Royal Family Member the Knight swore loyalty to]. ¡°That¡¯s cheating¡­¡± I said as I saw the seemingly endless list of stats and abilities it added. There were no negative stats on it, only positive ones and quite ridiculous at that. Thinking about it, this could have explained why she was able to run for such a long time and show no signs of sweat or being tired. Then again, she was probably going slower than she usually did because of how much of a slowpoke I was. It made me glad, but at the same time I felt bad about burdening her like that. Hm, I guess what I saw back then in her status screen was her base stats unaffected by the armor. I thought and then with a sigh, I bowed my head in front of her and said ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± She blinked confused. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well, looking at your stats and armor stats, I realized that I may have slowed you down quite a lot. You helped me when you could have just left me there. Once more, thank you, and I¡¯m sorry for my lack of power.¡± I spoke those words from the bottom of my heart, I meant them. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Alkelios.¡± she smiled back and patted my shoulder. ¡°I know best what it means to be weak at one point, but this doesn¡¯t mean you will always be at this level. With my help, you will surely grow into a strong, fine warrior someday!¡± ¡°And then will you go out with me?¡± I asked as a joke. ¡°Aren¡¯t we out?¡± she asked tilting her head and furrowing her brow. ¡°I mean as in dating, becoming a couple.¡± I explained, but the joke had already faded. ¡°Oh! Hehe! We¡¯ll see about that. Maybe if the princess approves of you, I¡¯ll give you a chance.¡± she giggled. There was a chance it was a joke, but I surely wouldn¡¯t have minded if it wasn¡¯t one either. Sill, the idea of having a girlfriend really made me nervous for some strange reason, but for now, I was just her friend. ¡°I¡¯ll remember that!¡± I showed her a bright smile and then continued our walk through the city. Another thing that surprised me was the amount of adventurers and the various armors they were clad in. Although some looked quite strange, they were usable in combat as far as I could see. The women didn¡¯t wear any of the so called ¡®boob armors¡¯ or ¡®barely there¡¯ metallic bikini. The men didn¡¯t wear bulky armors or with annoying sparkly effects all around them. On the contrary, they appeared to be enchanted with the ability to camouflage themselves to the nearby surroundings. As for the weapons they carried, those were the ones that looked weird and incredible at the same time. The strangest weapon I saw was probably a sword with a metal handle, and a blade made from floating red rocks kept together by a red mist of magic. Two green crystals were floating around it, probably as a decoration or working part of the weapon. For a moment there, I thought it was just a fancy looking weapon that couldn¡¯t harm a flower, but the dragon adventurer who wielded it so happened to demonstrate its sharpness. It cut through an iron ingot like it was nothing. ¡°That¡¯s a Clayer Sword. It¡¯s very good and has the unique ability of switching between a cutting weapon to a blunt one if you chant the right words.¡± explained Seryanna. ¡°Incredible¡­¡± I mumbled. ¡°If you want, next time we return to this city, I¡¯ll explain anything you want, but we should make haste now if we want to reach Tomeron town.¡± she suggested. ¡°That would be great, well¡­ unless it¡¯s not too much of a bother to you?¡± I replied. ¡°It won¡¯t be, especially if I have the time.¡± she smiled. I kept looking around, but wherever I turned, I couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised about all the things I saw. Every time I stared too much at something, Seryanna gave me a brief explanation of it. I ended up apologizing every time for being captivated by stuff like that. She didn¡¯t mind, and that was how I learned that draconians loved pets, especially hard to tame monsters. Apparently, it was done through the use of a telepathy spell. The master spoke with the monster until it agreed to a pet contract. ¡°Do you have one? A pet, I mean.¡± I asked. ¡°You are pretty funny. Would you be considered as one?¡± she joked. ¡°Depends on the treats.¡± I stuck my tongue out at her. ¡°Hehe! I do, it¡¯s a Squirrel.¡± ¡°Cute.¡± I said, but then I remembered that in this world sheep hunt wolves. ¡°Erm¡­ how does it look like?¡± I asked just to be sure. ¡°Hm, well it¡¯s furry. It has a big tail, sharp teeth, and it¡¯s about two feet tall. Oh, and it likes to hunt rodents.¡± she explained. ¡°Huh?¡± I raised an eyebrow, and that was all I could do about it. I wonder if this is just on the dragon continent or if it¡¯s a thing in general? I asked myself. ¡°When we reach the town, I can take you to the pet shop and get you one from there. What do you think?¡± she suggested. ¡°Sounds good¡­¡± I replied. Note to self: Dragon Continent is this world¡¯s version of Australia. Actually compared to it, Australia sounds harmless¡­ I thought. As we continued walking, we were getting closer to the other side of the city, where we had to rent two Khosinni. Of course, I already had the chance of seeing one of them, and it looked intimidating. The one thing Seryanna didn¡¯t mention about them was their height and extra pair of eyes right on top of the ones I knew of existed on a typical horse. It looked strong, but I was small when compared to it. I can¡¯t wait to ride one! I told myself excited. Actually, who wouldn¡¯t be excited about getting to ride a six-legged giant horse with four eyes instead of two? It looked amazing and cool! There was another thought that crossed my mind though, something I wanted to try ever since I knew we would reach a city, something my 100 Luck could be tested on. Of course, it was a ridiculous thing, but I was curious, very curious about it. Should I? I thought and gulped. What was there to lose? ¡°Seryanna?¡± I called out to her. She stopped in her tracks and looked back at me. ¡°I want to try something with my luck, something that might be funny or stupid¡­¡± I warned her. ¡°Is it dangerous?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. ¡°Only if you were my wife.¡± I joked. ¡°Then I guess it¡¯s safe to go ahead with it as long as it doesn¡¯t put me or anyone here in danger.¡± she told me with a shrug. ¡°Alright, here it goes¡­¡± I closed my eyes and thought I wish a pretty girl would fall from the sky into my arms, right now! I repeated that a few times and then opened my eyes and looked up. It was a beautiful clear blue sky. Not even a cloud in sight. ¡°Well?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°I think I failed¡­¡± ¡°Then we should get going.¡± she nodded and turned around. Just then, I heard something from behind me. ¡°Look out down below!¡± it was the voice of a girl. With a smile, I turned around and looked up. I was hoping to see a cute girl in a pretty dress falling from the heavens. Then I just had to catch her like a real knight in shiny armor unless Seryanna took the spotlight. Unfortunately, what I saw instead was the scaly armored behind of a big, big black dragon. ¡°Oh boy¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°SHIELD!¡± shouted Seryanna, casting a spell on me. The next thing I remember was being slammed into the ground by that dragon¡¯s behind. Opening my eyes slowly, I saw a bunch of black scales covering me, and the only thing separating me from the weight above was a thin layer of magic. ¡°I¡¯m OK!¡± I called out, then it cracked. ¡°Uh oh¡­¡± The shield shattered, and the weight of the black dragon¡¯s behind fell on me with a loud thump. I heard something cracking, and a terrible pain shot through my left hand. ¡°I¡¯m not OK! I¡¯m not OK! Oh god, it hurts!¡± I whined from under there. ¡°Ah! Sorry! Sorry!¡± apologized the dragoness on top of me. ______ Note from the Author: Sorry for the late update, but thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! :D Chapter 11: My struggle with the Khosinni All I could say was that every single bone in my body hurt like a dragon stomped on me. Well, technically speaking, she fell on top of me when I made the wrong type of wish in my head. That¡¯s 100 Luck for you, being the least bit reliable when you needed it the most. Why couldn¡¯t a cute nekomini girl or big-breasted innocent elf fall instead? I wanted to scream out loud, but a certain dragoness was giving me a strange threatening glare. ¡°For some reason, I want to punch you right now.¡± said Seryanna. ¡°Woman¡¯s intuition is scary.¡± I spoke with a low voice. ¡°OUCH! That hurt!¡± I complained to the other dragoness, who was standing to my right. ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m trying my best here, but healing magic isn¡¯t exactly my forte!¡± she complained. The girl in question was the genuine article of Gothic Lolita fashion: black, long, curly hair; frilly black dress; thick makeup; high-heel black boots; and to top it off, she also had long sharp canines and black draconic eyes. Her tail was covered in black scales from tip to base, or so I presumed, since I didn¡¯t see more than the tip poking out from under her dress. As for who she was, this teenage-looking girl was none other than the dragon who fell on top of me. Well, technically speaking, the wish was fulfilled, but the details about it were rather sketchy. I mean, why in dragon form? Why was she falling in the first place? Aren¡¯t dragons natural-born fliers? Such questions made their way through my mind, knocking nails on my logic. Of course, I was also worried that I might have unwillingly harmed her when I made that wish, and perhaps that was why Seryanna was glaring at me in the first place. ¡°But boy, what luck you must have for me to land on top of you¡­¡± said the girl as she kept focusing on the green light emanating from her palms and surrounding my wound. ¡°Yes, what luck he must have.¡± Seryanna said that while squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Technically speaking¡­¡± I said lifting a finger up, but upon looking between the goth girl and the knight, I felt like I would end up better if I kept my mouth shut. ¡°Hm?¡± the girl blinked surprised and then looked at both of us. A single moment passed before a mischievous smile appeared on her face. ¡°Sweet sister, may I ask who this gentleman is? Fufufu!¡± Seryanna crossed her hands at her chest and looked away. ¡°Just¡­ a friend.¡± ¡°Oh? Reeeally?¡± the smirk turned into a smile all the way up to her ears. ¡°Wait¡­ sister?¡± I asked once my brain realized the meaning of that word. ¡°Yes! Yes! My name is Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus! I am Seryanna Draketerus¡¯ younger sister!¡± she said proudly ¡°But you can call me Kleo! So¡­¡± she then moved closer to me and looked into my eyes. I blushed. ¡°What sort of panties do you think sis is wearing right now?¡± she suddenly asked. ¡°White maybe?¡± I immediately covered my mouth with my hand and when I looked at her, I saw the knight dragoness looking at me with a twitching eye. I gulped. ¡°Oho? White huh?¡± she cracked her knuckles. ¡°Well, he is right! I know for certain that most of your panties are white.¡± Kleo suddenly said with a shrug as if it wasn¡¯t such a big deal to reveal intimate details about someone in the middle of the street. This line earned her and me a punch on top of our heads. ¡°OW! Why me too?!¡± I complained as I rubbed my noggin. ¡°Tehe!¡± Kleo just poked her tongue out. Still, something was very wrong or weird to say the least. The proud and respectful dragon knight had a perverted sister who dressed in Gothic Lolita fashion and who was also a black dragon. Just¡­ Just how can such a thing be possible? It¡¯s like a scene taken straight out of an anime! I thought as I looked between the two girls. ¡°Jeez! Big sister, you are always so mean and grumpy! I told you that you need a man to help you ¡®relax¡¯ from time to time.¡± she then winked at me. Wait, is she telling me what I think she¡¯s telling me? I thought and blinked surprised, while Seryanna showed a strong blush in her cheeks. ¡°Kleo¡­¡± the dragoness said while abstaining from smacking her again. ¡°No matter what you say, I am the awakened one, big sister!¡± the goth girl declared proudly and pushed out her small chest. ¡°Or should I be the one calling you young sister? Hm? Fufufu!¡± she smirked mischievously. ¡°Then I can do this and that¡­ Hehehe¡­¡± she giggled with a perverted look on her face. ¡°Kleo.¡± Seryanna was ready to explode from fury. I gulped and took a step back. ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry sis, with my expertise, you will certainly achieve your first ever climax!¡± she said with a sympathetic look in her eyes. One of the guards who was passing by heard us and after one look at Seryanna¡¯s angered expression, stopped and carefully backed away. ¡°Kleo¡¯s darn done it again!¡± said another person from somewhere in the back. For some reason, people were moving away from the duo. Out of reflex, I pulled back as well. Something told me I was going to see some fireworks, and it had nothing to do with a certain song. ¡°Hm? What¡¯s wrong sister? Why are you so red in the cheeks? Maybe you are excited? EH?¡± Kleo said right before Seryanna picked the girl up by the scuff of her neck and looked into her eyes. ¡°Erm¡­¡± she gulped. ¡°Nice sister? Good sister? Sister wants a treat?¡± Seryanna¡¯s eye twitched again, she was ready to explode. ¡°If you want a different pair of panties, I know someone who can make you a see-through pair!¡± Kleo said with a big smile. What came next was seeing an angered dragoness knight slamming an awakened dragoness into the ground once, twice, thrice, and then up in the air, right before shooting six consecutive fireballs at her. The scene went by so fast, I could barely believe my own eyes. A crater appeared where Kleo was smacked into the ground, and nothing but smoke could be seen from her when she was hit by the said magic attack. The poor dragoness went up in flames and fell crushing down on the ground like an overcooked barbecue. Surprisingly though, she was pretty much unharmed, and her dress was only slightly burned despite knowing full well what just one of those fireballs could do to a black wolf from the Seculiar Forest. That alone told me a very important fact: Kleo either had a rather high endurance to attacks or her clothes were highly resistant to fire. Still, that didn¡¯t keep the poor perverted girl from getting knocked out of the game before she had a chance to cast a single spell or turn into that big dragon form that squashed me a few moments ago. Thinking about it, my arms and ribs were still hurting a bit. The healing was probably only half done, or she was a bad healer to begin with. In any case, I would need to ask for another potion from Seryanna, that was if she wasn¡¯t angry with me as well, but I was just a victim of her sister¡¯s antics, right? After I gulped, I approached her carefully. ¡°Erm¡­¡± I said. ¡°What did you wish for?¡± she asked me directly. ¡°Erm¡­ Is my life in any danger if I answer?¡± I asked. ¡°Your life is already in danger.¡± she reminded me and showed me a clenched fist. ¡°Well¡­¡± I rubbed the back of my head. ¡°I wished for a cute girl to fall from the sky into my arms?¡± I replied. She looked at me for a moment before saying ¡°You are weird human.¡± she put the accent on the word ¡®weird¡¯. ¡°Technically speaking, she is kind of cute.¡± I told her. ¡°I still have Magic Energy left.¡± she pointed out. ¡°This mortal shall now shut up.¡± ¡°Good for him, now help me tie this perverted sister of mine and if for only one second you are thinking of the wrong thing¡­¡± she glared at me. I quickly shook my head left to right, while on the inside, I was nodding. Before my mind decided to wander off and think back at what Kleo shared with everyone on the street, I helped Seryanna tie up the goth dragoness and put a gag on her mouth, just to make sure she didn¡¯t say any more weird things once she woke up. ¡°Nice catch, Sir Seryanna! Are you going to toss it back into the wild?¡± a passing by dragon joked when he saw her. ¡°I fear it might breed.¡± was her reply. ¡°Normally, shouldn¡¯t you be protective of her or try to keep men from looking at her?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Kleo is not on any dragon¡¯s breeding list.¡± she replied calmly, but she had a bit of a sad look in her eyes when she said that. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. I would have wanted to ask why that was so, but I feared this wasn¡¯t the place or time for such a conversation. More people were starting to gather, however, one woman slipped a few words. ¡°An unawakened dragoness knight and a black scourge. When will they leave?¡± For a moment, I thought I might have heard wrong. There was no way someone would say such hateful words towards a knight and her sister even if she was a pervert, right? Looking back, I couldn¡¯t pinpoint who exactly was who opened their mouth, but if I were to judge by those words, then Seryanna and Kleo weren¡¯t seen with good eyes by the people of this town. Discrimination? Can¡¯t be¡­ I thought, but shook my head in denial. Once Kleo was transformed into a nicely tied-up package with a ribbon on the back, Seryanna picked her up and hoisted her over her shoulder. We both walked away from the area of conflict, leaving a small crater behind us for others to fix. Well, nothing a little bit of draconic magic couldn¡¯t solve, right? My curiosity for Andromeda city¡¯s mysteries faded a bit, but I was sure it would spark right back up once we reached Tomeron town. Until then, we had to go and rent a pair of Khosinni. Those six-legged horses were going to be an interesting animal to use as mount, but I had to wonder if there were any other special mounts waiting to be found. My imagination poked around the idea of a special beast that was incredibly rare to find and also quite dangerous. Then again, I also had my skill [Speedy Rooster], but I wasn¡¯t going to let myself get caught riding a giant chicken no matter how fast it was. It was degrading no matter how I looked at it. We arrived at the Khosinni renter after about ten minutes or so of walking on foot. Some of the draconians were looking curiously at us, mainly at Kleo, while others simply sighed and shook their head. I was getting the feeling that scenes similar to this one or rather involving the two sisters were a rather common sight around these parts. So far, Seryanna appeared to me as that type of woman who was strong, proud, just, loyal, and above all not a pervert. That was why I believed her family held similar attributes and behaved a bit strict with her in order for her to achieve the title of a knight even when she had yet to awaken. Not even for one single moment did I ever believe or think that she would have a sister like Kleo. Actually, I never thought she had any siblings at all. ¡°So, which one do you desire, Sir Seryanna?¡± asked the Khosinni renter. The man was a bit smaller than her, and wore thick clothes to hide his brown scales. He was of the anthropomorphic type, meaning he looked more like a lizard than a human. The beasts displayed in the stables next to him looked strong enough to rip apart that entire building. They were big and covered in powerful muscles, neighing and stomping the ground with their hooves constantly. The moment I locked eyes with one, I gulped and looked away. The beast puffed victorious. I just lost to a horse¡­ I thought with a sigh. ¡°That one and that one.¡± she pointed at two of them in the back. One Khosinni was white with a few brown spots here and there, while the other had a black and brown spotted coat. They didn¡¯t appear to be very energetic, but they were the only one who didn¡¯t look at me as though they were planning to bite my head off the moment they were set free. ¡°Ah! Leo and Lichel! Good choice! That will be 6 silver coins!¡± he grinned and rubbed his hands together. ¡°Six?¡± Seryanna squinted her eyes at him when she heard him. Something was wrong. ¡°Yes, is there a problem?¡± he asked as if he had no idea what could have possibly been wrong. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s six times the amount you charged me for a when I last rented them, and that wasn¡¯t even a week ago.¡± she pointed out. ¡°Well, my apologies, but circumstances called for a¡­ higher price. You are free, of course, to head off on foot. For a strong draconian like you, I¡¯m sure a journey such as this one would be over in the blink of an eye.¡± he said while keeping his merchant smile on. Indeed, something was a bit fishy. He was pushing us more towards the idea of NOT renting from him. A high price and pointing out that Seryanna wouldn¡¯t have much trouble with that distance, while true, it didn¡¯t make sense. A merchant should jump at the opportunity for an extra coin, not back away from it¡­ Unless he has more to lose than gain from this business, but what could that be? I asked myself and then looked behind him. Almost all the horses were in their stables, some of them looked very annoyed and pulled on their reins. It was almost as if they wanted to get out of there, while others had nothing against staying a bit longer. ¡°Six silver coins¡­ here.¡± Seryanna reluctantly paid. Considering all the stuff we gathered on our way back, minus the remains of that black wolf, we had more than enough to spare a couple of silver coins, but what bothered me the most was the reason behind increasing the price. Then again, there was a high chance that I was simply over-thinking things. Maybe the taxes increased, and he was forced to raise the price in order to make a profit. Still¡­ Six silver coins? I didn¡¯t like it, but Seryanna already paid. While she managed with great ease to mount the Khosinni and secure Kleo too, I was staring at the big saddle, wondering just how exactly did it work. To be honest, I never did ride a horse before. When I was playing Dragon Hunter, the mounting was done automatically through the magical ¡®Action¡¯ key, in other words pressing the button ¡®E¡¯. Although I did see it in a couple of movies, seeing it and doing it were two different things. ¡°Hurry up.¡± said Seryanna who was already up on her Khosinni. ¡°Erm¡­ How?¡± I asked looking back at her and tilting my head to the left. The dragoness lifted an eyebrow as if I said something incredibly ridiculous. There was a high chance that I did. Since most people in this world were born around horses or some sort of mount, they were used to riding them or at the very least knowing how to mount one. For them, it was natural and even more so for dragons who had their other form as well. ¡°I don¡¯t even have a driver¡¯s license, let alone a Khosinni riding permit.¡± I complained. ¡°I have no idea what you are talking about, Alkelios. Just grab the cantle of the saddle, put your foot in the stirrup and hoist yourself up on the seat. It¡¯s that simple.¡± That was what she told me, and I was like: ¡°Grab the who and then what?¡± I replied while looking a bit perplexed at the saddle. ¡°Cantle.¡± she said tapping the front part of the saddle. ¡°Stirrup.¡± she pointed at the metal ring around her boot. ¡°Got it?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Maybe¡­ let¡¯s see¡­ cantle¡­ aaand stirrup¡­¡± when I pulled myself up, I used all of my strength and tossed myself over the six-legged horse, but thanks to the stirrup catching my foot, I ended up getting slammed into the ground, face first and feet hanging up. The Khosinni laughed at me and so did a draconian guard who witnessed the moment. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Seryanna asked me. ¡°My body yes, my pride not so much¡­¡± I replied. ¡°You had a pride?¡± she asked a bit surprised. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I groaned and then struggled to get myself out of that weird position. Three failed attempts later, I managed to mount the Khosinni. ¡°I DID IT!¡± I said victorious. ¡°Partially¡­¡± Seryanna replied and pointed at something in front of me. The beast whipped me with its tail and laughed at me with a horse-like neigh. I was up on the saddle, but I managed to do the impossible and settle myself the wrong way, with my back at the head of the horse. Last try was a charm, and I was properly seated on the blasted thing. As much as I wanted to ride a Khosinni, one thing was to do so in a game and another in real life. I already missed the ¡®Action¡¯ button for numerous lazy reasons. ¡°I will lead the Khosinni. I fear that if I let you do it, you will fall off¡­¡± the dragoness said as she grabbed the reins. ¡°Most likely¡­¡± I nodded and let her have control of the animal. Now all that was left was the journey to Tomeron town. With a bit of luck, we would get there before sundown. _______ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :) Chapter 12: When in doubt, blame the Luck! Looking up at the sky, I couldn¡¯t tell what time it was. Thinking about it, this world had more hours than Earth, so thinking in Earth-like terms was a bit wrong to begin with. Looking back, the road was mostly empty. We saw only a pair of grumpy looking lumberjacks. I had to say, those two were quite tall and the axes they carried on their shoulders were big enough to cut down a Khosinni in half. A tree wouldn¡¯t stand a chance from a direct blow from one of those things. Meanwhile, the Goth Lolita was still knocked out cold. Seryanna didn¡¯t say anything about Kleo while we stepped out of Andromeda city, not even the smallest explanation as to how she ended up with such a strange sister. Then again, maybe this was a family matter in which outsiders like me weren¡¯t supposed to meddle in. Technically speaking, I was her friend and as things evolved, there was a high chance I would end sleeping the night at her place, hopefully, not with her pet carnivorous squirrel. As we traveled for another quarter of an hour on the lonely road, I was itching to ask her a few things about Kleo, so I prayed this would go well and then opened my mouth. ¡°Can you wish that we don¡¯t get ambushed on the way to my town?¡± she suddenly asked and turned around, catching me with my mouth half-opened. ¡°Erm¡­ sure.¡± I replied and then thought I wish no thief or criminal or monster will ambush us on our way to Tomeron town or even inside of it. Suddenly, a branch broke off somewhere behind us. I heard it fall in some bushes and turned my head out of reflex, but I couldn¡¯t determine where it was. ¡°You should remember to make such wishes more often.¡± she giggled. ¡°Huh?¡± I looked at her, furrowing my brow and tilting my head a bit to the left. At that moment, I had no idea that what I heard earlier was a branch breaking and falling on top of the head of a thief scout. If that draconian managed to reach his gang, the ambush was a go. This way, however, the man was sound asleep with a bump on his head, allowing us to avoid a pretty dangerous situation. A few minutes later, I managed to gather my courage again, and I asked her ¡°So, what¡¯s the deal with Kleo?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow and looking back at me. ¡°Her¡­ erm¡­ perverted side. Is that normal?¡± I asked. ¡°No.¡± she shook her head. ¡°But ever since she awakened as a black dragon, things between her and the others have been a bit¡­ on the edge.¡± she told me before lowering her eyes to her reins and tightening her grasp on them. I could tell from the look on her face that this was a pretty sensible thing to talk about. It didn¡¯t really explain why she acted like a pervert, but my instincts told me that these ¡®black dragons¡¯ were a very special breed, and maybe one that wasn¡¯t very liked by the others. The gamer inside me was telling me that I was about to raise flag of sorts. ¡°You see, my sister is also a necromancer¡­¡± she said and looked back at me. Squinting my eyes at her, the only thing I could think of was this: A Perverted Gothic Lolita Black Dragoness Necromancer? Seriously? I mean seriously? The coincidence combo was over 9000. Either the God-like entity was messing around with me, or I actually landed in a very clich¨¦ type of situation. Then again, there was the chance that all of these were only appearances, coincidences at their very best. ¡°Cool.¡± I replied absentmindedly. ¡°Cool? The temperature seems fine to me. Do you need a blanket?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. ¡°Huh?¡± This time, I was the one looking confused at her. It took me a moment to understand what she meant by those words. The old cricket between the ears barely managed to push the gears. Shaking my head, I told her ¡°No, it¡¯s a figure of speech. Cool as in interesting.¡± My explanation was a bit vague, since I had no idea how to properly explain an expression taken from modern-day Earth. Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t seem like she understood what I was trying to say. Well, some of these expressions were indeed a bit weird, especially for someone who wasn¡¯t used to them. This, however, made me wonder how the so-called gangstas and surfer dudes were managing with their unique way of communicating in this world filled with Medieval folk. Note to self, don¡¯t ever use modern curse words. The indigenous population will take them ad-litteram. Rock on might end up translated as stoning. I thought as I tried to remember what other words I should pay more attention to. The journey on the lonely road all the way to Tomeron town went without a hitch. The scenery was beautiful, letting me enjoy the pleasant scents of forest and casual horseback riding. Seryanna¡¯s sister didn¡¯t wake up at all, and we didn¡¯t encounter any suspicious fellows either. I have to say though, the trees and plants around these parts reminded me of those back home, in Romania. The leafs were similar to oaks, but they had a few pine needles every now and then, which I found rather odd. The grass was the same at least, growing all over the place like green swords poking out of the ground. In a way, it was beautiful and relaxing to travel like that. It helped my mind relax and think about other things besides worrying about whether or not I will live to see the following day. One of the many things I wondered about during those last two hours of travel until Tomeron town was the fate of my fellow earthlings. From the looks of things, I may have been the only one sent into this place. I didn¡¯t land in a noob village or in a safe place, I landed on the back of a freaking boss level monster. As if it wasn¡¯t enough, it could use elemental magic as well. Then, there was the thing the God-like told us before sending us off into this world. It was almost like he was sure that most of them would end up in relatively safe locations, meaning human low level areas like villages and small towns in remote location where big monsters never spawned or were born, depending on the case. As I thought about the reason why I ended up in Seculiar Forest, I could only blame my 100 Luck and the [Dragon Tamer] Skill. Although it had a rather inappropriate name, for most of the situations, it would have been a rather useless ability to have. This skill only worked if there was a member of the draconian race close by to befriend. Considering what Seryanna told me, the dragons were at war with the humans, meaning that the chances of meeting one in ANY of the human kingdoms would have been close to zero. That was probably when my 100 Luck kicked in and switched the location of where I would be sent to. The second factor was the danger. In this world, I would have definitely ended up as human stew if I didn¡¯t ¡®accidentally¡¯ meet with a certain beautiful dragoness knight. Her background as a yet unawakened dragon also helped me out by a lot, after all, she would understand the best what it was like to be seen as a weakling by those with more power than you, then again, it also offered her a kind and helpful side. There was another thing I had to be thankful of: her own luck and the fact that she wasn¡¯t viewed as a stunning beauty by those of her species. Honestly, those men had rocks for eyes if they saw Seryanna¡¯s bountiful chest, beautiful face, long red hair, nice swaying behind, and most importantly the power and determination to achieve the title of Knight while still unawakened to be something unappealing or even worth scorning about. Well, about the last part I was sort of happy, fewer love rivals to worry about. Considering all of those factors, what would have been the chances of me encountering a beauty like her and surviving in this dangerous world where sheep hunt down and eat wolves? That, right there, was 100 Luck working a miracle! The other earthlings were probably still stressing about reaching level 10, while I was level 63. This was literally what gamer often called power-leveling. Step 1) Join the party of a badass. Step 2) Stick close to them while they kill off mobs for you. Step 3) Enjoy the ridiculously fast leveling up. My badass was Seryanna¡­ and talking about her behind, I found myself staring at it from time to time. This woman was starting to have an impact on my young heart. Well, technically I was at the consenting age, so legally it wasn¡¯t a problem¡­ at least in Romania. But yes, my mind wonder off to all sorts of weird places soon afterwards. Among them was a desire to see her in a nightgown and embracing me in a sexy way. I really wish I could see that¡­ I thought absentmindedly. To keep myself focused, I thought back at my skills. Although I felt a bit worried about using them, I had to admit that they were some overpowered things for a low level like me to receive. [Kitty Eyes] was basically an ultimate surveillance ability that could easily land me a job as a spy or informer. [Identificus Processus Juridicus] was basically a godlike appraisal skill. [I_R_Roboticus!] was basically a mining cheat. [Bartender] was another cheat that made Alchemy practically useless. [Speedy Rooster] was basically a mount I could summon at will, and which eliminated the need to constantly worry about paying ridiculously high fees to sketchy looking Khosinni renters, on the other hand, suddenly summoning a giant chicken and waltzing through town with it might have been just a LITTLE bit suspicious. Besides looking ridiculous, I would be pestered with questions about how, when, and where I got it. As for the last one, the details made it too ridiculous to even consider using it unless desperate needs called for desperate measures. [Lightning Chicken!] would basically allow me to summon a level 999 Phoenix! Seriously, a Phoenix? That was like a supreme skill or maybe an ultimate in a game! Then again, it did let me know of a very interesting thing about the leveling system. In this world, level 1000 wasn¡¯t apparently the last level. Heroes, demons, and maybe even the regular folk of this world could reach levels far beyond 1000. I had this certainty, but the other earthlings probably don¡¯t if they were sent to a low-level area. It was funny to imagine them boosting about reaching level 100 and then I summon in front of them a level 999 monster. In the end, I could consider myself lucky for getting these preposterous abilities, but my level and experience in combat didn¡¯t match. The reason why I believed this was because of Seryanna¡¯s achievements. She proved that strength, skills, and overall level didn¡¯t mean one was powerful. Those were just aces up their sleeve, trump cards, however, someone with only one skill, but a lot of combat experience and wits to match could possibly defeat someone far more powerful than them. In other words, I couldn¡¯t just act all high-and-mighty thanks to these skills, at least, not yet. This world was different from those of games where you had the certainty of everything leading up to a good end if you followed a certain path. This was reality, nothing we knew and believed could guarantee our future, and everything could take a 180 turn in the blink of an eye. While I was thinking about these depressive matters, we arrived in Tomeron town. Unlike the city from before, this one was located in a small depression within the mountains. There was a 200 meter field between the edge of the forest and the stone walls of the town, but it was far smaller than Andromeda city. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. A big tower in the middle was the only structure surpassing three floors, it reached up to twenty or thirty meters in height. All around it were many other smaller buildings, but only one big mansion in the far north of the town. It was imposing and beautifully designed, similar to old European mansions I saw depicted in old photos or taking the role of a rich dude¡¯s house in a game. It was impressive. The fields around Tomeron weren¡¯t left barren, half of them were covered with ripened grain, and the other half was covered with grass. It was a small pasture to feed the animals. It was quite interesting to see this sort of settlement out here in the middle of the mountain. It was quite a wonder that they were able to harvest grain too. As we got closer to the fields, I realized something peculiar about the grain spikes. On their tips, there was a small red bead, making me believe that maybe I wasn¡¯t dealing with the well-known cereal from Earth. Curious about it, I used [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on it and got this message in return: (Grianus): A type of healing herb often used as a spice for foods. It¡¯s very common in the draconic lands, but very rare on any other continent. Component for (Medium Healing Potion). I blinked surprised. Once more, I was fooled by the appearances of this world. The old grain cereals used back on Earth were actually spices in this one. It made me sigh, but at the same time quite curious about what it tasted like. ¡°You see the mansion over there?¡± asked Seryanna, pointing at the big building on the other side of this small depression. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied. ¡°That¡¯s where my grandfather lives.¡± she told me. ¡°Oh? I thought it belonged to the Lord around here or maybe some rich merchant.¡± ¡°Grandfather is the Lord of the region.¡± she explained with a smile. ¡°Then I seriously don¡¯t understand why that Khosinni renter overtaxed you like that.¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Every settlement in the Dragon Kingdom is being ruled by a different Lord. As such, they are offered a great deal of responsibility, but also many perks, such as the ability to set the minimum price for any item sold on their lands.¡± she explained. ¡°I see¡­¡± I told her, but I didn¡¯t ask any further details about their political system. Something inside me told me I would be bored to death if Seryanna started explaining them, although, it might have had something to do with my bad experiences with History classes. What was surprising to see was that the guards smiled warmly when they saw Seryanna. They were both anthropomorphic dragons, wearing hard leather armors and sporting long spears with jagged metal tips. One had brown scales, and the other had green scales. ¡°Look! Little Seryanna is back!¡± said the one on the left with a big grin on his scaly face. ¡°Good evening, Terrok.¡± she replied with a warm smile. ¡°Oh! The ol¡¯ general will be pleased to see you!¡± said the other draconian, who was resting on a big stool. ¡°Thank you, Brastal. I¡¯ll be on my way then.¡± she pulled the reins of the Khosinni, and we entered the town. I simply smiled as went past the two draconians, who threw me a curious look. Couldn¡¯t blame them. The princess of the town suddenly returned dragging a man with her and an unconscious little sister. We made our way to the mansion outside of the town rather quickly. The streets weren¡¯t as busy as I initially thought, and people here actually welcomed her with a warm smile, but after a while I was starting to see some holding a sympathetic look in their eyes, almost as if they pitied her. Those were probably the people who didn¡¯t believe in her power or saw her yet unawakened state as some sort of misfortune. As far as I knew, there was no actual reason as to why she should be seen with pitiful eyes. I knew this was their society and how they grew up to be, but from my point of view¡­ these things were just wrong. The town wasn¡¯t as lively as Andromeda was, but this was partially due to how fast the sun was setting far off into the distance. Night was creeping in on us, and I think I even caught a small yawn escaping the redhead¡¯s lips. It was a contagious one because I also found myself yawning shortly after. In regard to seeing merchants and all sorts of other people, I can¡¯t say I did, or maybe I couldn¡¯t recognize them. All the houses were pretty much the same: big; two floors from the ground up; pointed roofs in a Medieval English style. It looked peaceful and for the most part, I kept feeling the alluring scent of cooked food coming from everywhere. It must have been dinner time. Once we were out of the town, we approached the big mansion, which was three stories high. A couple of servants were out in the yard taking care of a small garden of flowers. Another one was pulling two Khosinni towards a stable. There were a few guards patrolling around as well. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted with a deep bow by everyone. One of the servants there even offered to take the sleeping Kleo off our backs. ¡°The master is in his study room. Shall I go and tell him you are back?¡± asked a cute looking draconian maid. Let¡¯s see¡­ maid dress, blue eyes, blue scales, long tail with a ribbon at the end, cute looking, long brown hair, bountiful chest, and a bit petite¡­ I¡¯m starting to love coincidences. I thought and unknowingly put on a perverted smile. My expression earned me an elbow in the ribs from a certain redhead. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I groaned as I rubbed the sore spot. ¡°Ahem¡­ Please do.¡± she told the maid before throwing me a glare. ¡°Do I need to worry about you attacking the women here?¡± she asked me. ¡°I¡¯ll attack only those who have red hair and the title of a knight¡­ also Ouch!¡± I joked. I think she blushed, but Seryanna didn¡¯t answer my joke and simply looked away. ¡°Speaking of which, why didn¡¯t we return these Khosinni to the renter?¡± I asked her curiously after I got off and a draconian male took them away. ¡°This servant will do that for us. Besides, I¡¯d like it if I can keep this matter with the overpriced rent as a secret for now.¡± she told me. ¡°Keep what a secret?¡± someone said as he came into view from our left. I looked in that direction and saw a tall draconian with a long red tail, red scales decorating his cheeks and arms, and two horns sprouting from his forehead and curving backwards. As far as age went, he looked similar to a human in his forties, but his mustache and hair were still keeping their bright-red color like Seryanna¡¯s. The color must have been a family thing because I didn¡¯t see other draconians with that color either in Andromeda or Tomeron. He was wearing a high-class suit and carried a very peculiar looking sword at his waist. ¡°Good evening, grandfather!¡± Seryanna said quickly as she made a small bow in front of him. ¡°No need for all of this formal gibberish! You are my granddaughter! Come give the old man a hug!¡± he told her with a big smile. ¡°Grandpa.¡± Seryanna showed him a gentle smile and then complied to his request. ¡°Welcome back, my dear!¡± said the man as he embraced her tightly. Meanwhile, I was staying at the door, just keeping calm and wondering just how exactly I was going to introduce myself to this imposing looking gentleman. If memory served me right, then the guard at the entrance in Tomeron called him ¡®general¡¯? ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± he asked squinting his eyes at me. ¡°Hi?¡± I said with a foolish smile and raising a hand up as if I was saying ¡®hello¡¯ to someone from my world. ¡°This¡­¡± Seryanna looked up at her grandfather and then down at the floor ¡°He¡¯s my friend.¡± she told him. ¡°What? YOU have a friend?¡± he said surprised while holding her up with both hands. Oi! Don¡¯t say that about your own granddaughter! Once she awakens she¡¯ll be a beauty! I commented in my mind, but refrained from saying it out loud. ¡°Grandfather! Put me down! I¡¯m not a child!¡± she replied squirming in his arms. ¡°Of course!¡± he released her from his grasp, and the dragoness fell on her feet. The old man looked back at me and approached me, wearing a big smile that pushed the corners of his mustache up. Offering me a handshake, he said: ¡°Welcome to my home, lad! My name is Brekkar Draketerus!¡± I didn¡¯t refuse his kind gesture, mostly because I didn¡¯t want to get on the man¡¯s bad side, but I did try to tighten my grasp as hard as I could. My father once told me that a wimpy handshake showed disrespect towards the other fellow, and I certainly didn¡¯t want to offend this imposing looking draconian. ¡°A pleasure to meet you, my name is Alkelios Yatagai.¡± I introduced myself. ¡°Hm?¡± he tilted his head to the left. ¡°Did you by any chance lived with ornaks?¡± he asked me. ¡°Huh?¡± I looked at him furrowing my brow. ¡°Judging by your expression, I guess you don¡¯t even know what an ornak is! Hahaha!¡± he laughed and then patted my shoulder ¡°They are brutish creatures in battles, but quite loyal to their commanders. Anyway, the reason I asked was because ¡®Alkelios¡¯ in ornak language means ¡®Lucky¡¯. As for ¡®Yatagai¡¯ that reminds me of the elf saying ¡®Ey ata gaius¡¯, which is roughly translated as ¡®Blessed by the gods¡¯. A good name if I were to say so myself. Hahaha!¡± he laughed. His words shocked me a bit. I was surprised to hear something like that, especially since I was named by that foolish God-like with a VERY bad naming sense! From what he said, my name was a clear give away of what my forte was: Luck. ¡°He is indeed quite lucky.¡± said Seryanna with a giggle. ¡°To have made friends with someone from the Draketerus family? Very! But as they say, any friend of my granddaughter¡¯s is my friend as well!¡± laughed the man. Was there a saying like that? I asked myself, but I honestly didn¡¯t mind being friends with another dragon. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± he asked suddenly while looking at the empty air in front of him. ¡°No way¡­¡± I thought. ¡°Yes?¡± he said and then I heard a ding in my head. [You have made a new friend: Brekkar Draketerus] I looked up at the old draconian who was staring back at me, quite intrigued by the sudden turn of events. ¡°I have never seen or heard of anything like this!¡± he confessed. 100 Luck my foot¡­ This thing ALWAYS gets me in trouble! Now how am I going to explain this to him? I cried out in my mind. _____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it! :) Chapter 13: A midnight surprise I was staring the lion right in his eyes, or rather the dragon¡­ and a general at that. ¡°Hm¡­¡± he said while squinting his eyes at me and rubbing his chin. Seryanna wasn¡¯t saying a word. Standing in the back of the room, next to the lit fireplace, she had her arms crossed at her chest and her eyes closed. After the old man got the friendship confirmation message pop up in front of his eyes, we walked into the nearby reception room. It was big and luxurious. A big, intricately woven carped was spread across the entire floor, a crystal chandelier was on the ceiling, paintings of the old man and an unknown dragoness, probably his wife, filled up the walls. The drapes were made out of red satin with gold ornaments on the bottom. A fireplace was in the middle of the wall next to the door. It was very close to one of those rooms often seen in movies where nobles of all kinds were having a gathering or a ball. Because the sun was about to set, the lights were on. Instead of oil lamps, they had a small Magic Energy stone that glowed in a dim yellow light. In that room, there was no one else other than me, the old man, and Seryanna. The servants were outside, minding their own business and probably preparing dinner. ¡°So¡­ are you really my daughter¡¯s friend?¡± he asked me. I gulped and replied ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± he squinted his eyes at me again. ¡°Is there anything wrong with that?¡± I asked him. ¡°No.¡± he shook his head. ¡°She is a beautiful dragoness, isn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± I said as I looked back at Seryanna, she wasn¡¯t sketching any emotion. ¡°Do you love her?¡± he asked me. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied bluntly, but then my mind stopped when I realized what I just said. ¡°Erm¡­ as a friend! As a friend!¡± I said immediately. ¡°Oho?¡± he smirked. It¡¯s too early for those kinds of emotions, I¡¯m telling you! Besides, I don¡¯t really think I know what being in love actually means! I wanted to retort at him. Looking back at the said dragoness, she was now glaring at me. I may have just stepped on a landmine. ¡°You do realize that you are a human, right?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow. I gulped and looked up at him. ¡°You can tell?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been a general for 50 years. I led many battles against your kind. I slaughtered many human soldiers and gutted many so-called knights.¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°So, you know human anatomy quite well?¡± I replied stupidly. The dragon blinked surprised and then rubbed his chin. ¡°You do not fear our kind?¡± he asked me. I raised an eyebrow and pointed at Seryanna ¡°Would I be her friend if I did?¡± ¡°Good point! My daughter has a sharp eye when it comes to good people, after all!¡± he nodded satisfied. ¡°He¡¯s¡­ different from the rest.¡± the dragoness said from the back of the room. ¡°I can tell. As soon as I accepted to be his friend, his magic and aura received quite the boost!¡± he grinned. ¡°Yeah, I have a talent of sorts¡­¡± I looked away. ¡°I presume, but what I can¡¯t understand is HOW or rather WHY you don¡¯t behave like all the other stupid and ignorant humans I have encountered until now?¡± he asked me, shaking his head. ¡°Because I¡¯m not stupid and ignorant?¡± I defended myself with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Hm, presumably.¡± he nodded. ¡°I have a feeling there¡¯s something you want to ask me, but you don¡¯t wish to ask me because you don¡¯t know how I will react.¡± I said bluntly. For me it was a rather obvious thing to expect from him. After all, he was a general who fought in the draconian wars against humans and whatnot, then there I was, a human man accompanying his granddaughter back from a very dangerous forest, wielding a mysterious ability, and not showing the typical reactions of hate against their kind. Even I would have had a question or two. For example: how did I get here? Who brought me here? Where was a I born? How did I gain this power? How does it work? And a bunch of other questions. ¡°Indeed, there is something I wish to ask.¡± he told me. I looked back at Seryanna once and then at this draconian and gulped. Here it goes! I thought. ¡°Have you ever killed a dragon before?¡± The question was serious. ¡°Erm¡­ No?¡± I replied furrowing my brow. ¡°Have you ever killed a human before?¡± ¡°Do imaginary ones count?¡± I asked. ¡°No. They have to be flesh and blood, not a product of your imagination or magic.¡± he stated clearly, but he was as serious as he could be. ¡°Never, sir.¡± I replied. ¡°Hm¡­ Did you kill ANY sentient species before?¡± he asked me again. ¡°I killed bugs, mainly cockroaches, but I don¡¯t think they were sentient¡­ yet.¡± I said and then thought Maybe if I were to drop a nuke or two on them, maybe genetically change them and send them to Mars, but otherwise, doubtful. ¡°It is very hard for me to believe you. But to come here without slaying anyone, you either must be a very very lucky man, or there is more to you than meets the eye.¡± he told me. Or both¡­ Most likely both. I commented in my mind. ¡°Grandfather, he is trustworthy.¡± Seryanna pitched in a vote for me. Thank you, my redhead goddess! I gave a mental thumbs-up to the dragoness. ¡°If my granddaughter says so, I¡¯ll believe her.¡± he shrugged. Then do so from the beginning! What¡¯s with this interrogation? I thought. ¡°Well, let us prepare for dinner! Oh, and before I forget, boy, you better not think of catching my granddaughter¡¯s tail. She would bring shame to our family if she chooses a human as a mate, and most importantly, it¡¯s not possible.¡± he looked at me with stern eyes, and I could feel the old general behind them. His words were rather harsh, even though I wasn¡¯t sure what the future would bring me, suddenly telling me that Seryanna was off limits just because seemed like a rude gesture to do. Then again, this was another society, one in which humans were viewed as enemies, and I was part of those said humans. If it wasn¡¯t for the redhead¡¯s presence, I might have ended up as dragon chow the moment I presented myself in front of those two guards at the Andromeda city gates. From what I believed and saw so far, that was the main reason why he didn¡¯t want me going after Seryanna¡¯s tail as he said it, although, she had none to begin with. It wasn¡¯t possible from their society¡¯s point of view and because of the fact that he was once a great general in the draconian-human wars. His illness was probably the reason he retired too, otherwise, he didn¡¯t look like the type of man to sit around and babysit a town in the middle of the mountains all day long. Then again, wasn¡¯t he taking things a bit too far? What sort of man would even think that every man his daughter or granddaughter meets is actually a big pervert wanting to sleep with her? Practically any sane man, even me, but that wasn¡¯t the point¡­ ¡°I will show you to your room.¡± said Seryanna, who approached me after the old man left. ¡°Alright¡­¡± I nodded and followed the dragoness. We walked up to the left wing of the mansion, past a couple of doors and stopped at the second last from there. She opened it with a small metal key, and walked inside. One thing to be mentioned about draconian houses, they were in general designed for the usual anthropomorphic draconian to feel at home, meaning they were quite tall and had robust, big doors. The room I was to sleep in was spacious, maybe as big as my living room back in my parents¡¯ apartment in Romania. The bed was a king-sized one, good enough to fit an adult anthropomorphic draconian. The khaki pillows and covers were decorated with yellow frills and sewed in drawings of leafs and flowers. There was a dark-brown desk to the left, and a small table with two chairs next to the window. On my left, there was a mirror placed in an ornamented wood frame. Everything looked beautiful and ready to accept a noble in its embrace, not a dirty, peasant-looking human. ¡°Wow!¡± I said surprised. ¡°It¡¯s not much, but this will have to do.¡± said Seryanna with a sigh. ¡°Does it come with a hug from you?¡± I asked with a smile. She merely sighed and shook her head. ¡°Where¡¯s the ring?¡± she asked me. ¡°Here. Safe and sound!¡± I told her, pulling it out of my pocket and handing it over to her. ¡°Good! With this, maybe grandfather will be rid of his illness.¡± she told me. I took off the backpack I was carrying and placed it next to the bed. ¡°What are we going to do with the rest of the herbs?¡± I asked her. ¡°We¡¯re going to take them tomorrow to the town¡¯s herbalist. As for the others, I¡¯m going to give them to grandfather¡¯s healer, and he¡¯ll prepare all the required medicine for him. Thanks to those mushrooms you found, I can return this ring and not worry about letting go of bandits and thieves next time I spot them.¡± she said with a relieved look in her eyes. ¡°Your father is going to get better, don¡¯t worry Seryanna! I wish him to get better as well!¡± I told her with a smile. ¡°Thank you.¡± she replied with a small smile. ¡°I¡¯m going to have one of the maids give you some temporary clothing, then you are welcomed to join us for dinner.¡± she said and then turned around to leave. ¡°Thank you, Seryanna¡­ You helped me a lot.¡± I told her before she left. The dragoness didn¡¯t answer, but I knew she heard me. With her gone, I did what any other normal person would do in my case and looked at my stats. My jaw almost dropped to the ground when I saw the values. [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 63 [Strength]: 16+313.5+607.5 [Speed]: 14+247+452.5 [Dexterity]: 20+251+527 [Magic]: 16+188.5+251 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+6.75%+8.5% Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 2 [Stat Points]: 620 Why the pluses? I thought after a while, but doing a quick math, the results ended up with these stats: [Strength]: 937 [Speed]: 713.5 [Dexterity]: 798 [Magic]: 455.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 16.25% They were impressive, I had to admit that, but considering the fact that the old man was a former general, it felt like his stats were a bit low. From the looks of things, his strength was 2430, while his Magic was barely 1004. Seryanna had half of his stats, but still, she was an unawakened dragon. I don¡¯t know, but I was expecting something¡­ more from a former general in the draconian army. Was it possible that his stats were reduced because of his illness? Theoretically, it was possible. Even so, I gained quite the nice boost and as long as he considered me his friend and I his, the stats would remain there. At this rate, I was sure to surpass Seryanna¡¯s stats with the next addition. Thinking about it, maybe there was a way to accelerate this process? ¡°Hm¡­ Maybe?¡± I thought as a mischievous smile appeared on my lips. I wish I can find good friends who will increase my stat boost with over 1000 points in each category? Becoming friends with Kleo sounds like an interesting idea too. I thought and then stretched my back. With a wish like that, I was really curious to see what sort of individuals were going to pop up in my way. Maybe a hot busty girl? No, as long as Seryanna was around, I saw no reason to change targets. ¡°What to do now?¡± I asked myself as I looked at the bed and the bag in front of me. There was no point in taking out all of those plants now, so it was better to simply wait until I reached the herbalist the following day. I was a bit dirty and sweaty, so maybe a bath would have been a good idea, however, I wasn¡¯t so certain how to taken one here. Did they have an actual bath in this house or everyone had their own little bucket? While I was pondering about this, I decided to sit down and try to look around with my spell. ¡°[Kitty Eyes]¡± I said and immediately the skill activated. My perception heightened, and I could see absolutely everything around me. As usual, it was a weird sensation, but it was so cool, I couldn¡¯t help but peek around the mansion. It practically covered most of it. Let¡¯s see if I can find Seryanna¡¯s room¡­ I thought as I began to fly around. Since I couldn¡¯t look inside the mansion outside of my room, I had to look through the windows. The first rooms I checked were those next to me. They were empty, but held similar luxurious furniture. The old man wasn¡¯t in any of those, so I flew up at the second floor. The first one was a bust too, but the second one was the right one. The first thing I saw when I gazed through was Seryanna looking into a mirror. She wasn¡¯t wearing her armor, and I could perfectly see the red scales on her back, going around her spine, like an arrow pointing towards her round bottom. I gulped and approached the window. This time it was day time, so I could see perfectly the image of the naked goddess before me. Suddenly, she turned around and looked towards the window. I pulled back. Beads of sweat formed on my forehead, thinking that maybe she caught me peeking, but how could that be possible? I was invisible. Either way, unwilling to test if she could or not see me, I canceled the spell. Back in my room, I blinked surprised and gulped. ¡°Wow¡­¡± I thought and then realized that my flag was raised. That dragoness was really getting to me¡­ It was almost as fate was pulling us together, or maybe my teenage perverted thoughts. A knock at the door woke me up from my trance, and I stood up. ¡°Coming!¡± I said and walked over. ¡°Your clothes, sir.¡± said the petite dragoness, but when she looked down, her cheeks turned red, her eyes grew, and she immediately excused herself from my sight. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised and then looked down. Argh! Raise the flag mateys! ¡°Oops¡­¡± I said and slowly closed the door. Now I was embarrassed. The clothes I received were a pair of silk pants, a shirt, a pair of shoes, and a satin jacket. They looked delicate and quite expensive, I placed them down on the bed and looked at my own clothes. ¡°I really need a shower¡­¡± I said and then sighed. After the flag was lowered, I stepped out of my room and looked for someone to show me where the bathroom was. An old servant showed me the way. After taking my new clothes, I walked over there, but not before making a wish, so I didn¡¯t trigger the naked girl in the shower event. I had enough coincidences for one day. The bath was a bit cold, but I was surprised to see they had a rudimentary version of a shower. I just had to pour a few buckets on top of a collector, and I was ready to wash myself. About half an hour later, I walked out of there holding my previously dirty clothes, which were snatched away by one of the maids, saying that she was going to burn those. I wasn¡¯t attacked by a skunk, you know! I shouted in my mind, but only showed her a forced smile in return. ¡°The master is waiting for you in the dinning room.¡± she told me before she walked away swiftly. Guided by another maid, I safely reached the dining room, where I was shown to my seat at a big, long table. The old general was there as well, waiting patiently for his granddaughter to join us. We didn¡¯t exchange any pleasantries, and I had no idea what were the polite things to do or say in this situation, according to their customs. Even after Seryanna joined us, we simply ate in quiet. No one asked a question, and no one spoke a word. The menu consisted of duck stew, a steak of some kind, and a boiled egg as desert. I had no idea why something like that was the desert, but after I took one bite, my taste buds exploded from its sweetness. It wasn¡¯t a lie to say that I shed tears because of it. Anyway, after our dinner, the old man received a strange red concoction and then retreated for the night. I was left with Seryanna in the room, but then she excused herself as well. She must have been tired? I thought as I walked back to my room. With all due honesty, I was expecting a lot more questions about my ability, maybe sharing of old memories. Either I said something wrong when I came here, or they were all really tired. I was hoping for the latter because I had no idea what I did to offend them or even if that was the case. Letting out a sigh, I decided to call it a night and turn off the lights in my room. Fifteen minutes later, I was still staring at the magic stone that emitted a yellow light. ¡°How the hell does this thing work?¡± I asked myself. There was no switch in the room, not even a written instruction manual, nothing. With a sigh, I opened the door and went to look for a maid again. The answer was given to me in a polite way. When I returned, I did as instructed, which was quite simple: I just had to absorb the Magic Energy in the stones. It wasn¡¯t that hard, and I got it on my first try too, although, the maid giggled when she heard that I didn¡¯t know how to turn off the lights. I think I may have given her the wrong idea about how smart humans were in general. Sure, I wasn¡¯t the brightest match in the box, but there were some of us on Earth who could build incredible things like AI, Robots, Spaceships, Computers, and most importantly¡­ invent new assortments of food. I felt tired, so I closed my eyes and let my mind slowly wonder into dreamland. It had been a busy day filled with all sorts of new things to see and experience, people to meet, things to learn, stuff to eat. Falling asleep was easy, and I dreamed of¡­ honestly, I don¡¯t remember what I dreamed about, but halfway through, something woke me up. It was a pleasant heat around my chest. I felt rather good, like someone was embracing me, however, that couldn¡¯t be possible because I was sleeping alone, right? Opening my eyes, I saw that it was still dark outside. The sun had many more hours to go until it had to rise up again, yet something was definitely off¡­ My hands were around something or rather someone. She was warm and there were two¡­ cushions, pressing on my chest. What the? Am I dreaming? I thought as I moved my fingers down a bit. Tracing down her back, over the soft silk negligee, I reached a bumpy area. My brain couldn¡¯t figure out what it was, so I tried to get a better feel of it. ¡°Ahn~!¡± the cute voice was Seryanna was heard, and I froze instantly. What? What? What? Seryanna? She¡¯s here? In my bed? The one I¡¯m holding is¡­ and what I touched right now, were those her¡­ scales? I thought, while blushing like an idiot. ¡°It tickles¡­¡± she said in her sleep. ¡°Huh?¡± I managed to say and then moved my fingers again. ¡°Ahn~!¡± she moaned again, and my hands stopped once more. That¡¯s her weak spot?! I said in my mind and then slowly looked down. The dragoness took a one ticket to dreamland and wasn¡¯t planning on buying the return one for the next couple of hours. I gulped and decided to take the best course of actions for this opportunity, while praying that I wouldn¡¯t end up as toast the following morning. While holding her softly in my embrace, I pulled the dragoness closer. She snuggled up to me, and I think I saw her smile. Her legs locked me in that position, and I was left with the only choice of going back to sleep, while hoping the flag wasn¡¯t raised¡­ well too late for that. ¡°Good night, Seryanna¡­¡± I whispered to her. So this is how it is to fall asleep with a woman in your arms? It feels nice¡­ I thought while drifting off to sleep. _____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :) Chapter 14: I believe I can fly~! When I opened my eyes in the morning, the first thing I saw were Seryanna¡¯s sharp, dark-brown eyes. She had an accusing look as though I did something bad. I had no idea what though. But then again, she was still holding me in her arms and I her. It was pleasant, and I had nothing against her big chest pressing against me. ¡°Erm¡­ Good morning?¡± I said with a forced smile. The dragoness didn¡¯t reply, she kept looking like that at me. OK! What¡¯s going on? I¡¯m pretty sure SHE was the one who climbed into my bed, not the other way around! I defended myself in my mind. ¡°This is your room, right?¡± she asked me. ¡°Yes?¡± I replied. ¡°This is your bed, right?¡± she asked me again as if the two questions weren¡¯t connected. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Then what am I doing in your bed?¡± she asked me with a raised eyebrow. How the hell am I supposed to know? I screamed in my mind, but I didn¡¯t give her this reply, instead, I signed my own funeral by doing something foolish. My left hand rubbed her back scales while my right hand gave her bottom a light squeeze. She blushed and unwillingly let out a cute moan as a result. ¡°Ahn~!¡± I smirked victorious, but then I saw her angry expression. I¡¯m dead, but totally worth it! I thought. ¡°Alkelios¡­ YOU IDIOT!¡± she growled and squeezed me in a tight hold. ¡°ARGH!¡± I groaned in pain. As much as I loved feeling her chest pressing against mine, a deadly squeeze wasn¡¯t exactly the type of delight I had in mind. It hurt like HELL, but I couldn¡¯t deny the fact that it was good to hear her moan like that. It was a one in a million opportunity I didn¡¯t want to miss. At the very least, my stats weren¡¯t so small right now to say that she could snap me in half like a twig. It was painful, but nothing was broken as far as I could tell. When the anaconda released me from her grip, I still had a hard time trying to catch a breath of air. Looking to the side of the bed, I saw Seryanna puffing and getting up. She looked back at me and shot me another glare. ¡°You¡¯ll live, stop exaggerating.¡± she told me. My eyes, unfortunately, weren¡¯t on her face, but on her chest. She was wearing a pink see-through nightwear, leaving little to the imagination around her chest and hips, although, she was also wearing a pair of white panties. I gulped, and she noticed me staring at her like that, but I couldn¡¯t help it. I was hugging her while she was dressed like that? I asked myself a bit dumbfounded. ¡°I can only suspect that you used your luck to make me come here tonight.¡± she said with a growl, warning me to stop staring. ¡°No! I didn¡¯t use it!¡± I declined and shook my head. Technically, I did at one point, but between having barely woken up and staring at her, I had forgotten about that accidental wish. In that moment, I honestly believed that I didn¡¯t do it, although, could my 100 Luck really bring such an incredible situation to unfold? ¡°I don¡¯t believe you, but I¡¯ll leave it at that¡­¡± she said and then turned around, my eyes dropping with laser-guided precision on her round behind. When she opened the door, the grandfather was found leaning forward with an ear glued to the door. ¡°Huh?¡± Brekkar noticed the door opened and looked up at an angered dragoness. ¡°Grrr! You are both idiots!¡± she then punched the old man in the face and stormed off back to her room. How was THAT my fault? I asked myself, while imagining a certain meme and making sure to burn extra copies in my memory of how good Seryanna looked in that pink nightwear. Either I was waking up as a pervert or I was totally smitten with her beauty. My guess was on the latter, but I still couldn¡¯t accept the fact that I might actually love her. Well, I liked her, but love was maybe a bit stretching it¡­ maybe? Looking over at the door, I saw old man Brekkar with a bleeding nose. When he noticed me, he tried to behave as though nothing happened. ¡°Good morning, Alkelios. Breakfast will be served shortly.¡± he then walked away. ¡°Oook¡­¡± I said and then let out a long sigh. ¡°Hihi! I knew that sleep walking spell was a good acquisition, but I never thought I would get to see something as funny as this!¡± a certain black-scaled dragoness said from under me. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised and moved over the side of the bed. Kleo was under my bed, half of her body sticking out and grinning like a fool back at me. When the Hell did she get there?! I screamed in my mind, right before a storm of questions began to torture my poor brain Am I such a heavy sleeper that I didn¡¯t even hear her coming in? Then again, why did she sneak under my bed? What was she doing there? Sleep walking spell? Something like that exists? Please, someone explain to me what¡¯s happening?! I don¡¯t get it at all! ¡°So, do you like my big sister?¡± she asked with a grin. ¡°Yes. Got a problem with that? Now get out of there and out of my room!¡± I said pointing at the door. ¡°Later, for now tell me if you got a good feel of her¡­ assets?¡± she asked, waving off my demand. ¡°Maybe, maybe not. What¡¯s in it for you?¡± I raised an eyebrow at her. ¡°Bah! You are boring! Should I make her come naked next time?¡± she asked actually thinking about this seriously. ¡°Oi! Don¡¯t traumatize your sister! And kill me as a result¡­¡± I warned her. ¡°Relax, she¡¯ll be fine! No other male dragon would hit on her anyway. She¡¯s a knight and an unawakened one, did you forget about that part?¡± she laughed. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°She didn¡¯t tell you?¡± she asked with a raised eyebrow. I just arrived to this world. I don¡¯t even know where the bathroom is, let alone what laws and social habits dragons have! I complained in my mind. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s simple. What she achieved on her own is unfathomable for many dragons. The basic idea is that unawakened ones are believed to be the absolute weakest ones among us, while the title of a knight is given only to some of the strongest. That¡¯s why many look down upon my sister. They believe that she somehow cheated her way in the knight ranks.¡± she explained. ¡°What do you mean cheated?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow at her. My mind was already thinking of some rather inappropriate things, but I refused to believe any of those applied to my redheaded dragoness. ¡°As in she used the authority of our grandfather to pull some strings. But¡­ you really didn¡¯t know any of that, did you?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow at me. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t. And will you please get out from under my bed?¡± I asked her. ¡°Sure, but first, let me be your friend!¡± she said with a grin and held out her hand at me. ¡°No!¡± I bluntly refused her. Who cared about the stats? With her as a friend, I might not ever need any enemies and worse, I might end up making Seryanna completely and absolutely hate me! ¡°What? Why not?¡± she pouted. ¡°Because of how you act with your sister and me!¡± I told her. ¡°She doesn¡¯t mind, and you don¡¯t mind either! Besides, you even made grandpa your friend! It¡¯s not fair! It¡¯s not fair!¡± she complained while waving her hand and kicked the underside of my bed. ¡°Hey! Stop it!¡± I said while holding on for dear life. Even if she was weaker than Seryanna, there was big difference between 10 points of Strength and 100 or more. ¡°Make me your friend, and I¡¯ll stop!¡± she glared at me as she grabbed the sides of the bed and started to shake it violently, making it squeak from every joint. ¡°You¡¯re going to break it!¡± I complained. In that moment, I was actually trying to compare advantages and disadvantages between having her as my friend and not. I would get a boost in strength, true, but what would I lose? I was seriously trying to find some sort of disadvantage for accepting this deal, but only pluses appeared in my mind. It appeared as though no matter how hard I tried, there was no good reason to deny her honest request. Then again, the only reason I didn¡¯t want to get involved with her was the very simple fact that she was unwillingly trying to make Seryanna more and more angry at me, and that was the number one thing I wished to avoid at all cost! Wait! The [Dragon Tamer] skill has the ability to detect a friend¡¯s location! Or general direction, I forgot which one, but either way¡­ that¡¯s a plus. I can be one step ahead of her and know when¡¯s she about to pull a prank on us! Or know when she sneaks in my room¡­ I grinned to myself and then nodded. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be your friend.¡± I told her. ¡°Yay! I have a friend now!¡± she said with a big smile. [You have made a new friend: Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus] I certainly got a boost in stats from her as well. Chances were, I was stronger than the black dragoness now or maybe most of the awakened dragons out there. Unless, of course, most of them were actual monsters in terms of stats. Either way, I was slowly getting to the point where I wouldn¡¯t need to worry about dying after the first blow. ¡°So, are you going to get out of my room now?¡± I asked Kleo. ¡°Yes! I¡¯m going to go brag to sister! I¡¯ll tell her that you did this and that to make me moan and¡­ and¡­ It¡¯s going to be fun!¡± she grinned and then dashed out of there before I had the chance to grab a hold of her and stop her from lying to Seryanna and getting me into another big pile of trouble. ¡°Wait! Don¡¯t you dare say something like that to her!¡± I shouted, but I only managed to stumble on my feet and fall off the bed. I groaned and felt the sharp needles in my legs, a well-known reaction to having one¡¯s limbs fall asleep. Of course, if I had wished to catch her before she fled, I might not have ended up in this situation at all, or maybe she would have stumbled on something on her way out. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.That gives me an idea! I smirked and then thought I wish she would stumble on her own feet and fall down, but without dying or causing herself some sort of severe injury. Considering the way my wishes worked, a good few extra conditions and removal of the worst-case scenarios was a much needed detail. Now all I had to do was wait and listen for it. ¡°KYA!¡± she screamed and then I heard a loud sound of crashing, a few plates getting broken, and a lot of thumps and bumps. ¡°Mistress Kleo! What are you doing?!¡± the angry shout of a maid was heard coming all the way from the other side of the hallway. ¡°Gotcha!¡± I said with a victorious smug. After my feet regained their movement and the needle torture was over, I got out of bed and washed my face in the small bowl I was offered by a maid. I thought about changing my clothes as well, but I wasn¡¯t smelling of dead skunks yet, so I shrugged and went out like that. A maid led me to the dining room, where we had a quiet breakfast like the dinner before. This time, Kleo joined us as well, and Brekkar already healed his broken nose, but Seryanna wasn¡¯t even looking at me, she just kept glaring at the old man and her younger sister like a mother scolding her naughty children. Meanwhile, I just looked out the window and admired the weather without daring to say a single word about what happened. With the last bite gobbled down, Seryanna got up from her seat and approached me. ¡°We¡¯re going to the herbalist.¡± she said. ¡°OK?¡± I got up and followed her out of the room. The other two followed us with their gazes, and I could confirm that the [Dragon Tamer] skill tracking method worked, I could somehow sense that Kleo was still back in the room and didn¡¯t get up to follow us. She must have been scolded by the maids, while the old man by the redhead dragoness. We walked back to my room and picked up the bag of herbs. Then we walked out of the house. As soon as we did so, Seryanna let out a heavy sigh. ¡°I need to apologize.¡± ¡°What for?¡± I asked a bit surprised. ¡°This morning¡­¡± she looked away. ¡°Why?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°I did something unfitting as a knight and as your benefactor.¡± she said with her chin up. Since when is giving me a hard-on a bad thing? I thought to myself. ¡°That¡¯s why¡­¡± she lowered her head and looked away. ¡°I hope you won¡¯t take it the wrong way¡­ By that, I mean what happened.¡± ¡°Nah, I¡¯m not going to get the memory of you wearing a cute nightwear and sleeping in my bed hugging me like that out of my head for the rest of my life!¡± I bluntly declared. ¡°What? Why?¡± she asked as he cheeks turned red and glared at me. I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Because I like you.¡± I replied. It wasn¡¯t a lie, I liked her, but not exactly loved¡­ was there even a difference between the two? ¡°I¡­ You! Don¡¯t you know that I¡¯m a dragon and you are human?¡± she said pointing at her herself and then at me. ¡°Yeah, but your breasts are soft, and you moan cutely when I touched the scales on your back.¡± I said with a big smile. SLAP! That day, the star named Alkelios was born¡­ Well, I didn¡¯t die, but I was close to. That slap literally sent me flying across the estate. Never underestimate the full power of a slap from a dragoness with more than 1000 points in strength. It was one of those comedy moments when you could sing ¡®I believe I can fly~¡¯ then slam into something. That something for me was a tree, however, I didn¡¯t have the inspiration or time to sing. One moment I was standing in front of Seryanna and in the next I was flying through the sky. As a result, my right cheek stung as if a thousand sharp needles used it for a pincushion, and to make it worse, tiny little stars danced around my head ¡®Hora Romaneac?¡¯. When I came through, I noticed that if I had flown just a little bit farther than this tree, I would have ended up head-first into a big boulder. Luck saved me again, but the dragoness was furious. I should learn a Common Sense or Tact skill¡­ Ouch¡­ I groaned in my mind as I rubbed my cheek. ¡°Get down from there and follow me.¡± she growled and stomped away. As she did so, I think I saw her bottom swaying a bit more to the sides than usual, but maybe that was just me seeing things. With a sigh, I got down and followed her on the road towards Tomeron town. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to slap me¡­¡± I told her. ¡°If only I knew you would turn out like this, I would have left you in that forest to rot¡­¡± she grumbled with a low voice. I heard that, and it¡¯s scary to think that you would do so! Forgive me, Seryanna! I thought, but my mind betrayed me and went back to that sweet moment when she moaned in my arms and tucked herself closer to me. Halfway to the town, I looked at my stats again, with Seryanna¡¯s, Brekkar¡¯s, and Kleo¡¯s bonuses, I should have reached a decent value by now, maybe enough to somewhat guarantee my survival in this world? [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 63 [Strength]: 16+313.5+607.5+122 [Speed]: 14+247+452.5+169.25 [Dexterity]: 20+251+527+62 [Magic]: 16+188.5+251+722.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+6.75%+8.5%+11.25% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 2 [Stat Points]: 620 Kleo literally had crappy stats in everything BUT Magic Energy and Excellence. I gained so much from it that now I could literally cast all of my skills at once! I had a total of 1178 points in Magic Energy and 27.5% Magic Excellence, which even now, I had no idea what it did. On another note, my strength went over 1000 points, which was absolutely awesome and totally explained why I managed to survive Seryanna¡¯s ¡®gentle¡¯ slap. Even speed and dexterity were upped by a little, meaning that I was just a few points away from being as strong and fast as Seryanna. Actually, I still had 620 points to spend in something. If I added those to strength, I could surpass her, but everything else was below her. There was also the little detail in regard to how one used these stats. Seryanna seemed to be a master at this, despite her being weaker even than her sick grandfather. Speaking of which, I have yet to check what his disease was exactly, maybe I could obtain some details with my skill? I thought about this for a little bit and decided to check it when we got back to the mansion. Since the old man was now my friend, it would have been a good idea to help him out in his time of need. Maybe I would score some plus points with Seryanna if I did so? Either way, my mind was set on helping them out. It was going to be my first personal quest, and honestly speaking, it wasn¡¯t like I had any other choice. Thinking about it, I was the only earthling stuck in dragon land. Everyone else was probably having a great time farming slimes and hunting wolves in a low level area. Don¡¯t know which is worse¡­ I thought. There was also the Main Quest: saving Earth by changing this world for the better. I was nowhere near even chipping away at that one, so I left it to gather dust somewhere in a corner of my mind, after all, I was only one man. What could I do to change anything? I wasn¡¯t the main character of this story, I was just some guy who got sucked out of his home and dropped in redhead dragoness land¡­ ¡°Alkelios.¡± Seryanna said, pulling me out of my deep thoughts, and I literally bumped into her. I looked up from her chest and gulped. ¡°What are you doing?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Admiring the view?¡± I replied. Taking a step back, she shook her head and then took out a bag from her storage ring. It was filled with some of the more non-magical plants we gathered in the Seculiar Forest. ¡°I¡¯m going to return this ring and end my deal with the bandits. I had enough of compromises and looking the other way. My blood boils to cut them down where they stand¡­¡± she growled and then took a deep breath to calm herself down. She¡¯s cute when she¡¯s angry. I thought. ¡°Anyway, while I go and finish this, you will go to the herbalist and speak with him about what we gathered. Before you enter, make sure to wish that he doesn¡¯t dare to lie to you or cheat you in any way or manner. Mention my name or my grandfather¡¯s and that should make sure he doesn¡¯t try anything fishy. He¡¯s not a bad man, but every draconian can be swayed by shiny stuff.¡± she explained. Shiny stuff? Swayed? Draconian? Can Seryanna¡­ and my mind went straight into the gutter. ¡°Do you understand?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. I shook my head and wiped off the drool from my mouth. ¡°Yes!¡± I replied with a nod. ¡°Good. His house is that one over there. His shop is right next to it. You can¡¯t miss it.¡± she explained and then pointed at a big house past the gates. We had yet to enter the town, but we could see a bunch of houses and draconians minding their own business. For a moment, I found it a bit terrifying that I would go in without the big scary dragoness to protect me, but then again, I had some rather interesting friends now and a bunch of stats thanks to them. ¡°This shouldn¡¯t be hard¡­¡± I thought and gulped. ¡°Indeed. Good luck.¡± she told me before heading off, entering the town and taking the first street going left. I wish you luck in dealing with the bandits, Seryanna! I thought and then went to see this herbalist she mentioned. _____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Also, not dead as you can see :P Chapter 15: Unforeseen danger [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] Of all the stunts Kleo could pull, making me wake up in Alkelios¡¯ bed was by far the worst! I don¡¯t deny the fact that it felt good to be embraced by him, but why couldn¡¯t he just keep his hands to himself? Touching my back scales and grabbing my bottom was crossing the line! A respectable gentleman dragon would never dare to behave in such an inappropriate manner, especially towards an unmarried dragon maiden like myself! Oh yes! He¡¯s not a respectable gentleman, he¡¯s a human¡­ How could I forget that small detail? I asked myself while walking down the street. Kleo was severely scolded for what she did, and grandfather made her promise never to use that spell on any of us again. She didn¡¯t comply the first or third time, but cutting off her budget for her trip to the capital convinced her otherwise. As for Alkelios, even if he was innocent, he still dared to touch me like that, so I had to make sure to teach him a few things about draconic basic common sense in the following days. Our two species were far too different to be together in the manner he wished for. Even if he came from another world, that was no excuse. Dragons and humans could at most be friends, maybe difficult allies, but lovers was out of the question. I already had a hard time dealing with those of my kind because I had yet to awaken, but if I brought a human mate into the mix, I could end up even being labeled as a traitor to my own species and kingdom. Maybe that was looking it at it in a bit of an extreme way, but it certainly wouldn¡¯t have been good for my master. Being looked down upon by the other nobles for having a unawakened knight is hard enough, but if I were to have Alkelios as my lover, I could end up being forced to leave her side. Something like that¡­ I can¡¯t let it happen to her, I can¡¯t abandon the Princess like this, not after all she did for me¡­ I thought and let out a long sigh. There was no need to debate about this, my loyalty towards the Princess was more important than my love life. Besides, humans were known to have a very short lifespan. If I remembered right, by the age of 40 they would all settle down and have children, then twenty or thirty years later, they would die. In other words, the time I had with Alkelios was only of a few decades, a mere moment for a dragon, and this was only if he stayed by my side and didn¡¯t get bored of me. Stopping in my track, I looked up at the sky for a moment. Three dragons in their awakened forms were either doing some test flights or simply stretching out their wings. I also yearned for the moment when I could see the land from above and feel the gentle winds caressing my scales. The other day, when Kleo dive-bombed right on top of Alkelios, she was trying out some flight tricks. Because she didn¡¯t properly stretched her body before flying off into the sky, she ended up with a terrible muscle cramp while in midair. The chances of her actually falling with pinpoint accuracy on Alkelios were incredibly low. She still had some control over her direction, so at best, she should have landed in some nearby trees or in the middle of the open road outside of the town. I guess his Luck works in mysterious ways¡­ Hm, did he by any chance wish for me and him to be together? I asked myself, but then I remembered his warm embrace as we laid there in his bed together. Blushing strongly, I shook my head and slapped my cheeks. No! Don¡¯t think about that! It was a one-time thing! It¡¯s NOT going to happen ever again! I WON¡¯T let it happen again! I told myself and as soon as I calmed myself down, I took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. A few other dragons were throwing me a questionable look, but I ignored them. I was really glad no one was thinking of me as proper mate material, or that I may actually desire at one point to have a mate. Hearing the women snicker and scorn around me was the last thing I wanted. Sometimes, I just wished I had the authority to beat them into a bloody pulp, but as long as I was the Princess¡¯ knight, I had to keep a hold on myself and not do anything stupid to bring harm to her reputation. Nonetheless, if these cowards ever tried anything against me or her, I was free to bust their heads open. Although, I had to wonder if by any chance being friends with Alkelios, a human, was in itself a risky situation for the Princess. In the end, if she ordered me to sever ties with him, I would do so no questions asked. At the moment, I was making my way towards the dragon who had a connection to the bandit group that I borrowed the [Purse] ring from. He was a merchant of used armors and swords near the Two Spirits inn. Thanks to Alkelios¡¯ help, it was finally time for me to end this unpleasant chapter of my life. The way this deal worked proved to be very smart and cunning of the bandits. I couldn¡¯t kill them, but I could stop or rough them up a bit if I caught them in the act. I also had to let them go with a ¡®warning¡¯ of never trying that again. From another point of view, there was nothing wrong with this deal. I wasn¡¯t breaking the law because either killing or arresting them was only up to my own judgment. The worst thing that could happen to me was getting the reputation of being a merciful or lenient knight. Of course, this whole deal applied only and only to this peculiar group of bandits from which I borrowed the ring, and they were all a very troublesome bunch. The Twin Daggers was what they were called, and I heard rumors that their leader was stronger even than my grandfather. Standing before the entrance to the second-hand item shop, I took a deep breath and then stepped inside. ¡°Welcome! Welcome! To Tellios¡¯ Shop of Wonders!¡± the brown-scaled draconian said the very moment he saw me. He was taller than me by two palms and most of his face was covered in scales, and a pair of slit, brown eyes were looking back at me. Although selling some rather dubious sets of armors, he was wearing a long red robe with silver embroidery, no weapons and no jewelry. ¡°I¡¯m here about The Twin Daggers.¡± I told him with a stern tone of voice. ¡°Oh? You are that knight, erm¡­ Sir Seryanna?¡± he asked after he scratched the back of his head with a claw. It was rather doubtful that someone living in this small town didn¡¯t know of me already. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Follow me.¡± he said calmly. The merchant walked away from the counter and moved to the back of the store. There, he took out a key from his left pocket and opened an old wooden door. A pair of barely lit stairs led us to the basement, where a green-scaled dragon awaited us. He was taller than the merchant, with well formed muscles and scars to prove his strength. The tip of his tail was cut off, and his weapon of choice seemed to be his fists. Despite his fearsome look, I could easily tell that he was far weaker than me in terms of strength and even he knew this. ¡°Step aside, the dragoness is here for business.¡± said the merchant. ¡°Hmph!¡± he snorted and moved to the left. I ignored his glare and entered the room. There were two dragons there, both of them wearing long, black robes with hoods over their heads, covering their faces to keep me from identifying them. One was seated and the other was standing next to him. They were looking at some scrolls stacked on the table, but they put them away the moment they saw me. ¡°The knight? What can we do for you?¡± asked the seated one. ¡°I¡¯m here to return this.¡± I told them and then placed the ring on the table. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± asked the man with a raised eyebrow. ¡°My business with your kind is now over. I have no need for this thing anymore.¡± I told them firmly. ¡°I feel thirsty, be kind and go bring us something to drink. Some tea, maybe?¡± the seated man said and looked up at the one next to him. The dragon left immediately, going to the room in the back. I squinted my eyes at him as he did so, assuming that maybe they weren¡¯t planning on letting me get out of this deal so easily. It mattered not. To me, all of them were weaklings who deserved to be cut down or thrown into jail for the crimes they had committed. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s only bringing something to drink, not call for backup.¡± said the one sitting at the table when he saw me reaching for the hilt of my sword. ¡°Let us hope so.¡± I told him , squinting my eyes at him. ¡°Like I said, you have nothing to worry about. But tell me, are you certain we can¡¯t reach some sort of¡­ compromise? Your services are rather invaluable, and we would appreciate it if we could continue this small ¡®trade¡¯ of ours.¡± ¡°Fortunately, there is no need for our deal to persist any longer. My business with the ring is over, and I wish to have no further business with your group.¡± I stated my mind clearly. ¡°I have to say though, I am rather surprised by this sudden turn of events. Didn¡¯t you require this ring for another half of year or so? They are quite rare and no one wished to sell you one last I remember?¡± he asked, trying to get a bit more info as to why I would suddenly need to cut off from this deal. My reasoning was simple enough. I had obtained all the Bloody Mushrooms I needed thanks to Alkelios, and my grandfather¡¯s life would be out of any danger for now. Why would I continue to further deal with these scums when I had only to lose? Of course, I didn¡¯t wish to let them hear my thoughts on the matter and simply refrained from answering his questions. It would take more than that to pull my tongue. ¡°I need not explain myself to you.¡± I cut him off sharply. ¡°Unfortunate¡­ truly unfortunate.¡± he said shaking his head. The other dragon returned with two porcelain cups of tea and placed one in front of me. ¡°Please, have some. It¡¯s our way of ending these sort of¡­ ¡®deals¡¯. A kind gesture from our behalf? The finest tea in the capital! Rossenrhode.¡± the hooded man stated and then took a sip from his cup to show me that there was nothing wrong with the beverage. Hm, I am a bit thirsty, and the aroma is pleasant, but I¡¯m in the enemy¡¯s lair¡­ I shouldn¡¯t¡­ I thought, but the tea smelled very good, it overflowed my senses. Before I could further debate how wise it would have been to drink it, my hand already reached for the cup. Just a sip wouldn¡¯t hurt, right? I thought, but then something strange happened. I, who proud myself with incredible dexterity and swordsmanship. I, who learned the art of sword fighting from my grandfather, a veteran general. I, who am a knight serving the third princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater¡­ I didn¡¯t judge the distance right and accidentally bumped the cup, spilling the tea over the table. My hand froze in that spot, and I looked surprised at what just happened. The chances of someone like me doing this were incredibly low, nearly impossible. Even drunk to the point where I could barely stand, I could still grab hold of a cup of tea¡­ So how? How was it possible for me to spill the tea? ¡°T-This¡­ d-do not worry, we¡¯ll bring you a new cup.¡± said the dragon who was standing. The other one was shocked by this as well, but I found it odd for that to be so. Something¡¯s not right¡­ I thought to myself and pulled my hand back. ¡°It appears I¡¯m not feeling too well¡­ Either way, I already gave you your ring back, so there¡¯s no further need for us to continue our deal. Next time I catch your men looting or stealing, they will be judged appropriately on the spot.¡± I declared and then turned around to leave. The brute at the door looked back at his boss first. ¡°Let her pass¡­¡± said the hooded man. The dragon stepped aside, and I made my way out of the basement and out of the store. Once outside, I took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. Looking back at my hand, I couldn¡¯t help but recount what happened back there and how strange that event was. For me to do that¡­ How? If it was poisoned then¡­ Was this Alkelios¡¯ doing? I asked myself, but despite the seriousness of the situation, I just had to remember the way he touched the scales on my back and made me moan, or how his hands felt grabbing my bottom. I blushed and clenched my fist. ¡°For this, I¡¯ll let you off¡­¡± I told myself and then walked away from there. The human was probably still at the herbalist, asking about the various plants we discovered in the Seculiar Forest. Seeing how I already finished my business, I decided to head there and meet up with him. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. [The seated hooded dragon¡¯s point of view] When I saw that smug unawakened bump the cup and spilling the tea over the table, I thought there was something wrong with my eyes. My heart stopped in my chest, and my whole body went stiff. The greatest fear I could possibly have at that moment was the fact that somehow, someway, she managed to figure out that there was something wrong with the cup. Luckily, she didn¡¯t question us and left peacefully. With a sigh of relief, I looked back at my partner and asked him ¡°Was that the cup?¡± ¡°Yes, the enchanted one. I put there enough sleeping drugs to knock out an entire hoard of sheep, but to think she would spill it, how unfortunate¡­¡± he said shaking his head. Indeed, unfortunate. If she had drunk that tea, she would have fallen unconscious and stayed like that for more than a day. We could have stolen her armor and weapon, sold them to a black market blacksmith and gotten a decent bag of gold for them. To make her keep her mouth shut, we would have branded her with the mark of our group and then had our fun with her. Because she was unawakened, there was no need to worry about her laying an egg. The shame and humiliation resulted from this would have surely kept her mouth shut. We wouldn¡¯t have needed the stupid ring to make her keep her end of the bargain. ¡°She must have the luck of the gods¡­¡± said my partner as he began to clean up the mess she made. ¡°Or she¡¯s as unlucky as a devil¡­ Send word to the boss, she will want to hear of this. We can¡¯t have a knight like her going around messing with our business. Her grandfather has no interest in us and as long as we stay out of the town, he won¡¯t send the guards after us, but she is another story.¡± I ordered. ¡°Then you clean this up, and I¡¯ll go to the boss. She¡¯s at the north cave, right?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes. Go quickly.¡± I told him as I grabbed the rag. He ran past me and left. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] Half an hour¡­ That was how long it took the draconian to analyze all the plants I gathered and estimate a relative price for them both here and in the capital. The moment I stepped in, he squinted his eyes at me and immediately asked who sent me here. When I mentioned Seryanna¡¯s name, he asked what sort of ¡®weeds¡¯ did I bring him from the forest, but once he caught sight of the rare plants I found, his jaw dropped all the way to the floor. Seryanna¡¯s estimates about that strange first plant I found were a bit off. It didn¡¯t cost 20 gold, it was a whooping 35 here and almost 70 in the capital. It was an all-cure sort of plant that a lot of medicine required it. He wanted to buy it from me, but I just couldn¡¯t let it go. I felt like I had to hold onto it for dear life. The others, however, not so much. I ended up selling about half of them and gaining about 47 gold, 38 silver, and 24 copper coins. Honestly, there were quite a few coins in there, and I still had a bunch of herbs left in the bag, but they were all good for one thing or another as far as [Bartender] skill could tell me. I was curious about trying them, but there were also others which I felt a bit reluctant about letting go of. My first guess was that my Luck had something to do with them, but I couldn¡¯t really figure out what exactly this stat was bugging me about. Letting out a sigh, I took a few steps away from the entrance to the shop and sat down next to the wall. I had no idea where Seryanna was, and I couldn¡¯t remember if I told her where we should meet after we were done with our individual business. Of course, I had no fears of thieves or anything like that since I had me trusty ol¡¯ bag o¡¯ luck with me. One wish turned me invisible in their eyes, but then again, I could probably defend myself with my current stat points. Sigh¡­ This isn¡¯t a video game. Now that I think about it, even if I am ridiculously strong when compared to the previous me, the fact that I have no idea how to use my current abilities means that I am quite pointless in battle. I¡¯m like one of those first-level bosses you encounter in a game. Lots of health points, insane strength, but swings like an idiot and has no special skill. All you have to do to defeat him is run around him and poke him in the ribs with your trusty toothpick! Maybe I should ask Seryanna for some combat lessons? Yeah, I think I¡¯ll do just that! I thought looking up at the sky and acting a bit absentmindedly. ¡°How did the trade go, Alkelios?¡± asked the dragoness. Blinking surprised, I looked to my left and saw her standing there. ¡°47 something gold coins. Are you done as well?¡± I asked her. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded and smiled back at me ¡°With that money, we could get you some starting gear. Staying only in those clothes isn¡¯t good for adventuring.¡± she told me. ¡°Oh? Really? That sounds exciting! What should I get first? A fire sword maybe? Or a diamond plated armor?¡± I asked jumping up with excitement. The dragoness raised an eyebrow at me and then giggled. ¡°Nothing that ridiculous! Besides, you can¡¯t even properly use those things yet.¡± she told me. ¡°Aw¡­¡± I made an exaggerated sad face and looked up at her with puppy dog eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that¡­ I¡¯m serious, the diamond plated armor doesn¡¯t even exist.¡± she quickly said, flicking my forehead. ¡°Ouch! At least the fire sword is real¡­¡± I grumbled while rubbing the struck spot. ¡°Yes, idiotic humans often use it thinking that it¡¯s a very powerful sword.¡± she then patted the hilt of her blade. ¡°Enchants are what makes the difference in a weapon. Some are powerful, some are weak, but use them wisely, and you can turn a copper sword into a ridiculous weapon.¡± she explained. ¡°How do you know that?¡± I asked. ¡°I told you before that I know someone who was a good blacksmith, right?¡± ¡°I think I vaguely remember that. You also told me you had a pet and that you would kiss me when we get to this town. But I saw none of those.¡± I told her crossing my arms at my chest and shaking my head. ¡°I never said that last part. As for Tulip, she¡¯s currently hunting in the forest. She¡¯ll probably return in a day or two. You can meet her then¡­ Hm, that gives me a good idea! Why don¡¯t we get you a pet as well?¡± she told me with a determined nod. ¡°What about feeding expenses?¡± I asked her, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Are you stronger than Kleo?¡± she asked me. ¡°In strength, yes. But I doubt I am in magic.¡± ¡°Not many can beat that brat in magic, but if you are stronger than her, then we can go to Andromeda and register you with the Guild of Adventurers.¡± she explained. ¡°That¡¯s a rather generic name, but something like that actually exists? Also, why can¡¯t we just register here?¡± I asked her pointing at the ground. ¡°Why would the Guild build a Hall here? It¡¯s not that big of a city, there¡¯s no dungeon around here, and most of the troublesome things are dealt with either by the guards or by my grandfather.¡± she explained. Honestly, I was surprised when I heard her say that. In my world, games usually dropped a Guild Hall everywhere they could as long as it wasn¡¯t a village. With Tomeron being an actual town, I thought there was surely going to be one here. To think they actually thought of building one only when there was sufficient activity and requests in the area to satisfy the eager adventurers. ¡°Makes sense¡­¡± I said. ¡°Then let¡¯s go and buy you some basic gear. We can go tomorrow in Andromeda to register you as an adventurer and buy you a pet as well.¡± Seryanna patted my shoulder and smiled. ¡°Alright, but me being human won¡¯t cause any troubles, will it?¡± I asked her. Considering the fact that my species in this world was in constant battle with hers, I was worried about getting her and myself into some nasty trouble. ¡°As I said before, as long as you have the recommendation of a knight, you are safe. Grandfather will certainly write you one as well.¡± she reassured me. ¡°I guess it¡¯s fine then. So where should we go to buy some armor?¡± I asked. With a smile on her face, Seryanna pulled me along to some of the merchant shops in this town. The people were quite happy to make a deal with the Brekkar¡¯s granddaughter. Some of them even displayed the best armors they had there. In other words, she knew she was loaded, so they tried to get her to buy everything in sight. Thank to my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill, I was able to spot the fakes and very bad ones, but surprisingly, what those merchants recommended were actually items of high quality. They weren¡¯t trying to trick her or anything. Some time later, after trying out all sorts of weapons and armors, we were done with buying some basic stuff. I got a steel chain mail, a hardened leather armor set with boots and helmet included, a steel short sword, and a backpack. After that, we went over to the enchanter and made sure my armor wasn¡¯t going to break once I moved at full speed. The way of accomplishing this was to infuse Magic Energy in it periodically, otherwise, it would wear out very fast. The strange part was that this didn¡¯t appear on [Identificus Processus Juridicus] list. As for conversations, it was mostly along the lines of: we want this; wear that; do this; how much is that; what other stuff you have. Meanwhile, I was the dress up doll for the redhead dragoness. There were many armors and weapons meant to be used by the anthropomorphic type of dragons. Unawakened versions were pretty rare, so we didn¡¯t have too much variety to pick from, that was why we double and triple checked everything there. ¡°You are all set now.¡± said Seryanna after we left the enchanter. ¡°I can¡¯t believe there¡¯s no actual spell to raise the endurance of the armor.¡± I told her while looking at my gloves. To be honest, I was expecting the enchanter to have one, but now that I remembered, no item I used [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on showed its actual strength and endurance. If it was broken, it simply said where and how broken it was. If it was chipped, it showed me where. If it was wearable, then it said so. This made me realize that I couldn¡¯t judge an armor by enchants and looks alone in this world. Guess that was why Seryanna said that you could make even a copper sword into an insanely powerful one, the downside was that you would spend a lot of coins to make it like that. Still, it would have been a huge waste of resources, but the dragoness didn¡¯t lie, it was possible. You could technically do it. ¡°Magic and Physical damage absorption enchants are the cheapest and most often used on armors. I think you got a decent deal for them.¡± she told me. ¡°It¡¯s only 10% though. It doesn¡¯t even come close to what you have.¡± I pointed out. ¡°True, but this armor is a bit special. Not anyone can have it. The better the skill of the crafter, the higher the chance is that you will find him in the capital or a big trade city, where he is bound to have lots of customers looking for him.¡± she explained. That pretty much didn¡¯t change when compared to a game. The difference in items rarity and levels was always apparent when comparing merchants from Noob Town to those from a Major City. ¡°Hm?¡± I noticed then something in the far. It was a trail of black smoke. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked the dragoness, pointing it out. ¡°What?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. I thought that maybe someone started a barbecue somewhere, but when Seryanna¡¯s face turned serious and she clenched the hilt of her sword, I knew that something was wrong. ¡°Fire¡­ and it¡¯s coming from grandfather¡¯s mansion¡­¡± she said. ¡°What?¡± I asked, but she didn¡¯t waste any more time and dashed in that direction. ¡°Ah! Wait for me!¡± I shouted and ran after her, trying hard not to drop my bag. Was there a accidental fire? Arson maybe? But who would dare attack someone like Brekkar and Seryanna? I hope that old man is safe, and everyone else there for that matter¡­ I thought while trying hard to keep up with the redheaded dragoness. _____ Note from the author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Chapter 16: Brekkars secret Fire engulfed the entire mansion while all the servants and some dragons from the town tried to put it out. Summoning spheres of water, they sent them over, letting them splash and pour over the flames. Even from afar, I could see the effort they made trying to put out the fire. Those few who had no water spells used buckets of water from the local well or helped those touched by the burning flames. Normally, in this time and age, a fire could only be controlled by demolishing the nearby buildings and let it burn out, but with the help of those water magic spells, they had a chance at saving the mansion. Meanwhile, I ran after Seryanna as fast as I could, but she was like a speeding cheetah and had long since lost me in the dust. Once she entered my gaze, I saw her standing next to her grandfather. I thought I finally caught up with her, but just when I was at about ten meters or so from her, she turned around. In that moment, I saw a pain-struck expression on her face. I stopped and stood still for a moment, furrowing my brow and wondering why she would show me such a gaze. Before I had the chance to call out to her, the redhead dragoness turned to her left and ran as fast as she could in that direction. ¡°Seryanna!¡± I called out to her but to no avail, she was already gone from my sight. What just happened? I asked myself and then went to speak with the only one who could shine a bit of light over this whole thing. ¡°Alkelios¡­¡± said Brekkar. The old man was being supported by one of his maids. He was injured, and his armor was cracked in various places. Without a doubt, he just went through a tough battle, but who would dare to attack him? He wasn¡¯t someone just anyone could take on, after all, his strength was over 2000. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked him. The man looked back at his burning home. The fire was fighting back against the draconic spells, but little by little, it was being put out. Still, the damage done was immense. So much was destroyed, so many things damaged, I could only imagine just how he was going to recover from this loss. Still, this was just a building, it was a good thing that he and the servants weren¡¯t still inside at this moment. Then I noticed that Kleo wasn¡¯t here. I blinked surprised and looked around. That prankster was probably somewhere around here complaining about her dress, the mess, and everything else. A chill ran down my spine as I thought of the alternative, but¡­ that couldn¡¯t be it, right? ¡°Where¡¯s Kleo?¡± I asked him again. ¡°She¡¯s¡­¡± Brekkar looked back at me, he clenched a fist and looked down. ¡°I couldn¡¯t protect her¡­¡± he said. ¡°What?¡± I was surprised to hear him say those words. With wide eyes, I looked back at the raging inferno struggling to keep itself lit by eating away at the mansion. ¡°You¡¯re telling me she¡¯s still in there? No!¡± I said and clenched my fist. I don¡¯t have a water-based spell, but if I take a blanket and pour some water on me¡­ If I have some healing potions and rush in, maybe¡­ maybe I can save her. I am strong now, I can do it. I thought as I was prepared to run in after her, forgetting for a moment that I had set my [Dragon Tamer] skill to track her. ¡°No! She¡¯s not in there.¡± said Brekkar before I rushed in. I jumped back from the flames. ¡°What? Then where is she? What happened here?¡± I questioned him. ¡°Bandits¡­ They called themselves the Twin Daggers. The bastards spoke something about a debt and then set the mansion on fire. During the chaos, one of them grabbed my granddaughter and fled. I chased after him, but their leader¡­ she stopped me. I never thought someone so powerful was here. If only I had my original strength, then this whole thing would have been a child¡¯s play for me, but now¡­ I was far too weak. She defeated me with ease and took Kleo as ¡®compensation¡¯. Those bastards even burned down the stock of Bloody Mushrooms I had. They set the entire storage on fire¡­¡± Brekkar said clenching his fist. ¡°Twin Daggers? What? There¡¯s someone powerful enough to defeat even you?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Yes¡­ It¡¯s a woman with silver scales. Her strength is great. I could tell she was merely toying with me, but she didn¡¯t had any intent on killing me or my servants. If she wanted to, she could have done so easily¡­ Frankly speaking, I don¡¯t understand why she left me alive. It¡¯s like she¡¯s not afraid of revenge¡­¡± Brekkar spoke and looked down. The gaze he held in his eyes and the tone of his voice hinted me that this wasn¡¯t just the opinion of a defeated old man, but the experience of a veteran. He could easily tell those who wished to kill from those who didn¡¯t, but the way he said it made it sound as though this dragoness was the only one with this thought in mind. Either way, she was able to easily defeat Brekkar. This meant that she was no easy opponent even for Seryanna. Actually, It was highly likely she would end up in a worse state than this old dragon was. A chill ran down my spine as I compared our strengths in my mind. Forget about defeating, I couldn¡¯t even catch up to Seryanna, and she was no match for Brekkar, yet this bandit easily defeated him. I gulped and remembered the pained look in the redhead¡¯s eyes from a moment ago. Looking back at Brekkar, I immediately guessed what she had in mind. Seryanna went after them¡­ I thought. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to Kleo?¡± I asked him. The old man looked down and clenched his teeth. ¡°Sold to a noble or sent to another kingdom to live as a slave.¡± he then punched the ground, blood spurt out of his wounds and a small crater formed under his fist. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I let them take her away! They are going to pay for this!¡± he roared furiously. As Magic Energy gathered around him, he suddenly had a coughing fit, spitting blood. His hands shivered and eyes reddened. It was as if the very act of gathering this energy harmed him. ¡°Brekkar¡¯s status.¡± I commanded and the menu appeared before me. [Name]: Brekkar Draketerus [Species]: Draconian [Awakened Status]: 2 of 2 Conditions met. [Level]: 824 [Strength]: 2430 (-1250 from injuries) [Speed]: 1810 (-1220 from injuries) [Dexterity]: 2108 (-1400 from injuries) [Magic]: 1004 [Luck]: 24 [Magic Excellence]: 34% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <3X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed> [Current Debuffs]: [Weakened] [Berserker¡¯s Burst Debuff] [Illness]: [Berserker¡¯s Burst] [Inner Magic Energy Burst at 84%] [Radius: 23km] [Type: Magic Explosion] [Estimated time of death: in 2 weeks 3 days 23 hours 34 minutes 16 seconds]. [Cure]: Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I gulped and selected the potion for the cure. This was what I got: [Insufficient [Bartender] level to brew this potion. Required level 3] [Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths]: Requires Grand Master Alchemist to make. Requires Alchemy laboratory. Requires 2000 Magic Energy Points and at least 30% Magic Excellence. Requires the following Normal Herbs and Magic Herbs: Illusory Grass, Tempest Shark Weed, Nocturne, Seven Rainbow Petals, Nightmare Scarlet, Oregano, Rosiette, Golden Dragon¡¯s Tear, Ogre Grass. Requires: Bear Bee Honey, Myrian Water. The list of ingredients was incredible, but there was no Blood Mushroom in there. If this is the cure, what did Brekkar take until now? I asked myself as I double checked the list in case I missed it. After seeing it wasn¡¯t there, I looked in the dragon¡¯s eyes and asked him bluntly: ¡°You have [Berserker¡¯s Burst]?¡± He clenched his teeth and looked down at the ground. ¡°In two weeks you are going to die, does Seryanna and Kleo know this?¡± I asked him. ¡°Master?¡± the servants and butlers were both surprised upon hearing me. ¡°No, they don¡¯t¡­ I was going to keep it secret and¡­ when I felt my time coming, I was to flee from here in the Seculiar Forest.¡± he closed his eyes and the servant beside him gasped in surprise. ¡°Bloody Mushroom¡­ What did you use it for?¡± I questioned him. ¡°If used with a few other plants, it can alleviate the pain a bit and absorb my Magic Energy, keeping me alive for a bit longer¡­¡± he then looked up at me and asked ¡°Will you tell them?¡± I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead with two fingers. To save this old geezer, I had to level up my [Bartender] skill and even put a bunch of points in Magic Energy and Excellence. To acquire said points, I was forced to gain some levels, and all of this only if I survived through this whole experience first. I sighed. Me and my blasted luck¡­ I grumbled and placed the bag in front of him. ¡°You are an old fool, why didn¡¯t you look for a Grand Master Alchemist to make you the cure?¡± I asked him. ¡°What cure? This condition is incurable!¡± he growled back at me. ¡°Says who?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Everyone!¡± he shouted. ¡°Not me.¡± I told him and shrugged. He squinted his eyes at me and then asked me. ¡°You¡­ you know the cure?¡± he asked. At this moment, I realized that I held a valuable trump card in my hand. It was something even Brekkar gave up on finding. More so, he was an old general with a lot of influence and power, not to mention that if I cured him, the war against the humans could take a turn for the worse for them. This situation¡­ it¡¯s quite dangerous, isn¡¯t it? I asked myself, but then I remembered Seryanna¡¯s sad expression. She nearly abandoned her own position she worked so hard for just to go and fetch those useless Blood Mushrooms from the forest. Without asking for a reward, she saved me, and this old man took me in his house without even wondering if I was a danger to his family or not. I was a human, and by point of logic, he should have held only hate and anger for me in his heart, yet he didn¡¯t or didn¡¯t show it. My decision could end up influencing the whole war and bring the dragons closer or further away from victory. A single word could bring about the death of countless humans and even earthlings who joined this battle. It was natural for me to think about this and maybe request some sort of reward. I could even force him to give me Seryanna, maybe¡­ but then again¡­ I wasn¡¯t a scumbag. 100 Luck my foot¡­ I grumbled in my mind, seeing this whole thing as a result of this one single stat of mine. Kneeling next to the old dragon, I placed my hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m your friend and you are my friend, right?¡± I asked him. Brekkar looked into my eyes a bit confused and then replied ¡°Yes.¡± there was no shame or regret in the tone of his voice. ¡°Then fear not, I will make the cure for you if your granddaughter helps me a bit to grow in strength. In that bag you have part of the cure. The potion is called [Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths]. Only a Grand Master Alchemist with the same amount of Magic Energy and Excellence as Kleo can make it. You will also need an alchemy table, lab, the whole thing as well as the following herbs: Illusory Grass, Tempest Shark Weed, Nocturne, Seven Rainbow Petals, Nightmare Scarlet, Oregano, Rosiette, Golden Dragon¡¯s Tear, and Ogre Grass. Then you need some Bear Bee Honey and Myrian Water. You have half of those herbs in that bag.¡± I told him everything. ¡°Why-Why are you telling me something so important? If what you say is true, then this potion could save countless of dragons that suffer from this condition, and if I return to the battlefield, the dragons would become stronger¡­ Aren¡¯t you worried about all the humans I could end up killing as a result of this? If you let me be, I¡¯m just a useless crippled dragon, but with your cure¡­ Why?¡± he asked me. Brekkar wasn¡¯t a fool apparently, he realized in a moment what implication this potion could have in the battle against the humans, but at the same time, I was a human. My actions simply made no sense for him. He barely knew me, I barely knew him. There was no need for me to offer such an important secret, although, I didn¡¯t see it as such, honestly speaking. ¡°Brekkar, do you really think I need a reason to save a friend¡¯s life? Besides, I owe Seryanna too much, and I like her. If you die, she would be very sad, and if she were to find out I held the cure all along, she would never speak with me again for the rest of my life.¡± I let out a low sigh, showing that was a situation I pretty much wished to avoid. ¡°BWAHAHAHA!¡± the old dragon burst into a loud laughter. ¡°To think there was a human who was so honorable! Even if you aren¡¯t a dragon, I don¡¯t think it would be so bad for my granddaughter to keep you company for a few more decades!¡± he said and then stood up on his own. Looking at me with a serious look in his eyes, he spoke with a loud, clear tone of voice ¡°I, Brekkar Draketerus declare you to be a life friend of my house! If you will ever be in need of help, those of the Draketerus family shall offer it gladly from now on!¡± he then nodded satisfied. ¡°Thanks¡­¡± I told him and then thought I really hope I didn¡¯t just doom the entire human species¡­ Well, just in case¡­ I wish this war between the humans and dragons will eventually stop someway or somehow, preferably in a peaceful way without the complete destruction of both sides. I then looked in Seryanna¡¯s direction. ¡°Go, my friend. I¡¯ll take care of things here, but do come back alive.¡± Brekkar said with a serious look in his eyes. I nodded and then ran as fast as I could after the redhead dragoness. Whatever happens, I hope Seryanna, Kleo, and I will come back alive from this¡­ Now I know there is a God out there, so I wish this night won¡¯t turn into a tragedy! I thought and entered the forest. Once more, I forgot to turn on the Kleo radar that came with my skill¡­ I was in a rush¡­ _____ Note from the author: Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! :) Chapter 17: Through sword and blood ¡°Damn, she¡¯s far!¡± I stopped to catch my breath. Leaning with one hand on the trunk of a tree, I opened my skills menu and looked at [Speedy Rooster], but something told me it was better to put it off for now. With a sigh, I closed the window and looked ahead. The forest was thick, and I would have honestly ended up lost if not for my [Dragon Tamer] skill. Not long after I left Brekkar, I thought about using the tracking function on Seryanna. It was then when I remembered that I used it on the prankster Kleo. It turned out to be a lucky decision, especially since both me and Seryanna were currently trying to find her. With this ability, I knew exactly where to go, but I wasn¡¯t certain the redhead dragoness followed the same path. Knowing her, she probably got lost at the first intersection. She had that sort of luck. I wish Seryanna won¡¯t get lost while searching for her sister. I wish we will meet soon, so we can work together. was what I thought when I realized that we might end up going in completely different directions. The only thing I could do now was cross my fingers and hope my Luck stat worked. ¡°I hope you¡¯re alright, Kleo¡­¡± I said before starting to run again in her direction. If I was still my former normal human self, I would have gotten lost three times and a half by now. Not to mention the fact that I would have spat out my lungs from all of this running. I literally ran at least twenty kilometers, and I was still far away from Kleo. On the bright side of things, I didn¡¯t encounter any of the bastards who attacked Brekkar. In a way, I was sort of avoiding them, but then again, Seryanna was certainly hunting them down. They had a hostage, and she had a temper. The combo didn¡¯t look too good. About ten or so minutes after I took my short break, I suddenly encountered a very suspicious-looking thing. There was a chopped up dragon, half of its body was at about ten meters away from the rest. ¡°Eeek!¡± I made a shriek like a little girl when I saw the bloodbath. Not that far away from me was the ripped up upper part. His limbs had been crushed, and his head turned 180 degrees while still stuck to its body. Not far from him was a pair of wolves that had been slashed in half. They literally stood no chance against the monster who went through this place, bu I had the strange feeling I knew that said monster. With a gulp, I continued to track down Kleo, but the deeper I went, the body count only went higher and higher. Battle signs were all over the place, but the one they were up against was of no match to them. I even saw this big fellow completely changed into a dragon, but he had his head chopped off. His body was left to rot there. ¡°Did Kleo do this?¡± I wondered for a moment, but then shook my head. ¡°It has to be Seryanna¡­¡± and I left the scene. About six minutes later, I heard the clash of swords and the screams of agony of a man. Something went flying in the air, and I squinted my eyes at it. What¡¯s that? I wondered. It was coming straight at me. For a moment, I thought it was a bomb or something, but then I saw the face with the tongue stuck out. With not even the slightest hesitation, I jumped back. The chopped off head fell on the ground, bouncing two times and then rolling to a stop. ¡°The hell? It¡¯s raining heads now?¡± I said and then picked up a nearby branch. Carefully, I approached it and poked it. ¡°Whew! It¡¯s dead¡­ Well¡­ duh!¡± I said But who killed him? I tilted my head to the left. ¡°Kill her!¡± the shout came from ahead. Getting up, I ran in that direction, leaving the head there. What was I going to do with it anyway? Use it as bowling ball? The sounds of clashing swords was heard again and then a thud. Someone roared and then something went flying to the left. A sharp sword was impaled halfway through into a tree at about twenty or so meters from me. With a gulp, I continued to run. After jumping through a bush, I saw the scene of another battle. There were six bandits here, three had been killed with stab wounds to the heart. One was slashed in half at the waist. One was decapitated, and the last one was on his knees, his left hand cut from the elbow, and he was vomiting blood. ¡°What the¡­¡± I thought as I looked, but just when I was wondering who did this to them, someone pushed me back on the ground and the sharp blade of a sword was at my throat. On top of me stood the redhead dragoness. Fury raged in her eyes, her face and armor had been stained by their blood. She was breathing heard as if barely controlling herself, and to put it simply, she looked pissed. I gulped. ¡°Hey there, honey!¡± I smiled. ¡°Huh?¡± she furrowed her brow and closing in, she took a better look at my face. ¡°Alkelios?¡± she asked. ¡°You can always kiss me to find out. I¡¯m sure you remember the last one!¡± I smiled like a fool. Do I really wish to die now? Stupid brain! God! I want a refund! Or a spare¡­ I thought in my mind. ¡°Hmph!¡± she pulled back and got off of me. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± she asked walking over to the dying bandit. ¡°Please¡­ no.¡± he begged and then slashed his other hand. ¡°ARGH!¡± he screamed. ¡°Where is my sister! TALK!¡± she growled at him. Note to self¡­ If you invite her to your bed, stick with her. No cheating! I thought and gulped. For some reason, I covered my crotch with both hands. ¡°I don¡¯t know, you stupid whore!¡± he screamed back at her. Wrong answer, buddy. I thought. She didn¡¯t say another word and with one slash, decapitated him. Looking back at me, she squinted her eyes at my weird position. ¡°What are you doing?¡± she asked me. ¡°Huh? Nothing¡­ just admiring¡­ the trees! Yeah! The trees¡­¡± I said and looked to the left. A tiny rodent, similar to an Earth squirrel, saw me, poked her tongue out at me, and ran back into its borrow. What the? I thought. ¡°Trees? Hmph! Go back to my grandfather. This is no place for a human like you!¡± she snorted and sheathed her sword. Before I had the chance to retort, she dashed into the forest again. I ran after her. ¡°Hey! Wait up!¡± ¡°Go back, Alkelios! There¡¯s nothing you can do!¡± ¡°I can always kiss you?¡± I said. ¡°Are you an idiot?¡± she asked and glared back at me. ¡°No, but I can track down Kleo if you want.¡± I smirked. She immediately stopped, and I bumped into her. Hitting a wall of steel at 60km/h was not cool. I coughed a few times from the shock. ¡°Alkelios! What you said. Is that true?¡± she asked looking seriously at me. ¡°The kiss? Yeah¡­¡± Cough! Cough! ¡°Not that!¡± she lifted me up by the collar of my neck and glared at me ¡°About Kleo!¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true¡­ She¡¯s that way¡­¡± I pointed into the woods a bit to the left of where Seryanna was going. ¡°If you are lying¡­¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°When did I ever lie to you?¡± I asked her and then gently touched her right cheek. ¡°Lead the way then.¡± she said after coldly swatting my hand away. ¡°Ow!¡± I complained, although it didn¡¯t actually hurt. At least, it didn¡¯t take a whole lot of convincing to do. I was sort of expecting her to give me this long, boring speech about how it wasn¡¯t good for me to be in this battle, that it was her job, or something along those lines. Basically, the clich¨¦ result of a similar confrontation, but apparently, I was wrong. Not long after we started running, we sensed movement ahead of us, and Seryanna went to investigate. When I arrived there, I saw the same bloody and gory scene as before with mercilessly killed dragon bandits. The redhead dragoness was like a hurricane of steel and blood, cutting and destroying anything it touched, but which at the same time let out cute moans when I stroked her back scales. ¡°You don¡¯t mess around, do you?¡± I asked as I jumped over one of the bodies. ¡°In battle, the one that jokes ends up dead.¡± she coldly replied. ¡°I see¡­¡± We continued to chase after the invisible arrow only I could see, hoping they would lead us to the goth dragoness, but there was certainly no short supply of bandits. Just like a game would cough up group of mobs after group of mobs to try to stop you from getting to your target, so did this forest. That or maybe Seryanna¡¯s bad luck simply pulled all of them towards us like a magnet, but then again, my luck should have nullified it. Eventually, we reached an opening and stopped in front of a field of grass. On the other side, I could see a huge mountain rising up towards the sky, covered in sharp cliffs unwilling to let anyone try to climb them. In front of us, about twenty bandits rose up from the grass, smirking at us. Seryanna clenched the hilt of her sword and took a stance. ¡°You¡¯ll need to fight now.¡± she told me. ¡°Me? But I never killed anyone in my life!¡± I complained. Indeed, I came from an ordinary civilian life in a peaceful country. Death and wars were the least of our concern there, being robbed was the first priority. Still, it was ridiculous to believe I could do something like that. With a gulp, I unsheathed my sword and the dragons already took me in their sights. I need to remember this isn¡¯t Romania. These aren¡¯t the civilized grounds of Europe. Life and death have a simple meaning here¡­ you kill those that try to kill you. Don¡¯t think too much. This is exactly like a game! These are mobs! Flesh and blood¡­ mobs. I thought and then gulped again. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. There was no way to think that I could kill any of them, but if I held hard on the hilt of the sword, I could literally survive a blow or two. I had higher stats, after all. ¡°They¡¯re coming.¡± Seryanna warned me. I raised my sword up and looked at the incoming bandits. The desire to see me dead and begging for mercy could be seen in their eyes and smug smirks. If I were to show them even a single moment of weakness, like rabid dogs, they would try to end me. I hope I¡¯m not going to die here¡­ I thought and then saw one raising his sword up and attacked me. Although I saw his movement, I reacted faster and blocked the first blow. There was a moment of surprise on his face, but I couldn¡¯t rejoice in my success, the others were coming. I pulled the sword up and executed a slash. Thinking that he was the same as a character in a game, I didn¡¯t try to control my strength. The dragon attempted to block the attack, but my sword simply cut through his weapon like it was made out of cardboard. The blade didn¡¯t stop there, and I watched as it touched his armor, pressing it down and then cutting into it. As if watching a knife go through clay, so did my sword go through his flesh and bones. In one fell swoop, the dragon was cut in half. He looked at me as if he didn¡¯t understand what just happened and then fell on the ground. Seeing this, the others came to a halt, taking a cautionary step back. I wasn¡¯t a weakling anymore, at least not in his eyes. For me, the emotion that struck me was similar to shock, but at the same time, the adrenaline rushing through my veins told me I couldn¡¯t stop there. It warned me that if I did, I would die. Did those soldiers who fought in those wars back in my world felt the same thing? This rush? This need to press forward, but at the same time, did they also feel this overwhelming fear that confuses you and keeps you moving? Strength and speed coupled with fear and terror, all washing down upon you, making you realize that the only reason you were still standing was because of your training? But I wasn¡¯t trained, so why am I still standing? Why don¡¯t I scream in fear? I thought as I saw another one from the corner of my eye. Raising my sword up, I blocked his attack and then kicked him in the chest like a barbarian. The man tumbled back a few meters, while his other comrade tried to cut my right hand. I saw it and dodged the strike. Only one slash of my sword was all it took to kill this one. The sharp blade moved through the plates of his armor and pierced his soft flesh. Blood spurted out, touching me with a few drops. I blinked surprised and jumped back. Looking down, I saw my sword painted in red, then I raised my head up and saw the three dead, well¡­ one was unconscious. ¡°What did I just do?¡± I asked myself confused. Looking to my left, I saw another battle. Seryanna was taking care of all the other soldiers. Her sword was fast and showed not even one moment of hesitation. She cut through them without mercy and when the sword was not needed, she used her bare hands to crush the other dragon or simply cast a fire spell, covering him in flames. The men screamed and tried to cut her down, but they were no match for the dragoness. It was the same as putting a starving lion in a cage with a bleeding pig and hope the feline wouldn¡¯t attack. Without mercy, without care, without doubt or fear, the redhead cut them down and ended their pathetic lives. Suddenly, my three kills weren¡¯t that much of an accomplishment. Seeing this made me realize that her resolution was quite frightening. After something like that, I would certainly suffer some heavy mental damage, but she was fine. ¡°That was the welcoming committee.¡± she said with a smirk. ¡°So, there are more to come, huh?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she squinted her eyes and pointed at the mountain. ¡°There¡¯s a cave over there. Maybe they are hiding inside?¡± she asked. ¡°Possibly. Let¡¯s check it out, although, I¡¯m currently being told that Kleo is somewhere under us.¡± I pointed in the direction I sensed her. ¡°Hm.¡± Seryanna squinted her eyes and then looked back at the mountain. ¡°They are using the passages of the caves. They are old and intricate, but make for a good hideout¡± she explained. ¡°In other words, we need to dig down to get her?¡± I asked. ¡°Or simply go to the cave and climb down.¡± she smiled back. I nodded and followed her. My mind and heart were still a bit troubled by the fact that I just took another living being¡¯s life, but not so much as to hinder my ability to fight. Why do I feel alright about this? Is it because they weren¡¯t human? If they were¡­ could I have killed him as I did them? I asked myself and felt my heart waver about such a decision. For some reason, I couldn¡¯t put dragons and humans on the same scale. The latter tipped it in their favor. This thought frightened me a bit. ¡°Watch out! More are coming out!¡± warned Seryanna, pulling me out of my thoughts. Looking ahead, I saw a bunch of dragon bandits rushing out in an attempt to stop us. I was seriously starting to question just how smart these guys actually were. After killing their friends with so much ease, they should have stopped and tried to come up with a plan or strategy to fight us off, not rush out like that. I clenched the hilt of my sword and prepared to defend myself. This isn¡¯t murder¡­ this is self-defence¡­ Yes, self-defense. I thought as I strengthened my resolve. There were seven of them coming towards me and nine towards Seryanna. All of them wore simple leather armor and wielded steel swords similar to mine, but a bit more rusty. I doubted any of them had enchants on them, but I had to be careful nonetheless. I wish I will come out unharmed, unscratched, and victorious out of this battle. I hope it will be the same for Seryanna. I thought as I took a glance at the redhead dragoness who dashed towards them. With a gulp, I prepared for my next battle. ¡°Kill the unawakened first!¡± shouted a bandit. ¡°Which one?¡± asked another. ¡°The man!¡± came his reply. Apparently, they rushed out without even properly picking out a target. Maybe they weren¡¯t even aware of how fast we killed the other bandits? ¡°[Fireball]!¡± shouted one of them and then began to chant something while aiming his hand at me. I looked at him surprised, but when he finished his chant, a huge ball of fire went straight at me. I had but a split second to jump out of its way. If I didn¡¯t, I would have ended up as a piece of charcoal. The blast went by me and hit the far-off tree. It burst into flames, and the explosion caused it to fall to the ground. With a gulp, I understood that magic can be quite frightening and destructive. Well, remembering the dragon children playing with a small fireball in the middle of the street, that part should have been quite obvious. The first one raised his sword and attacked me. I jumped back and dodged it. As soon as I landed, I pushed my body forward and initiated a slash. Just like the one from before, he tried to block it, but since his weapon didn¡¯t hold any enchants, it went straight through him, giving him a deep cut wound. The next one was to my left, I rolled to avoid his attack. Picking up a stone from the ground, I tossed it as hard as I could at him. The bandit didn¡¯t stand a chance against a projectile aimed at him like a bullet shot out of a powerful gun. Two were down, five to go, and they didn¡¯t appear to be stopping. While I was preparing to dodge another magic attack, a ripped off arm went flying straight into the caster¡¯s head, breaking his neck. Blinking surprised, I looked to my right and saw Seryanna covered in blood. With a furious look in her eyes and a heavy breath, she already finished her bunch. The bodies of the dragons laid all around her. Seeing this, the remaining four felt fear rushing up their spines and decided they couldn¡¯t stand a chance against us. They all ran away as fast as they could towards the forest. If they returned to their lair, their leader was most likely going to finish off the job and split open their heads. ¡°Well, that was interesting¡­¡± I said. ¡°They were a bit stronger¡­¡± Seryanna pointed out while looking down at one of the bandits she killed. For me, her entire battle took place somewhere in the background. I wasn¡¯t even aware of when she defeated them and how, but judging by the blood splatters, it was a messy one. I need to remember to never get on her bad side¡­ I thought. ¡°So you are the rats that sneaked into my den? How lovely¡­ Two unawakened brats think they can defeat me?¡± the one who spoke was a dragoness who flew down from the sky. She was taller than me by almost one meter. With a pair of silver-scaled wings and a long, spiked tail, she held an impressive aura. The difference in strength was clear from the first glance. She was the one who defeated Brekkar, a level 824 draconian, with ease. Besides being powerful, she also had a bombshell body with big breasts, an hourglass shape, a cute face, and long, silver hair. Looking up at her, I said in a whisper: ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus]¡± : DD. Real. Seriously? I thought when I saw the text. Closing it off, I tried again, but this time, I said: ¡°Status of target.¡± [Name]: Unknown [Species]: Superior draconian of the Ice Spark [Level]: 1294 [Unknown Stats] ¡°Well¡­ crap¡­¡± was the only thing I could say when I saw the details. ¡°Who are you?¡± asked Seryanna pointing her sharp sword at her. ¡°Kataryna Greorg! Bandit leader extraordinaire, at your service!¡± she smirked and then made a mocking bow in front of us. ____ Note from the author: Thank you for reading and sorry for the late updates, I''m a lazy bum when it comes to updating >.> I hope this will change. Chapter 18: A battle of luck Before us was a dragoness of incredible power, someone we couldn¡¯t even hope of winning against in a one on one battle. Actually, I doubted I could win even if I were fight Kleo alone. The one thing I could be sort of grateful about was the fact that this Kataryna fellow had a nice body to look at, but ogling at the enemy¡¯s chest probably wasn¡¯t considered a priority right now. With a gulp, I looked over at Seryanna. The dragoness took her stance, squinting her eyes at the enemy and had her sword ready to cut her down. The problem was that she was about five times lower in level than the other. Going by old RPG rules, there was absolutely no way in Hell or Heaven that we could defeat this sort of boss-type character. What now? I thought. ¡°If you bow down to me, I promise you will be left alive¡­ maybe.¡± Kataryna said with a cold look in her eyes. ¡°I will never bow down to the likes of you! A knight¡¯s loyalty is her life!¡± shouted Seryanna, pointing her sword at her. Off goes the chance of begging for mercy¡­ As if that ever helped anyone in this sort of situation. I thought while remembering the many movies and TV series with this sort of clich¨¦ conversation. Technically, for me it was clich¨¦, but this wasn¡¯t a movie, this was real life and for those two in front of me, those words were as serious as they could be, knowing full well they could even end up killed as a result of them. Basically, the silver-scaled dragoness declared her intention to fight the knight, while my redhead stated her loyalty was unshaken. I gulped and then thought I wish Seryanna will come out alive from this battle! I want us to win! but then, I looked up at Kataryna and saw her switching her gaze towards me. A smirk appeared on her lips, and I felt a cold chill rushing down my back. I wish her next attack won¡¯t touch me or Seryanna! I shouted in my mind. Just then she dropped on the ground, sending a powerful burst of Magic Energy below her. Immediately, a crack appeared under her feet and then spread out like lightning towards me. I barely reacted in time even with my speed. My body moved only a step forward and then two sharp earth spikes over three meters tall formed around me. ¡°Alkelios!¡± shouted Seryanna. ¡°Hiii!¡± I froze. One or two millimeters were all that was needed for me to end up impaled by those deadly spikes. More so, I moved in such a way that I managed to avoid the one coming from under my feet and the one where I would have instinctively jumped to dodge. ¡°Hm? I missed?¡± Kataryna blinked surprised. ¡°I could have died¡­¡± I said and tried to move out of the way. ¡°Then please do.¡± the dragoness then said and dashed towards me. Seryanna saw her move and ran towards me in an attempt to try to stop her, but the silver-scaled was faster and was next to me in the blink of an eye. I only saw her small smirk and calm, cold eyes before she kicked me so hard it sent me flying. It didn¡¯t even matter that I was between those two spikes, she shattered them like they were nothing. In that moment, I couldn¡¯t even make a wish, everything happened so fast that all I saw was her expression, then the sky and ground began to spin very fast. My stomach lurched, and I nearly lost my meal, but then I came to stop, crashing into the ground, tumbling a few times before coming to a stop in a batch of hay. ¡°Ugh¡­ It hurts¡­¡± I said as I felt the shock and pain spreading through my body. My eyes were spinning, and I couldn¡¯t understand what exactly just happened, but I could hear sounds of clashing swords and thundering strikes somewhere far off in the distance. I can¡¯t stay here¡­ It hurts, but if I stay, I¡¯ll die¡­ I will die¡­ I¡­ I thought as I tried to move from there. My abdomen hurt, my chest too. Even breathing was hard at first, but then the pain slowly subsided. It was probably only the initial shock of the hit, but my instincts kept pushing me forward. If the me from before coming to this world was hit by that attack, it would have meant instant death. I cursed a few times as I pulled myself out. What luck to have a batch of hay here¡­ but how? as I came out, I looked back. It was the carriage of some poor fellow that broke down. The man was shivering and looked back at me. ¡°I just bring hay for the Khosinni the bandits have! They made me do it! I swear! Please don¡¯t kill me!¡± he begged. The man was an awakened draconian, his tail was coiled around his legs. Looking into his eyes, I could see only the gaze of a scared man. He was frightened by the battle and the sudden movement of the bandits. If they were under attack from the guards or the Lord of the region, then all found would most likely not be seen with good eyes. ¡°Go¡­¡± I groaned and got up on my feet. ¡°YES!¡± the man scrambled away as fast as he could, leaving behind his carriage and everything. For him, his life was more important. Looking towards the other side of the carriage, I saw an old Khosinni munching on some hay. I cut his reins and set him free. To be honest, I was just copying an old quest line I remembered. The character in the game said that if I let the horse stay like that, it would end up being killed by wolves or die of dehydration. Well, in this world, it would be death by sheep¡­ I thought and then looked down at my hands It hurts, but I have to get back in there¡­ or¡­ I looked at the Khosinni munching calmly on his meal. There was an outcome that suited my wishes. By taking the horse, I could flee from this place and return to Brekkar, then we could form a stronger force and attack them, but¡­ what would happen to Seryanna? Through my mind rushed all sort of thoughts, but among them was one that truly frightened me. Seryanna could end up raped and tortured by these bandits. I gulped. I couldn¡¯t let something like that happen to her, but if I returned, my life could be forfeited. Closing my eyes, I clenched a fist and wondered what others in my situation would do. Most of my former friends would run away. Others would condition me, asking if I¡¯m in any sort of stable relationship with the dragoness to say she¡¯s ¡®worth¡¯ saving. If I were to ask my parents, they would probably wonder why I should care when she isn¡¯t even human. That¡¯s right¡­ she¡¯s not human, but¡­ I looked back. ¡°CRAP!¡± I cursed and ran back into the fight. I wish both me and Seryanna will win this! I wish we will win! I want us to win! I want to win! I don¡¯t want either me or her to die! I don¡¯t want us to be heavily injured! I started wishing all sort of selfish and unreasonable things, maybe just maybe, one of them would trigger the insane amount of Luck I had and result in a good outcome for us. ¡°Kleo¡­ yes¡­¡± I then remembered her and thought I wish Kleo would wake up somehow and help us fight Kataryna! I don¡¯t want her to die in this battle! We need her help! [Back in the caves, deep under the ground, where Kleo was being held. 3rd Person point of view] ¡°Oi! Careful with that hammer! It has a loose head!¡± said one of the bandits. Wearing a thin leather armor, he and another of his comrades were currently working on fixing the old door to the torture room next to the cells were they held the prisoners. ¡°This thing?¡± the dragon asked as he looked at it with squinting eyes. ¡°Looks fine to me.¡± he shrugged and started to hit a nail on the door. ¡°Just be careful with it.¡± ¡°Yeah! Yeah! Huh?¡± the moment he tried to hit again, only the handle struck the nail. The small metal head went flying back, through the small gap between the bars of the jail and hit Kleo right on the head. Normally, it should have killed her, but the goth girl was both an awakened dragoness and someone with a large Magic Energy pool. It would take more than a rusty hammer head to cause any harm to her, Seryanna¡¯s chops were more dangerous. Still, it had the effect of waking her up and giving her a small bump. ¡°IT HURTS!!!¡± she screamed at the top of her lungs. [Thraheray¡­ Teraher¡­ Kleo¡¯s point of view] ¡°Achachacha!¡± I said while rubbing the bump on my head. And I was dreaming so nicely about my prince charming who came to save me from the evil grandpa who didn¡¯t want to let go of me because I was too cute. Well, a girl can dream¡­ Where am I? I thought as I looked around. The scent of rust and sweat immediately made me grab my nose. It smelled worse than Seryanna after a day of hard training in the heat of the sun. At least my sister had the delicious curves to make the stench worth it, plus the clinging clothes on her body, however, I wasn¡¯t at home. Ah¡­ I remember now! Some ugly looking fellow threw a bottle at my feet. It released a foul odder and then¡­ then what happened? I tried to remember, but I just couldn¡¯t. After that event, I couldn¡¯t remember a single thing, but looking at this stinky location, I had the feeling that I wasn¡¯t home anymore. A chill ran down my spine when I saw the two dragon fellows looking back at me. ¡°Ah! She woke up!¡± said the one with a stick in his hand. ¡°Relax, she¡¯s inside, and we¡¯re here.¡± the other shrugged. ¡°Hey, you! Give us the hammer head or else!¡± he smirked. I blinked surprised and when I looked down, I saw the piece of metal there. I picked it up with my right hand and rubbed the bump on my head with my left hand. This thing¡­ I thought and then glared back at the two of them. They were the ones who did this! ¡°HERE!¡± I shouted and then tossed it right at the head of the one holding the stick. ¡°Huh! Ack!¡± It was a direct hit, and he was out cold! ¡°Hmph! That should teach you to throw junk at me!¡± I said with my chin up and hands on my hips. ¡°Oi! Are you alright?¡± his friend went over to help the other idiot. But I¡¯m in a jail, ain¡¯t I? I thought while looking around again. There was a chain on my left ankle and a couple of enchants around the place to stop certain magic users. Dumb and dumber over there wouldn¡¯t be able to get out of this place, but I had a few tricks up my sleeve. ¡°You wench! When I get in there, I¡¯ll beat you up for this! I¡¯ll show you!¡± he threatened me as he grabbed the keys and went to the door. This guy was clearly an idiot, so I grinned to myself. Nah, they probably just think that I¡¯m a useless, helpless little girl. Huhuhu! I thought right before I started to gather Magic Energy in the palms of my hands. Once the door was open, I opened my mouth and took a deep breath in. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± the man asked when he felt the air around us suddenly changing from warm to cold. ¡°Fiends of the Underworld, ghouls of darkness, and spirits of the Abyss! Hear my calls and come forth from the shadows around me! Answer my commands and submit to my will, fiends of darkness!¡± I chanted. ¡°What?¡± the man was confused, but he felt something was wrong and carefully stepped back. The door closed behind him, trapping him in here with me. I licked my lips and continued to fuel the darkness around me with Magic Energy. ¡°No! Let me out!¡± he screamed while shaking the bars of the door. The key didn¡¯t work at all. This man¡­ was mine. ¡°Fiends of darkness¡­ Reaper of Blood, I command thee! Kill this mortal before me! End his miserable life!¡± ¡°As you command¡­ mistress¡­¡± the dark, cold voice of my servant echoed over the walls of this cell. ¡°What? Reaper of Blood? No! Please! I beg you! AAAH!¡± His screams flowed just like his red blood, drop after drop as my servant ripped him apart. What he saw were only claws of darkness as they pulled on him, cut his flesh, and poured over him a bucket of maddening pain. It was delicious, but I had to behave. I couldn¡¯t rip his soul out or sister and grandpa would be mad at me. I stopped the attack just in time and left the poor bastard swallowing his own blood with mere moments left to live. If the Reaper of Blood took his life with the last blow, he would also take his soul. Something went flying in front of my eyes. Looking to my left, I saw an arrow stuck in the wall. If it hit me, it would have killed me. I was saved only thanks to a drop of luck. That was close¡­ I thought then glared at the dumbfounded dragon guard who tried to reload his crossbow. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°How could I have missed! I¡¯m the best with this thing!¡± he complained, but I cared not for his words. ¡°Fetch.¡± I pointed at him. The Reaper of Blood swooped through the shadows and snatched the weapon out of the dragon¡¯s hands. ¡°What the?¡± he said a bit confused. They couldn¡¯t see the Reaper of Blood. No one could¡­ It was my little pet, after all. ¡°Kill.¡± I ordered, and the Reaper obeyed. His fate was similar to that of the other man before me. The shadows opened the door, and I calmly walked out of the cell. Those enchantments inside were useless against my summoning magic. True, I was very bad at sword fighting, but when it came to a magic battle, I was undefeated. Even sister acknowledged me! Well, it was about time to get out of that place¡­ in a very subtle and bloody way. Tehehe! [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] The moment I saw Alkelios being tossed off like that, my heart simply stopped. Is he¡­ is he dead? I closed my eyes and clenched my jaws No! I looked towards my enemy, glaring at her I refuse to believe he¡¯s dead, not someone with his unreasonable Luck! My first attack on the wench was dodged with ease, but what surprised me was the anger with which I struck. Never in my life had I hit with such fury and the amount of power I released was amazing, but all I could think about was Alkelios¡¯ safety. Please be alive¡­ please. I thought and clenched the hilt of my sword. Taking a deep breath, I cleared my mind and focus on this battle. A single mistake against an opponent like her could mean death. When I attacked, the dragoness simply jumped back a few meters and smirked back at me. I gave chase and attacked her again. ¡°You are quite good, I¡¯m impressed!¡± she said and dodged with ease one of my ground shattering strikes. ¡°[One thousand strikes]. ¡° I cast the spell and infused my sword with magic energy. Invisible tips were then launched at her, hammering her body, but she simply guarded herself with her metal gauntlets and took the beating as if it was nothing. The dragoness didn¡¯t even unsheathed her sword laying at her hip. She was toying with me! I let out a low growl and cast [Boost] on myself, raising my strength and speed by twofold. She was not getting off so easily. I dashed at her, and again¡­ she dodged. The ground under me caught my attention, and I pulled my upper body to the left a bit, two spikes were summoned, stabbing only my afterimage. ¡°I missed¡­ again. Strange.¡± the dragoness squinted her eyes as if she couldn¡¯t believe it. Normally, I would have been hit by that, but luck was on my side, or rather¡­ Alkelios. He was probably still alive, or so I hoped. Still, even if he was blessed by the gods, only a true miracle could save him and me from this monster. Ignoring her words, I attacked again, this time, I charged a lightning spell in my left hand and released it through my sword as soon as I was about to strike. As expected, Kataryna dodged, but the lightning was released and struck her. ¡°Ugh!¡± she groaned and jumped farther back. ¡°A tricky little one, aren¡¯t you?¡± she asked with a smirk. I didn¡¯t listen to her and rushed over, this time, preparing another sword attack. ¡°Blades of my soul, hear me and strike with me. Change into my weapon and claim the life of my enemy! This, I command you! [Soul Swords]!¡± I chanted and released the Magic Energy. Two white swords appeared to my left and right, mimicking the movements of my own. I was going to attack her with this, but I feared it wasn¡¯t enough. If I was a bit more powerful in terms of magic, maybe I could launch more powerful attacks, but for now, even this was quite stretching my limits. ¡°Hou? That¡¯s quite an exceptional skill you have there!¡± the dragoness said as she dodged one of my attacks. The blades cut through the air, but none seemed to touch her. It was a weird dance of steel and magic, which I felt like I was loosing. For every step I took, she already had a counter and an attack. I never fought an enemy of such a terrifying power in my entire life. It sent shivers down my spine just thinking about what she could do if she was seriously going at it to kill me. For now, she was playing with me¡­ Actually, she didn¡¯t held even one single spec of killing intent towards me. It was quite strange and at the same time terrifying. Throughout my life, I had met many dragons who crossed swords with me, and in all those battles, I learned to sense and feel the killing intent of those who aimed for my life. It was like a tingling sensation at the back of my heart, a small needle that sunk in and sent a shiver of terror, warning me of approaching death. The stronger I was, the weaker this felling became but even in the case of the weakest among the weak, I could feel the killing intent from them. This dragoness didn¡¯t wish to kill me, but her actions and words proved otherwise. One mistake from my side could end with my death, nonetheless, I knew a stronger opponent when I saw him or her. All of her attacks were dodged and avoided at the last moment. They were lucky saves as one would call them. ¡°You and that boy are strange dragons. Even when I use more power than you could hope to fight against, you still survive. How?¡± Kataryna asked, but I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Help me!¡± ¡°AAA!¡± ¡°Somebody stop her! NOOO!¡± Suddenly, the cries of the bandits came from the cave. It distracted Kataryna for a moment, and I was able to land a strike. The sword touched her armor, but she stopped it with two fingers before it could sink into her flesh. The left magic sword was stopped in a similar fashion, while the right one was caught between her teeth. It was a ridiculous save that could only be pulled by someone of incredible skill. How could this be? I asked myself as I looked in horror at my blade. I can¡¯t push forward! It was like trying to cut a mountain made out of steel, using only a kitchen knife. The enchanted sword of a knight could not even scratch this dragoness. A shiver of fear went down my spine as I couldn¡¯t believe my own eyes. ¡°Now aren¡¯t you fun?¡± she asked, and I looked up at her. Clenching hard, the magic sword between her teeth shattered. The other had the same fate, but she spared the real one. ¡°Now¡­ how should I strip you?¡± she licked the tip of her lips. ¡°What?¡± I looked at her horrified. She¡¯s a monster! I thought. ¡°Hands off my sister! [Death Curse of the Poisonous Snake]!¡± Kleo shouted. A purple mist-formed snake shot at Kataryna. Seeing it, she pushed me back, sending me flying a few meters before I landed on my feet. My sister¡¯s spell latched onto her left arm and coiled around it. Normally, her arm should have melted from the touch of it, but using a burst of magic, she kept it at bay. Our bodies didn¡¯t have any protection against curses or attacks, but by creating a Magic Energy Armor between us and the spell, we could survive a direct hit. That thing, however, couldn¡¯t be trained or learned, it just appeared naturally as our bodies grew stronger, but by focusing magic in one place or over the entire body, one could reflect or stop certain Magic Attacks. ¡°A necromancer?¡± she asked surprised, but I doubted she hadn¡¯t heard of my sister by now. ¡°Sister dear, are you alright?¡± Kleo asked me. I nodded and then focused some Magic Energy into my sword. Jumping back, I slashed the air and released it. A small tornado formed and went towards the dragoness. ¡°Ugh!¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°[Ice Tornado]!¡± I shouted and released another wave of energy as the water in the air gathered around the tornado and cooled down into small needles. As soon as they formed, they were sent flying at Kataryna. But it still wasn¡¯t enough¡­ [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] The silver-scaled dragoness threw me quite the distance away! I had to run for quite a bit until I returned to the battlefield. What I saw there was a scene ripped right out of a game or an anime. Kleo and Seryanna were focusing their spells on Kataryna, who was currently in the middle of a violent tornado, bombarded with ice needles, and had a weird purple snake on her hand. By the look on her face, I could tell she was struggling a bit, but while Kleo and Seryanna clearly showed their killer intent, she remained calm and clean. It was quite surprising to say the least. The dragoness could end up captured or even dead like this, but still held no ill intention towards us. I gulped and then looked down at my hand. Kleo is pouring her Magic Energy into that snake, and Seryanna is casting the ice storm. Should I use that? I thought, but the answer was as clear as day. Pointing my hand at the silver-scaled dragoness, I shouted: ¡°[Lightning Chicken!]¡± ¡°Lightning what?¡± Kataryna was confused it seemed. ¡°This is not the time to order a soup!¡± complained Kleo. ¡°Alkelios¡­ you¡¯re alive! Thank the gods! Now run away!¡± shouted Seryanna at me. Well, I couldn¡¯t turn back because that spell was activated, and it was sucking the Magic Energy out of me. Thunder and lightning cracked the sky as something formed in front of me. It was hot. This much I could tell, but I didn¡¯t know what it was¡­ I never saw anything like this before. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I groaned and fell on one knee. It was tiring, but it was still sucking the energy out of me. What the hell is this? I thought as I tried hard to keep focus. ¡°Oho? This is interesting!¡± Kataryna said with a smirk. ¡°How strong is this woman?¡± complained Kleo when she saw that her snake didn¡¯t do much. I had no idea what it was, but it was able to keep a level 1294 in place. If the dragoness didn¡¯t believe it was her strongest card, she might not have used it. The same was for Seryanna, that meant that I only had to summon one attack to push Kataryna back. Come on! Where¡¯s the phoenix? I complained in my mind, and I feared for a moment that I picked a dud skill. All of a sudden a fire tornado formed in front of me, creating a powerful shockwave that sent everything but me flying backwards. The heat was infernal, burning the trees around, while the ground turned black from its touch. The fury of the flames was incredible, yet they didn¡¯t harm me. From inside the tornado, a pair of red, crystal eyes looked back at me. ¡°Who dares summon the Great Phoenix?¡± the creature spoke with a thundering voice. I gulped. ¡°Erm¡­ Me?¡± I replied. ¡°You?¡± the voice sounded surprised ¡°How could a¡­ this thing¡­ something like this¡­ YOU summon me?! Is this a joke?¡± called out the voice, it sounded female. ____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it! WARNING! Don''t read the following lines if you don''t want to know from me (the author) how Luck works in this story! --- -- - Ok, here we go (strikethrough style to keep the wondering eye off): In regard with the 100 Luck thing, this is the only stat which doesn''t go above the 100 points value, and it''s the hardest one to increase. Those who didn''t select high luck, won''t be able to increase it with leveling. It works something like 100% chance of something to happen. So if you have 1% chance of finding a billion dollars in a bucket stuck up in a tree, then 100 Luck makes it a 100% chance. It can be used in two ways: Passive, which makes good opportunities happen, but unless the individual makes an effort towards them, they won''t happen (It''s good to win the lottery, but I''m too lazy to go outside, this sort of thing). Active, through which the individual must ''wish'' for something to happen. Impossible events (those with 0% chance of happening like a Meteor suddenly striking the planet or events chosen by the gods to happen in a certain way) aren''t affected by the skill no matter how many times and individual wishes for it to happen. Chapter 19: A battle of fire and ice Looking at the strange fire tornado in front of me, I felt an immense pressure emanating from it. The Phoenix was certainly not your typical rooster, but at the same time, I highly doubted it was a bird similar to what mankind imagined. It was placed right between me and the dragonesses, effectively blocking my sight. There was only me and the Great Phoenix there. The bugs and trees around me didn¡¯t count. Still, something was way off. The text of the skill said I was going to summon a Lightning Phoenix, while what I was looking at was a fire tornado. Last I checked, fire wasn¡¯t the same as lightning, they were two, very different elements. ¡°Hm, you have a strange aura around you.¡± the Phoenix said, squinting those crystal eyes at me. ¡°Yeah, sorry¡­ I might have stepped in something back there.¡± I laughed awkwardly and looked at the sole of my left foot. ¡°Mortal, do not joke with me!¡± the voice thundered around me. ¡°Yes, miss!¡± I nodded. ¡°Well, being able to summon one such as ME and actually forming a contract with me are two, VERY different things.¡± she explained. ¡°How so?¡± I asked furrowing my brow. ¡°The Phoenix is a mighty species that lives up in the skies, controlling the elements while being sheltered by the gods! Mortals like you have no right to summon us! For such an insult, I should burn you alive and send your soul to the bellows of this world where dark necromancers can feast on it until you vanish completely!¡± she threatened me. ¡°I would prefer you don¡¯t do that¡­ I bruise easily.¡± I smiled. ¡°Well, you do have a peculiar aura around you¡­ It¡¯s like all the gods of luck offered their blessings to you.¡± she said. ¡°I am sort of lucky¡­¡± I nodded. ¡°Sort of lucky? With that aura, even if I were to throw you in a battle between two gods of war, you would still come out unscratched!¡± she laughed. ¡°I see, well¡­ I am in a battle right now. What do I have to do for that contract of yours?¡± I asked her. ¡°You do not seem to understand what an honor it is to even SEE me. If other mortals were in your position, they wouldn¡¯t hesitate to grovel on the ground and praised me to the high heavens for simply bestowing them with the gracious opportunity of being in MY presence!¡± she declared with a high-and-mighty tone of voice. ¡°Is that a yes or a no? If you are of no use, then I can try to summon a Phoenix that can actually do something.¡± I said with a shrug. Acting all humble and groveling on the ground in front of someone who was called out by a skill called [Lightning Chicken!] didn¡¯t sound very praiseworthy to me. ¡°What?! What sort of mortal would dare to walk away from one such as ME?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Plenty actually¡­¡± I nodded. ¡°Preposterous!¡± ¡°Suit yourself¡­ Let¡¯s see now. How do I turn off this spell again?¡± I wondered while scratching the back of my head. ¡°Wait! Wait! Wait!¡± the chicken spoke. ¡°What?¡± I asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°You are a very daring mortal, aren¡¯t you? Maybe you really don¡¯t understand how MIGHTY I really am! Even a dragon would tremble before me!¡± she told me. ¡°I¡¯m friends with dragons and three of them are battling behind you.¡± I pointed out. ¡°What?¡± the tornado then turned around and looked at the struggling Kataryna, Kleo, and Seryanna. ¡°I am in the Dragon Kingdom?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Yes. Now, you can go. I¡¯ll summon another Phoenix.¡± I said shooing her off. ¡°Wait!¡± she turned back at me ¡°Ahem! About the contract, I think we can do something about it.¡± she spoke with a different tone of voice, a more¡­ humble one? ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Well, you have a very interesting aura, as I said. If you wish something good to happen to me, I¡¯ll lend you my help. There are two wishes I request of you. Do so, and I will form the contract with you.¡± she declared. ¡°What sort of wishes?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. If she¡¯s asking for world domination or world destruction, she¡¯s out! I thought. ¡°They are very simple. First of all, wish for me to grow and evolve faster than any other Phoenix out there without actually going through the process of being reborn from own ashes.¡± ¡°Alright, and the next one?¡± I asked. ¡°Wish for me to win the Tournament of the Sacred Flame.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked furrowing my brow. ¡°It¡¯s something that concerns only Phoenixes. A mortal like you has nothing to gain from it.¡± she told me. ¡°Alright¡­ Well, it doesn¡¯t sound so bad.¡± I shrugged, then I took a deep breath and said ¡°I wish for¡­ erm¡­ what¡¯s your name again?¡± I asked. ¡°My name is offered as part of the contract. Until you accept and fulfill your end of the bargain, I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t give it.¡± she told me. ¡°OK, fair enough.¡± I scratched my head. ¡°I wish for the one before me to grow and evolve much faster than any other Phoenix in existence without her needing to go through the process of being reborn from her own ashes or suffering any sort of backlash as a result of the process of her growth and evolution. I also wish for her to win the Tournament of the Sacred Flame without dying or suffering grave injuries.¡± I finished the two wishes, to which I added a few modifications of my own. If I were to form a contract with this lightning chicken, then I had to make sure I didn¡¯t summon her injured when I needed her. Those two wishes could hold a genuine death flag for her if applied incorrectly. The way she put it, she could end up winning the tournament, but maybe only with a sacrificial move of some kind. ¡°Not exactly as I said them, but very good nonetheless.¡± she said. ¡°They are better this way, trust me. So, what about your end of the bargain?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course! My name is Jophiel Thunderash! I am an Apprentice Phoenix with potential for three elements: fire, lightning, and light! From hence forth, I shall also be your familiar. Every time you summon me with that spell, I shall appear, but my will remains my own! If I do not approve of your desire, I will not listen to it!¡± she declared proudly. The name was familiar to me. Thunderash was basically formed from the English words ¡®thunder¡¯ and ¡®ash¡¯ put together, but Jophiel was the name of the archangel of beauty. The name actually translated as the Beauty of God. As for why I knew this, praise the games with interesting lore to read! Thinking about that, I couldn¡¯t help but imagine a stunning beauty wearing a thin silk garment, seductive and enchanting. Nope! I have Seryanna! But looking and not touching is considered fair game! I shook my head to get the sexy image out of my head. ¡°Then I shall reveal myself to you~!¡± the voice was a bit seductive this time. The fire tornado quickly diminished in strength until it vanished completely. In its stead, there was only a floating sphere of light of about 20 centimeters in diameter and at about 1 meter off the ground. Once the flames subsided, the sphere was lowered to the ground and then glowed brightly, forcing me to cover my eyes. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± asked Kataryna surprised. ¡°Did Alkelios do something?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Seryanna tried to bear the light, but even she covered her eyes with her hand. When it was over, I rubbed my eyes and looked down. I blinked surprised when I saw the so-called Phoenix standing before me. To be honest, I was expecting to see a gorgeous, sexy beauty, but what I was offered instead was a bird. ¡°I really summoned a stew?¡± I rubbed my eyes again, thinking that maybe I wasn¡¯t seeing right. ¡°How rude!¡± the bird flew and pecked me on the head. ¡°Ouch! Cut it off! I just thought that you would be in human shape.¡± I complained. The Phoenix sat on my head and threatened me with her beak. ¡°Why should I reveal my human shape to you? We have just formed a contract! Besides, you don¡¯t have enough Magic Energy to keep me here in human form. This is the best you can do, so deal with it!¡± she then made a nest on top of my head and looked ahead proudly. I felt like I really summoned a chicken¡­ Well, it had a big, flowing tail similar to the long-tailed widowbird, the head of a golden pheasant, the wings of a hawk, and the general colors were a mix of bright red and gold. She was a beautiful bird that would certainly make any bird watcher simply gawk at her. ¡°So, I¡¯m too weak to summon you in another form, I see¡­¡± I said while trying to keep my head still. If I moved, her claws could end up leaving some nasty marks on my scalp. ¡°Of course! Now, what do you wish me to do?¡± she asked and then groomed some of her feathers. ¡°I¡¯m sort of in a life-and-death battle? So, I need your help to defeat that dragoness.¡± I pointed at Kataryna. ¡°Hm?¡± Jophiel looked at her target. ¡°She¡¯s very strong. I can¡¯t defeat her in this form.¡± she declared bluntly. ¡°I need you to help. Attack her with all of you¡¯ve got!¡± I said. ¡°Very well. I will listen to this silly request of yours.¡± she nodded and then jumped off my head. ¡°Ouch! The claws! Watch the claws!¡± I complained as I felt my scalp sting. ¡°You big baby!¡± she scorned and then flew up in the sky. I wish we can defeat Kataryna. I thought as I clenched my fists and stepped forward. ¡°To summon a Phoenix, impressive.¡± the dragoness said. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you stood still and took our beating for so long.¡± Kleo remarked with a forced smile. ¡°I merely wished to see if that legendary beast would listen to him or not¡­ but to think he is a human, interesting.¡± she said and then looked at me. ¡°A what now?¡± Kleo asked furrowing her brow. When our eyes met, the silver-scaled dragoness licked the tip of her lips, and I got a chill running down my back. ¡°You will not touch Alkelios!¡± shouted Seryanna and moved between me and her. ¡°Hou? And what is he to you? A slave?¡± she asked. ¡°Alkelios is not my slave! He is¡­¡± before the dragoness could finish her words, Kleo replied. ¡°He¡¯s my sister¡¯s bed sharing buddy!¡± she grinned. ¡°KLEO!¡± shouted Seryanna. ¡°But you did sleep together, what¡¯s the big deal?¡± she shrugged. I could only blush foolishly. Why doesn¡¯t this feel like an actual life-and-death battle? I wondered. ¡°[Fire of the Abyss] [Hellstorm Tornado] [Sparks of the Gods]¡± Jophiel shouted as she came flying down from the sky. Looking up, Kataryna saw three attacks coming down at her. The first one simply sent a burst of flames towards her location, but they did more than simply burn the grass. The ground under our feet cracked and trembled as a result of the attack. It would be more accurate to say that she exploded the ground. Seryanna and Kleo were forced to jump back from the area, while I could only observe like a dumbfounded fool. The second attack, [Hellstorm Tornado], summoned a fire tornado around Kataryna, breaking and lifting pieces of the ground up as a result of the insane power of the Phoenix. The once calm meadow stretching all the way to the big cave entrance had turned into a fire inferno of shattered ground. The pure brute power of those attacks was frightening, but Kataryna was still standing. Breathing hard and summoning insane amounts of Magic Energy, the dragoness survived the relentless force and burning flames of those spells, but against the last one, she wasn¡¯t able to fully defend herself. The [Sparks of the Gods] attack sent several balls of lightning at her. The moment she was touched by one, she screamed in pain as her entire body was shocked by it. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Because of the flames and the lightning hitting all over the place, I couldn¡¯t tell what was happening exactly, but one thing was certain, we managed to hurt her. Something told me she wasn¡¯t dead, but maybe we scared her enough to force her to back away from us. However, that wasn¡¯t to be case. ¡°Hahaha!¡± the silver-scaled dragoness laughed as she jumped out of the fire, landing not far from Seryanna. ¡°To think there was someone who can call upon the power of the Phoenix in this small town! Incredible!¡± she smirked and looked back at me. The dragoness didn¡¯t come out unharmed. There was a scratch on her forehead, letting her red blood stain the right side of her face. Her left arm had its armor blown off all the way to the elbow, blood dripped from her clawed fingers, pouring out of the cuts on her arm. Her right hand had its armor burned, and the purple snake left a coiling shadow on it, but it was gone as well. Surprisingly, her tail showed not even a single scratch, but it was swaying left to right, showing a bit of excitement. ¡°You won¡¯t touch him!¡± shouted Seryanna, but Kataryna simply shot her a glare and then kicked her hard in the side. The attack was so fast and furious, the redhead barely had any time to block it. She was sent flying and smashed into the stone wall above the cave entrance, causing a hole and sending numerous cracks all around it. ¡°Sister!¡± shouted Kleo. ¡°Seryanna!¡± I called out surprised, but then I saw Kataryna standing in front of me. I gulped and immediately thought I wish none of her following attacks will hit me no matter how improbable or unlikely that is! I wish she¡¯s going to be defeated somehow, someway! Anything works as long as all of us come out alive from this! ¡°You will be a good toy for me!¡± she grinned. ¡°Sorry, not interested! I¡¯m already in a stable relationship with the redhead you just shot into the mountain side.¡± I awkwardly smiled, then ducked. ¡°I missed again¡­ Interesting! Really interesting!¡± she said with a big grin while her tail began to sway faster. I narrowly dodged her deadly claws. ¡°Not interesting! It¡¯s scary!¡± I complained and then jumped to my left instinctively, however, not a full jump. Once more, two earth spikes sprung up from the ground. One where I just stood and the other where I would have landed if I were to make a big jump. ¡°Interesting! Again!¡± she said with a big smile as she tried to catch me with her claws. Jumping back, she missed by one millimeter. Kataryna didn¡¯t stop and continued to attack me, each one a deadly strike aimed to kill me. I felt like a mouse being toyed with by a cat. This turned out to be a game for her. One in which she tried to catch the slippery human. ¡°Can¡¯t we just talk about this?¡± I asked as I avoided another one of her attacks. ¡°Is this skill or luck?¡± she asked surprised and then prepared to pounce on me. Like a feline, she crouched on all fours, her tail swaying left and right while she locked on me with her gaze. ¡°I¡¯m considered to be pretty lucky¡­ Erm, what are you doing?¡± I asked while taking a few steps back. ¡°I¡¯m going to catch you¡­ and once I do¡­ I¡¯ll claim you!¡± she smirked. ¡°I¡¯m not a toy, lady!¡± I retorted and instinctively lifted my hand up. She pounced and right then, Jophiel came flying down and pulled me up with her. ¡°ARGH! You weigh a ton! Cut down on the cookies, will you?¡± she complained. ¡°Whew! Thanks!¡± I said, ignoring her remark about my blubber. ¡°I missed again!¡± Kataryna acted surprised and then gave chase after me. ¡°Come down!¡± she called out. ¡°No way!¡± I shook my head. Meanwhile, Kleo went after Seryanna to get her out of the rubble. Looking at the thing, there was absolutely no way for me to win this. This Kataryna fellow survived three full-on attacks from a Phoenix while being under a death curse from Kleo and an attack from Seryanna. What could I do to fight her? In this entire area, there wasn¡¯t even one single person capable of even comparing themselves with her level. If it was Brekkar before his illness, then maybe there was a chance, but besides him, I knew of no one capable of defeating the lunatic chasing after me. ¡°Come down! I won¡¯t bite¡­ much.¡± she called out with a purr. ¡°Seriously, no!¡± I then looked around desperately, trying to think of a strategy, an instinct, something my luck could be used for, but there was nothing there except for the mountain. Gulping, I then asked Jophiel ¡°Can you blow up a mountain?¡± ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± she asked me. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not going to be long before she will get bored and jump to attack us, so better to try something foolish and risky aaand completely idiotic.¡± I smiled as I looked up at her. ¡°Sounds like what you humans usually do when it comes to everything.¡± she snorted. ¡°Hey! We do smart stuff from time to time too!¡± I told her. ¡°Your kind invented slavery.¡± she mentioned. ¡°I said from time to time, not every time!¡± I stood up for mankind. ¡°Well, I can¡¯t blow up a mountain. At least, not in my current form.¡± she told me. ¡°No problem, just fly me back to the cave, drop me off at the entrance, then count to erm¡­ twenty and shoot your most devastating attack at the hole the redhead dragoness was thrown into.¡± I explained. ¡°You could die if you are thinking what I think you¡¯re thinking.¡± she told me with worry in her voice. ¡°I won¡¯t! I have 100 Luck!¡± I declared. ¡°100? What do you mean? Well, never mind. I¡¯m quite curious as well what your tiny pea-sized brain can come up with in this sort of situation, so the mighty ME shall offer her assistance to you!¡± she declared proudly. ¡°Thanks, I guess?¡± I raised an eyebrow and then we changed directions. ¡°Where are you going? I¡¯m going to catch you eventually, you know? So better give up now!¡± shouted Kataryna. ¡°Nooo, thank you! I¡¯m too young and handsome to die!¡± I shouted back. ¡°Pfft!¡± the Phoenix giggled, and I felt slightly offended by that. Flying us through the trees, Jophiel showed exceptional skill despite the useless weight she was carrying. If I could shoot fireballs or lightning out of my finger tips, maybe I could take her out. Actually, no¡­ that was highly unlikely. Someone like Kataryna could only be put down with skill and brute strength, magic was just an annoyance for her. Once we were out of the forest, I could see again just what sort of damage we caused to the area. It was massive. It was unrecognizable from when me and Seryanna first arrived and attacked those bandit dragons. In my world, nothing short but an artillery barrage could have caused something like this. The area was simply devastated, and a couple of trees had caught fire and threatened to turn this entire area into cinders. Luckily, a few rain clouds could be seen in the distance, so even if that happened, the dragons could still control the damage. Looking over to my right, I saw Kleo offering a potion to drink to the injured Seryanna. Her armor was actually cracked as a result of the attack, which was something, especially given the ridiculous stats it had on it. My own armor was in tatters. I wouldn¡¯t be able to survive an attack like that, and something told me Kataryna had yet to go full-out on me. I shuddered at the thought if she did. ¡°I¡¯m dropping you off then counting to twenty.¡± Jophiel told me. Thinking about it, my Magic Energy was running on dry, so this was probably our very last shot before Kataryna officially won the battle. Gulping, I nodded and as soon as her claws released my gauntlet, I fell on the ground. ¡°Knew you would come around!¡± said Kataryna. ¡°Hiii!¡± I screamed and dashed into the cave. ¡°No way out of there, boy!¡± she shouted. ¡°Give me a break already!¡± I cried. My only option right now was to run and keep running, but as I did so, I kept wishing one thing When Jophiel attacks the mountain, I wish it will hit a structural weakness that will cause a cave in! I wish for Kataryna Greorg to be knocked out in this cave! I wish to survive this confrontation with Kataryna Greorg! I wish she will get knocked out by the cave in! After a few twists and turns, I reached a more spacious room, but suddenly, the floor turned to ice, I slipped and hit the wall. ¡°Ouch! What the?¡± I groaned as I got up. Looking around, the entire room was covered in ice. All the exits were blocked and only me and the dragoness Kataryna were here. She was the one who cast this spell. After I gulped, I got up and looked back at her. ¡°So¡­ you trapped me.¡± I showed her an awkward smile. ¡°Yes¡­ It seems.¡± she tilted her head and squinted her eyes at me. ¡°What are you planning?¡± she asked. ¡°World conquest. You?¡± I replied. ¡°You want to be a Demon Lord? You will need at least 16 generals and a harem of 20 beauties for people to take you seriously.¡± she sighed and shook her head. ¡°Wait? That¡¯s actually possible?¡± I asked squinting my eyes at her. ¡°Yes. Demon Lords are only one of the many underlings of a Demon King, but those are also titles offered to those who worship darkness and wish to destroy the world.¡± she shrugged. ¡°Well, what do you want?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡­¡± she looked at me, then the ground trembled. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± she asked furrowing her brow, trying to keep her balance. ¡°That would be my Phoenix.¡± I smirked. ¡°What did you do?¡± she asked surprised. I shrugged. The walls then began to crack and the floor to give away. The few bandits remaining here screamed in fear as they tried to get out, but the dragoness froze the exits. The ceiling began to break apart, and large boulders fell on top of us. I narrowly dodged one of them. ¡°You!¡± Kataryna screamed ¡°What did you do to my home!¡± she shouted, but this time a bit angry. I¡¯m so dead¡­ I thought, and in the blink of an eye, she was right there, in front of me. There was no time to react. I knew how, I felt it, but I was too slow when compared to her sudden movement. It literally was in the blink of an eye. She grabbed me by the throat, squeezed and lifted me up. ¡°Play time is over!¡± she glared at me, and for the first time, I felt a bit of killing intent coming from her, but it was still quite weak. ¡°Ugh!¡± I struggled to get out of her grasp, but it was impossible for me to do so¡­ that strength of hers was simply ridiculous. While she was glaring at me, she didn¡¯t pay attention to her surroundings. The floor was caving in fast, everything falling in a chasm, and the ceiling was breaking apart at an accelerated rate. I thought we were both going to fall, but when the ground under her feet fell, she remained in the air, wings flapping and flying in spot. ¡°You really think a cave in will get¡­¡± before she had the chance to finish her words, a huge boulder fell right on top of her head. Now to explain a few things, a boulder is considered big when it¡¯s about 3 to 5 meters in diameter. This thing was at the very least over 10 meters in length and 8 in diameter, forming an ellipsoid with the tip aimed at her noggin, so basically a typical manga pebble. It was instant knock out¡­ ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised as we both start falling into the dark chasm under us. ¡°I DON¡¯T WANT TO DIE!!!¡± I screamed as I fell together with the knocked-out Kataryna. ____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! :) Chapter 20: Friends [Kataryna¡¯s point of view] ¡°The moment you go past the skies, you will find the world to be little and insignificant¡­ while you are eternal like the gods above. Kataryna, please, never try to pass the skies¡­¡± I remember well these words¡­ They were offered to me when I was little and still unaware of what eternity meant. Like all the other dragons, I dreamed about making an Awakened Breakthrough and the temple stones to show I had a power over 1000. It was a dream that one day became a reality, but the price¡­ maybe it was too much to bear. Those words, maybe I should have listened to them¡­ Such a long time has passed since I gained this power. So many things I have seen, both good and bad. Like a proud mountain standing tall and firm, I didn¡¯t let either winds or sea shatter me, yet at the same time, they molded me. Whenever I closed my eyes, I could recount the moment when my life changed, and I stepped into the realm of immortals. This happened on an old battlefield at the end of a battle which the former Dragon Kingdom Zerudan lost almost 500 years ago. Surrounded by countless dead dragons, both from my own side and the enemy¡¯s, I kept fighting. The cold tried to bring me down, the arrows to push me back, and their swords to make me kneel, but I didn¡¯t dare. I bared my teeth at them and fought. One after another, until my armor was in tatters and my blade ready to break, all of those who dared challenge me were killed by me, pilling up into a mountain of dead, broken, and bloodied bodies. I was in a trance, a dance of death and blood, yet untouched by the pain of my own body. When I came through, my breath was in tatters, my body was heavy, and my eyesight blurry. Before me stood a dying dragon solider, the last one. To compensate for my broken sword, I used any I could pull out of the dying grasps of my enemies. Thus, the sword going through this dead dragon¡¯s chest was none other than on of his own. Yet, I didn¡¯t care¡­ I pushed through, turned the blade inside of him and then pulled it out. He died with a curse on his lips and then I roared to the skies as hard and loud as I could. My blades were broken, my armor shattered, but I did it, I won a battle thought to be impossible. I survived¡­ There was no one there to hear me. I was left alone and soaked in blood on top of a pile of broken bodies. No soldier could defeat me afterwards¡­ They all fell like flies cut down by my swords or crushed under my claws. I felt free, powerful, and for the first time ever, I realized how useless our war was. The enemy was sure to win, after all, they fought to protect, and we to conquer. As I laid there, looking up at the darkened sky, I felt different, like something had changed. In that moment, I wasn¡¯t yet aware of what happened to me, but I was looking at the world with a different pair of eyes. For the first time ever, details and colors I didn¡¯t see before were now popping up in front of my eyes. It was amazing, and for a while, I felt blessed. The rage I had piled up after fighting and killing so many had dissipated in the blink of an eye. Taking a deep breath, I knew that even my own body had changed somehow, I didn¡¯t feel so weak anymore. Then I heard them¡­ Another wave was coming. Looking head, I saw the countless armor running towards me, all sparkly clean and untouched by the mud and blood on the battlefield. They were the reinforcements of the enemy. Looking back, I saw my allies rushing towards me as well, but it was strange. My desire to fight, my need to kill those I saw as enemies was gone. They all felt weak when compared to me, both ally and enemy. Taking a deep breath, I thought about this moment, these feelings of mine. Lifting my gaze up to the sky, I couldn¡¯t see the need or reason to participate in this battle again. Fame and glory were nothing but empty excuses because neither of them could benefit my current self in a way I desired. I had no family, no friend, no lovers¡­ It was just me on either side of this battlefield. Thus, without anything to protect, without a desire to grow rich and famous, I stepped away from the battlefield and let the mortal play their mortal games. Maybe in time, I would return, but when I would, I promised myself that I would do it for a more¡­ satisfying reason. After a quick bath in a nearby pond, I rushed towards the first temple I could find. I didn¡¯t even bother to check in which kingdom it was. There, I was officially told that I made an Awakened Breakthrough. The stones showed I had a power of 1016. It was amazing, but at the same time¡­ it didn¡¯t feel that great. This state of mind, the feeling of being above all, the sensation that nothing could defeat you, the fears of others when they saw you¡­ the loneliness of being immortal, all of these were the curses that came with this power. At first, invisible like a devil, but then as real as my own two hands. Yet, after so many years, there was one who managed to rile me up and make me wish for a hunt¡­ Surprisingly, that one was a human. Alkelios was his name, I think. He managed to make me feel the need to kill him or the desire to capture him and make him MINE! Yet, he slipped away from my grasp at the very last moment. He defeated me¡­ [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] ¡°Let me go! He¡¯s in there, somewhere!¡± I shouted as I broke free from Kleo¡¯s grasp and jumped in the pile of rubble, trying to dig him out of there. ¡°Sister! There¡¯s nothing you can do! Something like that¡­ even you would have perished¡­¡± she said with tears in her eyes. ¡°Even my shadows can¡¯t find him¡­¡± she looked down and clenched her fists. That can¡¯t be¡­ It¡¯s not possible¡­ I shook my head and refused to believe Alkelios was dead. Yes, he was rude! He was annoying! He always joked about grabbing my chest or butt! He was a pest¡­ but he was my pest, and I didn¡¯t want him dead. In front of me were the remains of the bandit cave. After Kleo woke me up, I only caught a glimpse of the Phoenix casting a powerful fireball covered in lightning. It hit the same spot where I crashed into, but compared to the little hole I made, the beast¡¯s attack shattered the entire side of the mountain. Countless cracks spread on the surface, and the whole thing collapsed on itself. I watched in awe and for a moment, I believed we won without any casualties, but it turned out that it wasn¡¯t so¡­ Alkelios wasn¡¯t here, he was in there. Now, I was digging like a mad woman trying to find him or at least¡­ his remains. ¡°Sister, it¡¯s going to be alright¡­ Alkelios will be remembered as a mighty dragon!¡± said Kleo with a soft smile. ¡°He wasn¡¯t a dragon¡­ he was a human.¡± I told her as I wiped my tears. ¡°Human?¡± she looked surprised, but it was her fault for not paying attention to these details in the first place. ¡°Alkelios, if my stupid luck is worth anything, I wish for you to be alright.¡± I said and looked over at the huge pile of boulders in front of me. ¡°He¡¯s a human?¡± Kleo was still a bit dumbfounded by this. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] I fell¡­ We both did¡­ We landed in a body of water, maybe an underground stream because I felt myself getting swept away. I tried to grab something to stop myself from spinning and swim to the surface, but there was nothing there in the darkness. Crap! Crap! CRAP! I don¡¯t want to die here! I thought as I started to panic. A moment later, I hit a rock and went past it, unable to grab a hold of it. I hit another and another, going around like a ping-pong ball until I stopped. My lungs hurt, my body was bruised, but when I looked up, I saw light. The surface was just a few feet above me. I can make it! I¡¯ll survive! I thought. From the corner of my eyes, I saw the silver-scaled dragoness as she sunk towards the cold, dark abyss of this place. She was knocked out, so she would certainly drown here. I could ignore her and swim up, she was the enemy after all. Why? I thought and then turned back towards her. Even though it was painful and I knew this won¡¯t end well, I still swum down after the enemy. You idiot! You fool! Moron! Stupid! Retard! Don¡¯t do it! Don¡¯t you dare do it! She¡¯s the enemy! Don¡¯t do it! Just swim back up! All of these thoughts came flowing into my mind, telling me to stay clear of her, to let her drown, to let her suffer, but¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ There¡¯s something pulling me to her¡­ There¡¯s something telling me that she¡¯s important¡­ I can¡¯t, but if I do this, I¡¯ll die. She¡¯ll kill me! I¡¯m an idiot! I¡¯m a freaking idiot! I screamed in my mind as I grabbed her hand. Looking at her unconscious face, I clenched my jaw and desperately tried to swim back up, pushing the water around me with all of my strength. At the very least, Jophiel wasn¡¯t sucking Magic Energy out of me anymore, she probably dismissed herself. I¡¯m so going to die after this! I cried in my mind when I reached the surface. ¡°Puha!¡± I took a deep breath and then coughed. It was a bit painful, but I would survive. Pulling Kataryna¡¯s head above the water, I began to swim towards the shore, it was quite close to us. When I reached it, I pulled the dragoness out of the water and coughed a few times. Is she breathing? I thought and immediately checked. She wasn¡¯t breathing. A chill ran down my spine, and without even the slightest delay, I began to apply CPR to her. Thanks to my strength, it was quite easy to do so, but I only hoped this method worked on dragons as well. ¡°Come on! One! Two! Three!¡± then I pulled her chin up, blocked her nosed and exhaled into her mouth. I repeated the process, pressing with both hands on her chest. ¡°Come on! Breath!¡± I was at my fourth try now. It was then when she coughed and spat out the water in her lungs. I helped her turn to the side and patted between her wings to help her out. She was probably still confused and didn¡¯t understand what happened to her. I was relieved for a moment, but when she saw me, she suddenly grabbed me by the neck and slammed me down with enough force to crack the ground around me. Ouch! This is it¡­ I¡¯m going to die! I thought and closed my eyes. Kataryna coughed a few times and then asked me ¡°You! Why did you¡­ save me?¡± ¡°Huh? Erm¡­ Honestly, I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I replied as I opened one eye and looked at her confused expression. ¡°I¡¯m your enemy¡­¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Yes?¡± I foolishly smiled. Letting out a sigh, she released me and then took a step back. ¡°To think there was a human who could defeat someone like me who made an Awakened Breakthrough.¡± she shook her head and sat down crossed legged. ¡°Awakened Breakthrough? What¡¯s that?¡± I asked as I rubbed my neck. She looked at me for a moment, probably wondering if she should tell me or not. ¡°Do you know how the Temples in the cities and towns measure the power of an individual?¡± she asked me. ¡°It makes them smash rocks?¡± I joked. ¡°No, that is the foolish human way of finding out, but strength can be a deceiving thing at times. One can have little strength but great power.¡± she shook her head. ¡°I have a feeling you aren¡¯t talking about the ability to bust rocks here¡­¡± I told her. ¡°That¡¯s just brute strength. An individual has strength, speed, dexterity, Magic Energy, and Magic Excellence, all of which rise with one¡¯s power.¡± she explained and then using her claws drew a few symbols on the ground. I don¡¯t recognize any of those¡­ I thought squinting my eyes at them. ¡°Strength is gained by lifting stuff up, doing hard work in general.¡± she pointed at the character to her far right, then at the next one ¡°Speed is gained by pushing your body to the limits when you run and after recovering, doing it all over again.¡± she pointed at the next one. ¡°Dexterity is the trickiest one of them all because you need to train in the way to properly move your entire body, for example, doing sword training or dagger training. One said that knitting and stretching can help too. Magic Energy is gained through meditation and focusing the energy into your core, while Excellence is gained by taking your time to cast each spell and focusing on it until you understand the feeling behind it. Well, there¡¯s more to it than just this, but you get the idea right?¡± she asked me with a smirk. ¡°Yes, I get it¡­ but I¡¯m surprised you are telling me this and not killing me¡­¡± I told her. Kataryna looked at me and then at the small cave around us. She let out a sigh and then said ¡°If you listen, you¡¯ll understand¡­¡± Listen? To what? Bats pooing? I thought while I blinked confused at her. Looking back at me, she said ¡°You don¡¯t get it, do you?¡± she closed her eyes. Sorry lady, but I¡¯m not a psychic! I would like to be one, but I¡¯m not! I replied in my mind, but I kept my mouth shut. ¡°For now, let¡¯s just say that you being alive is a whim of mine.¡± she looked at me and tilted her head to the left a bit ¡°You also saved my life, and to someone like me, that¡¯s not something I can easily ignore. If I killed you, my old masters would twist in their graves and come out as Bone Dragons to haunt me! Hahaha!¡± The dragoness had a cute laugh, but she spoke some rather confusing words. As long as I didn¡¯t end up like a bug splattered on the side of the cave, I was cool with it. Besides, I actually didn¡¯t feel like I was in any danger at all. On the contrary, I felt a bit safe with her around, which was the weird part seeing how a few moments ago we were trying to kill each other. Am I turning into a masochist? She is the enemy right? She is the one who sent Seryanna flying into the wall, kidnapped Kleo and set fire to the mansion, right? I thought while trying to remember all the reasons why I should be fearing her. ¡°Well, as I was saying¡­ Power is something else. Even I don¡¯t know what it is exactly, but the Temples have a way of finding out. If you go to one and ask the priest there to show you, he will lead you to a private room. Inside, you will be left alone only with a black sphere on a pedestal. That¡¯s the reading room. By placing your hand on the sphere and infusing it with Magic Energy, a small number will be displayed on top of it. That¡¯s your current power.¡± she explained with a smile. I blinked surprised, then asked her. ¡°What¡¯s your current number?¡± ¡°Last time I checked, it was 1290, I think.¡± Holy Pancake on a Rainbow Unicorn! She¡¯s talking about levels! That idiotic god lied to us! He told us that only we, the heroes, can see levels, but from what Kataryna just told me, everyone who goes to a temple can find out. The only difference is that they call them power. Well¡­ technically it would be power level or level of power, but still¡­ WOW! I thought as I blinked surprised. ¡°It¡¯s 1294 actually¡­¡± I mumbled in my amazement. ¡°You can see the power of an individual?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. I messed up. ¡°Maaaybe?¡± I smiled foolishly. ¡°Never mention this to a priest, they will think you are a blasphemer or some sort of devil.¡± she warned me and shook her head. ¡°Thank you?¡± I was getting more and more confused. Why would they believe that? I wondered. A moment ago, we were fighting to the death, but now she was explaining stuff to me and giving me survival lessons? Was this a dream? Did I die? What just happened? ¡°What¡¯s your power, young one?¡± she asked me. I gulped. ¡°Erm¡­ didn¡¯t check, let me see. Status.¡± I said and looked at the screen. [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 141 [Strength]: 16+342+607.5+140.5 [Speed]: 14+256+452.5+178.5 [Dexterity]: 20+257.5+527+77.5 [Magic]: 16+200.5+251+832.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+7%+8.5%+11.5% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 80 [Stat Points]: 1400 Well¡­ those are a lot of skill and stat points! At least, I can cure Brekkar now, but¡­ wow, just WOW! I thought as I looked a the numbers, and to think I had yet to even add any of my Stat Points. ¡°141¡± I told Kataryna. Hearing the number, she burst out into a loud laughter, holding her stomach while her voice echoed on the walls. I felt like I wanted to dig a hole and hide in it. ¡°BWAHAHAHA! To think I, a dragon with a power of over 1290, was defeated by one with a power of 141! Hahaha! How is this even possible?¡± she asked me with tears in her eyes. ¡°Erm, luck I guess?¡± I shrugged. ¡°Luck?! For something like this, you would need to have the blessing of all the gods put together! Well, it does explain why you were able to skillfully dodge my attacks like that. Even Brekkar wasn¡¯t able to dodge like that, and he is a master at it!¡± she said with tears in her eyes. ¡°And dying¡­¡± I added squinting my eyes at her. ¡°Dying? I didn¡¯t attack him that hard!¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not you¡­ ¡° I shook my head. All of a sudden, the air around me began to change, turning chilly. Kataryna looked upset. ¡°What happened? Did someone else attack the old man?¡± she asked me. ¡°Erm, don¡¯t you know?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Know what?¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°Isn¡¯t the reason why you attacked the mansion like that because of Brekkar¡¯s weakness?¡± I asked. ¡°No!¡± she retorted, her tail whipping the air behind her ¡°My subordinates said his granddaughter double-crossed us and stole something from us! When I got there, the house was already on fire¡­ and¡­¡± she stopped and closed her eyes. ¡°Did Seryanna mention anything about a [Purse] ring?¡± she asked looking back at me. ¡°Yeah¡­ She went and returned it, then she was with me until later today. I got the armor you completely destroyed with one punch.¡± I told her the truth. Her tail whipped the air and smashed into the ground behind her, causing a big crack. This dragoness was in a bad mood. ¡°That bastard! He tricked me!¡± she growled. ¡°Can someone actually trick you?¡± I asked a bit disbelieving, she was the top dog¡­ well dragon around here, after all. ¡°Sigh¡­ Yes, it¡¯s possible¡­¡± she said scratching the back of her head. ¡°So, I¡¯m starting to guess you weren¡¯t the one who planned the attack?¡± I asked. ¡°As I said before, I reached there AFTER the attack began. Brekkar attacked me, I defended myself, then left. When I got back here, I was about to take a bath, when all of a sudden, my subordinates reported an attack from the knights. I thought they came to exterminate us, so I went out and found you two¡­ Then, you know the rest.¡± she shrugged as she explained the course of events, but something was a bit wrong here. ¡°Wait, so you aren¡¯t the one who actually controls everything from the shadows?¡± I asked. ¡°Sort of. I can move the entire group and do as I please with it. They will follow my orders, but I do have some subordinates who deal with those sort of meddlesome stuff. This time, it was one of them who ordered the attack.¡± she explained. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. In other words, she was there as a leader in name only. She had the strength to back it up, but she wasn¡¯t 100% focused on this, if she was, she could have expanded her influence and power to unparalleled levels. Getting enough bandits to even take over a small town was entirely possible, but she had no such intentions, which made me wonder just what exactly was she planning to do by becoming the bandit leader in the first place? ¡°Why so?¡± I asked. ¡°When a dragon or any other individual reaches power 1000, they go through what can be called as an Awakened Breakthrough. When this happens, you undergo a certain change¡­¡± she then looked into my eyes, and it felt like a wise god was looking back at me. A shiver went down my spine, and I gulped. ¡°You see the world differently. You feel different. You are immortal and more powerful than before. It¡¯s amazing, but at the same time¡­ a curse.¡± she closed her eyes. ¡°A curse?¡± I asked a bit confused. This Awakened Breakthrough she spoke about was a bit curious for me. I couldn¡¯t imagine that reaching level 1000 you would gain so many things, but I certainly didn¡¯t see it as a curse. On another note, the idea of becoming immortal was news to me. With that, I could actually compensate for the age difference between me and Seryanna. Well, the idea was nice, but I had the feeling there was most to it than just that. ¡°You lose something¡­¡± she looked down at her hand. ¡°You don¡¯t feel the need to advance and grow in power anymore. There¡¯s a lack of ambition, of emotion in your soul. Everyone around you sees you as something great, you can live for as long as you wish, and there are very few who can stop you. Upon reaching this sort of state¡­¡± she then looked back into my eyes. ¡°There was nothing to catch my attention, nothing interesting¡­ until you came along.¡± she smirked. Gulping, I asked her ¡°How am I interesting?¡± I asked. ¡°You feel different than the others¡­ There¡¯s something pulling me towards you. To be honest, every time I wanted to initiate an attack capable of killing you, I hesitated. When I thought you were going to get hit and die because of my strike, I worried, but then you dodged or returned alive.¡± she told me as she looked into my eyes, her tail swaying left and right behind her. ¡°What about that first strike?¡± I asked. ¡°I tested you¡­ I could have killed you if I wanted to, but something told me not to¡­ it was strange¡­¡± she smiled and then reached out her clawed hand towards me. I froze and watched her as she touched my cheek. ¡°You are just a fragile human, so why are you so¡­ interesting?¡± she asked me. ¡°I dodge well?¡± I asked with an awkward smile. ¡°Yes, you are quite lucky¡­ I don¡¯t know, but there¡¯s a mysterious aura around you. The more I focus upon it, the more I wish to get close to you¡­¡± she smiled and then looked down at her chest ¡°I¡¯m a bit old, but even I can still lay an egg¡­¡± she then looked into my eyes. ¡°You do find me attractive, don¡¯t you?¡± she asked. I gulped. She¡¯s not thinking what I think she¡¯s thinking, is she? I wondered. ¡°I¡¯m joking.¡± she giggled and pulled back, causing me to blink surprised. This woman is toying with me! I complained in my mind. ¡°But tell me, human, what did you mean when you said that Brekkar is dying?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. Suddenly, she turned serious. ¡°He¡¯s ill¡­ That¡¯s why his granddaughter needed your ring to go to the Seculiar Forest in the first place.¡± I told her. At this point, telling a lie seemed to be a bit useless, but then again, there was also a certain thought in the back of my mind which told me she was telling me all of this because she was able to easily kill me whenever she wanted to. Barely having any Magic Energy inside of me and without much space here for me to move, I certainly couldn¡¯t dodge or summon Jophiel as I pleased. Kataryna was aware of this, I could bet my Luck on it. ¡°Once more, this is news to me.¡± she squinted her eyes at me and rubbed her chin. ¡°My lack of desire to involve myself in the matters of those lower than me seems to have led to this unfortunate situation.¡± she shook her head ¡°I should have killed that bastard when I had the chance, but I highly doubt he escaped the cave in.¡± she let out a sigh and then looked back at me. ¡°Why did you become a bandit, anyway?¡± I asked. ¡°Because I wanted to see how it is. Because I was bored. Because I didn¡¯t really care what I did. Because I simply saw time passing by me without anything interesting happening. Basically¡­ because I felt empty inside.¡± she tilted her head and then touched my cheek ¡°Until you came along. Maybe I should seriously think about making an egg with you.¡± she smirked. I gulped. ¡°I¡­¡± before I could say anything she pushed me back and kissed me roughly. The dragoness slipped her tongue in my mouth and pressed her upper body onto mine, unfortunately, the armor didn¡¯t allow me to feel the suppleness of her breasts. She was a damn fine kisser too. ¡°Puha~!¡± she licked her lips after the kiss was over and showed me a seductive smile. ¡°Never kissed a human before. I think I like it.¡± ¡°Huh? What just happened?¡± I asked a bit surprised and dumbfounded, but I was already missing the soft sensation of her lips pressing onto mine. ¡°I got a taste of you¡­¡± she pulled back and then got up, stretching her body. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°From now on, I won¡¯t be a bandit anymore, I¡¯ll follow you around and see what interesting things you can show me¡­¡± she then looked back at me ¡°To miss an opportunity like this, it would be such a shame!¡± she smiled. ¡°Huh? Can you do that?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Why not? I never actually killed anyone just for the heck of it. Stealing was never my thing either, even though my skills belong mostly to an assassin, and I can easily sneak into anyone¡¯s house.¡± she shrugged. ¡°You are an assassin?¡± I blinked surprised. Wait a second! Aren¡¯t they supposed to have like very low HP and can only do shadow magic? She¡¯s a boss level character, she can¡¯t be an assassin! I immediately complained in my mind as the things I knew about the assassin class collided with the reality of my current situation. ¡°I said they belong mostly to an assassin, not that I am one. I think my former rank was Grand Knight of Zerudan, but after the collapse of the kingdom, I was returned to commoner status. Well, it doesn¡¯t really matter for me.¡± she shrugged as if it was nothing. Getting off the ground, I let out a sigh and tried to wrap my head around the entire line of events. Basically, Kataryna was a former Grand Knight who reached level 1000, also known as Awakened Breakthrough. This gave her a strange state of mind that made her indifferent towards many things around her, including personal boundaries, but she was one hell of a kisser. She also had no idea Brekkar was ill. Apparently, someone else pulled the strings behind the attack, but with the cave in earlier, it¡¯s likely that he was killed and if not, he would have a hard time launching any sort of counter attack. And now, I am stuck with her in this cave, and I sort of feel like my virginity is in danger, but that part isn¡¯t entirely a bad thing¡­ I mean, Kataryna looks hot, but¡­ yeah¡­ Seryanna. I thought and then sighed. Well, if we reached this point, and she didn¡¯t kill me, there was no point in actually not doing this, so¡­ ¡°Kataryna, do you want to be my friend?¡± I asked her. The dragoness blinked surprised when I asked her. ¡°A friend? Nobody asked me to be their friend in a very very long time¡­¡± she smiled and nodded. ¡°I will be your friend.¡± [DING!] [You have made a new friend: Kataryna Greorg] ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± she asked me and pointed her hand at the invisible message in front of her. ¡°Ah! It vanished! Alkelios? You are Alkelios Yatagai?¡± she asked tilting her head. ¡°Yup! Nice to meet you too, Kataryna Greorg, I hope we can be good friends from now on!¡± I smiled at her. ¡°Me too.¡± she nodded. ¡°Now, how do we get out of this hole?¡± I asked. ¡°A good question¡­¡± she laughed. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°I don¡¯t, but I can find out.¡± she smiled. ¡°How?¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°We follow the path through there.¡± she pointed at something behind me. ¡°That¡­ I can¡¯t see anything there.¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a bit hard for normal human eyes?¡± she scratched her cheek. ¡°Maybe¡­ [Kitty Eyes].¡± I activated this skill. The Magic Energy drain using the skill wasn¡¯t felt at all, so maybe I gained a few points from Kataryna¡¯s stats. Thanks to this, I was able to see perfectly in the dark, although, technically speaking, the iris of the feline wasn¡¯t what granted her the ability to see in the dark in the first place, but meh¡­ details. ¡°That is a strange ability you have, and your aura seems to have gotten stronger from a moment ago. Interesting¡­¡± she said with a smile, while her tail waved left and right. ¡°Well, my eyes are changed because of the skill. It allows me to see in the dark and around me. The aura probably changed because of my [Dragon Tamer] ability.¡± I told her and started walking in the direction of the semi-dark corridor. There were a few fluorescent crystals here and there, which lit up the place a bit, but most of them were on the ceiling behind us. They were the light I saw when I was under the water. ¡°What does that skill do?¡± she asked me tilting her head to the left. ¡°Can you promise not to tell anyone about this?¡± I stopped and looked back at her. ¡°You can always seal my lips with a kiss, but I will keep it a secret. You have my word as Kataryna Greorg, a former knight.¡± she nodded and made a small bow. ¡°Alright, well¡­ it basically allows me to become friends with dragons and in exchange for that friendship, I gain strength, speed, dexterity, Magic Energy, and Magic Energy Excellence, while the dragons gain the ability to grow faster in power. Well, I call it level¡­¡± I explained. ¡°Hm, a useful ability for you, but the advantages I get are rather minimal. I have no interest in becoming stronger, but then again¡­ being your friend just got a whole lot more interesting.¡± she smirked and waved her tail a bit faster. ¡°As long as you don¡¯t kill me or betray me, I¡¯m cool with it.¡± I told her. ¡°I never betray my friends. That is a given.¡± she nodded. ¡°Hm, now that I look at you better, I think the reason why I feel attracted to you and find you interesting is because of this [Dragon Tamer] skill.¡± Her words surprised me a bit. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, many skills in this world aren¡¯t exactly as they are described in the textbooks. It¡¯s possible that your ability is selective about who is allowed to become your friend, and at the same time, it subtly attracts them to you. The feeling I get from you might be the one emanated thanks to this peculiar trait of your ability. You truly are a fascinating and interesting fellow!¡± she giggled. ¡°I never thought of it that way¡­ Heh, you learn something new every day.¡± I said. After our small talk, we continued on our way through the tunnel. Kataryna took the lead as she could read the winds and figure out the exit faster than I could. While we did so, we didn¡¯t talk about much, we just quietly searched for the way out. Meanwhile, I was a bit curious about something, so I called out my status and her¡¯s. At this point, these were our current stats: [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 141 [Strength]: 16+342+607.5+140.5+1605 [Speed]: 14+256+452.5+178.5+2111 [Dexterity]: 20+257.5+527+77.5+1778 [Magic]: 16+200.5+251+832.5+602.5 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+7%+8.5%+11.5%+7.5% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 80 [Stat Points]: 1400 In other words, the values for those stats were: [Strength]: 2711 [Speed]: 3012 Dexterity]: 2660 [Magic]: 1902.5 [Luck]: 100 Magic Excellence]: 35.5% Talk about an overpowered level 141, but even so, my original stats were pathetic. As for the silver-scaled dragoness, her stats were even more ridiculous: [Name]: Kataryna Greorg [Species]: Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark [Awakened Status]: 6 out of 6 conditions met [Level]: 1294 [Strength]: 6420 [Speed]: 8444 [Dexterity]: 7112 [Magic]: 2410 [Luck]: 41 [Magic Excellence]: 30% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <3X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed> [Wisdom of the Old One] Upon seeing her status, I asked her: ¡°What¡¯s a Superior Draconian?¡± Kataryna froze in her spot and shot a glance at me ¡°How do you know about that?¡± she asked. ¡°It says here on your status.¡± I shrugged and replied. ¡°Your ability, right?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Sigh¡­ Guess there¡¯s no point in keeping it a secret from you.¡± she said scratching the back of her head, then with a mischievous smirk on her lips, she told me ¡°Give me a kiss, and I¡¯ll tell you.¡± I gulped. ¡°OooK?¡± It wasn¡¯t like I hated it, besides, I wasn¡¯t technically in a stable relationship with anyone. Coming over, she looked into my eyes and then brought her lips close. This time, she wasn¡¯t as rough as before, but it was still mind blowing. When she pulled back, she licked her lips and giggled. ¡°That was delicious, thank you.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ you¡¯re welcome.¡± I was a bit out of it. ¡°Now, the Superior Draconians are basically those with high affinity towards certain elements. For example, I¡¯m a Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark. Although I can use Shadow and Darkness elements as well, my spells from the Ice and Lightning elements are far stronger than those of a normal draconian. If I wished to, I could summon a blizzard to bury the entire Tomeron town under snow and ice. I could also freeze an entire lake at the snap of my fingers, while a Superior Draconian of the Flame could literally turn it to steam. There are those few, special individuals who belong to the High Elements. They are more or less a myth, but it is said that they have the hardest time of awakening but also are the most powerful when it comes to their elements. When they make an Awakened Breakthrough, they are said to have power equal to a god belonging to that element. Of course, these are just rumors and most likely only refer to a high affinity to an element.¡± she explained calmly without holding back. ¡°So that¡¯s how you were able to freeze that room back there!¡± I said when I remembered. ¡°It was a cinch!¡± she giggled. ¡°But how hard would it be for a Superior Draconian of a High Element to awaken?¡± I asked curiously, seeing as Seryanna was in such a position. ¡°Very¡­ Some say they have impossible to meet conditions. I never met one who was awakened. Most of the times, they are killed before they reached awakened status or fail to do so completely and die of old age.¡± she explained shaking her head. ¡°Killed?¡± I asked and gulped. ¡°Yes. As it is with the human kingdoms and any others for that matter, you will find those individuals in seats of power, who do not see it with kind eyes when someone of such potential appears. They would rather risk a war then offer the chance for a Superior Draconian of a High Element to awaken.¡± she nodded and then made a sad expression ¡°My last friend¡­ he was the victim of such a plot.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry to hear that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, this happened more than 500 years ago.¡± she showed me a soft smile, but I could see it in her eyes that she never got over his death. Maybe he was someone very close to her? More than a friend? I wondered as we continued to walk. About two or so hours later, we finally reached the exit. It was dark outside, but it felt so good to breathe the fresh air of freedom! ¡°This took far less than I had expected.¡± said Kataryna a bit surprised. ¡°It took us about four hours to find the exit in that maze! Four hours!¡± I reminded her. ¡°Yes, normally, it should have been days even with my skill.¡± she said shaking her head. ¡°We¡¯re just lucky, anyway, let¡¯s go and find Seryanna and Kleo, then head back to Brekkar, give him the cure and take a good night¡¯s rest!¡± I said with joy in my voice and stretching out my hands. ¡°How will we find them?¡± Kataryna asked curiously. ¡°[Dragon Tamer] has the nifty ability to allow me to track one of my friends. Currently, it¡¯s set on Kleo.¡± I smirked. ¡°So that¡¯s how you found my lair so quickly. Interesting.¡± she waved her tail left and right. ¡°It should be that way!¡± I said and pointed to my left. ¡°Good! I¡¯ll fly you there.¡± she said. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised, but just then, Kataryna spread her wings and took off. From a few flaps, she was already flying up high in the sky while holding my arms. ¡°How¡¯s the view from down there?¡± she asked with smile. Looking up, I was about to say ¡®sexy¡¯, but I refrained and then told her ¡°It¡¯s great! But don¡¯t take us above the clouds, we want to see what¡¯s down below.¡± I told her. ¡°Interesting. A normal human would either scream or tremble at this sight, but you are calm, almost like you are used to it.¡± she said looking back at me with a gleam in her eyes. ¡°Well, sort off.¡± I laughed awkwardly. And thus, we flew towards my two other friends, the dragonesses Kleo and Seryanna. All in all, this adventure turned up just as I wished it to be¡­ without any of us dying. ____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :D Chapter 21: Conclusion [Kataryna¡¯s point of view] One might have found my sudden change of loyalty quite surprising, maybe unbelievable, but from my point of view, I only saw their lack of understanding in the way I thought and felt. To put it simply, I never was particularly attached to The Twin Daggers bandit group even if I was identified and recognized as their official leader. To me, they were just a bunch of youngsters unable to see even the tip of their tails. I could cast them aside like a broken nail or a ripped off scale and find myself another group. In a matter of speaking, I did just that with Alkelios Yatagai. This human was quite interesting, especially when it came to his peculiar skills. The [Dragon Tamer] one seemed to change the very way he could interact with me and other dragons. Thinking about it, he was a human with dragon friends, which in itself was almost unheard of before. Alkelios sparked my curiosity once more and for the first time ever since I managed to reach the Awakened Breakthrough. One could say that such a thing was near impossible, but it happened to me, I witnessed it, and it felt great! Although, I had a lot to teach this boy about kissing if he ever planned on conquering a dragoness¡¯ heart. I might actually think about having him gift my womb with an egg before the young one captures his heart¡­ Or maybe I can strike a deal with him after this adventure ends? I¡¯m quite curious to see where it would lead. I thought as I flew through the skies with him holding to my hands. For the first time in many centuries, I felt blessed with a new opportunity, maybe a bit of adventure, and the start of a new friendship? Who knew where this whole thing would lead an old one such as myself? [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] We dug for hours, and we didn¡¯t find even a single trace of him. I pulled boulder after boulder until my hands were covered in dirt and my armor was covered in sweat. Even so, I couldn¡¯t give up, I couldn¡¯t stop. Alkelios was there somewhere and just thinking about leaving him there when I might be his only chance of survival was something I couldn¡¯t bear to watch or do. Thus, I kept digging and digging until I either found him alive or his corpse. ¡°Sister, please¡­ we have to stop, it¡¯s getting late.¡± Kleo said with a tone of worry in her voice, but I didn¡¯t listen. Looking at my hands, I understood that I wouldn¡¯t have done this for just anyone. Alkelios held a special place in my heart, and it would be a lie to say that I didn¡¯t think of him as more than a friend. He made those stupid advances on me, he played inappropriate jokes, but unlike other men, unlike other dragons, he didn¡¯t care whether I was an awakened or not. For him, maybe it didn¡¯t even matter if I ever did become an awakened dragon. ¡°I can¡¯t give up, Kleo¡­ Until I find him, I won¡¯t¡­¡± I told her and then pulled another huge rock out of its place and tossed it to the side. My sister watched me as I continued to dig down. Until now, she helped me as well, but her hands and dress were now covered in dirt, and she was tired too. I couldn¡¯t blame her, she didn¡¯t have the same strength as I or grandfather did. She was probably weaker than Alkelios as well, unfortunately, neither of us knew any earth spells to make our jobs easier. As I dug deeper, I prayed and hoped I would find him alive and well, only covered in dirt a little bit, what I never imagined was that he would be the one to come to me, but from the skies, not from under the ground. ¡°Ahoy, down below!¡± I heard his shout from above. Surprised by his voice, I quickly turned and looked up in the direction of his voice. For a moment, I thought I was hearing and seeing things because there he was, heading towards us while being carried by the silver-scaled dragoness whom we fought earlier. ¡°Alkelios?¡± I asked unsure if what I saw was real or not. The boy landed on the ground and showed me a big smirk. ¡°That would be me!¡± he said pointing at himself. My eyes teared up, and I couldn¡¯t control myself, I jumped in his arms and embraced him. ¡°You idiot! I thought you were dead!¡± I shouted at him. ¡°I¡­ can¡¯t¡­ breath¡­¡± he muttered. Releasing my grip a little bit, I pulled back and looked into his eyes. He showed me a goofy smile and both annoyed and happy to see him, I did something I wouldn¡¯t have done if he was any other dragon¡­ I kissed him. I was bad at this and did it instinctively, but I didn¡¯t care, I was just happy to see him alive again. ¡°Unexpected, but GREAT!¡± said Kleo amused. ¡°Interesting.¡± said Kataryna. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] Of all the things I was expecting Seryanna to say or do, a kiss was on the top bottom list, but it was still there. With this, I could also confirm the fact that Kataryna was the better kisser, but the redhead wasn¡¯t bad herself. Then again, hey¡­ two hot women just gave me a big kiss today! The gods could say what they wanted, but I felt like was in Heaven, and I didn¡¯t even care that neither of them was my stable girlfriend. When she pulled back, I could only blink surprised at the redhead dragoness. She looked down shyly with her cheeks bright red, and she was so embarrassed she didn¡¯t even realize how strong she was gripping my shoulders. I wanted to cry¡­ from the pain. ¡°W-What happened to you? I thought you were dead!¡± she asked as she looked at me and then glared at Kataryna. ¡°Erm¡­ I sort of caused a cave in and made Kataryna my friend, then we escaped through an underground passage¡­ and then flew over here?¡± I replied trying to summarize. ¡°Friend? How could you reveal your skill to a bandit like her?!¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Well¡­ erm¡­¡± I tried to give her an answer, but from many points of view, that could have been seen as both a risky and a very stupid move. ¡°It was his skill that brought me here, isn¡¯t that right¡­ little one.¡± Kataryna said as she hugged me from behind and then whispered in my left ear. I gulped, and Seryanna glared at me. Let¡¯s try and not mention any kissing¡­ Otherwise, I¡¯ll see first-hand how hot a dragon¡¯s breath really is. I thought. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t be so stiff about it. It¡¯s not that big of a deal!¡± said Kataryna as she pulled back and stretched her arms a bit. ¡°Not a big deal?! You assaulted and set fire to my home! You injured my grandfather, kidnapped my little sister, and nearly killed all of us! How are these things not a big deal?!¡± shouted Seryanna pointing a finger at Kataryna. ¡°Because they really aren¡¯t. Listen, if I was actually serious with the whole bandit thing, I would have killed Brekkar and took over his house. If I was fighting you two with all of my might, I would have hunted you down and killed you when you least expected it, not play around and take on your attacks like that.¡± Kataryna explained. To be fair, she was right about those things. The dragoness was one who had an Awakened Breakthrough. She was over level 1000 and even a Superior Draconian. As for her attacks, she didn¡¯t use even one frost or lightning element attack on us. If she did, I highly doubted we could survive it. Actually, I narrowly escaped from being impaled or killed in one blow several times. Even my Luck was getting tired, so certainly the outcome would have been different if she actually had the intent of killing us or making her bandit group bigger and more powerful. Of course, Seryanna didn¡¯t know all of that. All she saw was the direct effects of her attack and knew that she was a bandit. That was enough for her to put the label of ¡®guilty¡¯ on the silver-scaled dragoness¡¯ forehead. ¡°I don¡¯t care! You still attacked my grandfather and burned down my home!¡± she retorted and unsheathed her sword, pointing it at the dragoness. ¡°Hey now, take it easy, Seryanna!¡± I said and moved between the two of them. ¡°Why are you defending her, Alkelios?! She nearly killed you!¡± she reminded me. ¡°Yeah well, stuff happens, you know? And it¡¯s not like she gave out the order to burn down the Draketerus mansion or attack Brekkar. It was someone else under her.¡± I told her, trying to calm her down. ¡°She¡¯s just fooling you, Alkelios! She lied to get on your good side and put the blame on someone else!¡± she retorted. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Of course, that could be what really happened, and right now she was simply trying to find the opportune moment to kill us, but if that was true, then she could have just finished me off easily and then stealth hunt Kleo and Seryanna. ¡°I didn¡¯t lie. As I said, it was his [Dragon Tamer] skill that pulled me towards him just like it happened to the both of you.¡± she said moving her gaze between the two dragonesses. ¡°I don¡¯t believe that!¡± declared Seryanna. ¡°Then, if you don¡¯t, please believe me¡­ I don¡¯t feel like she¡¯s a bad person¡­ dragon. We sort of just got off on the wrong foot here. For now, let¡¯s just head back to Brekkar and cure him, the old goat needs our attention soon.¡± I suggested with a smile. ¡°You can cure grandpa?¡± asked Kleo surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Speaking of which, you never told me what sort of disease he has? Impotency?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Not that I know off¡­ besides, is that really the only thing you could think off?¡± I threw her a questionable look. She simply smirked back at me with those cunning eyes of hers. ¡°What¡¯s grandfather¡¯s illness, Alkelios?¡± asked Seryanna. ¡°Well, first off, as you can see, Kataryna has no idea about it. Actually, she didn¡¯t even know he was sick to begin with.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°That is indeed true.¡± nodded the dragoness. Seryanna was squinting her eyes at me, not really sure if she should believe me or not. If I was in her position, I probably would have thought Kataryna was just acting, and out of fear, I sided with her. Well, to be honest, the dragoness would just have to prove her loyalty through actions later on, for now, we could only trust her words and pray we didn¡¯t make a mistake. ¡°The illness is called [Berserker¡¯s Burst].¡± I told them. The moment they heard what it was, there was a clear sign of shock and surprise on their faces. Even Kataryna was looking at me with a furrowed brow, while Kleo didn¡¯t seem to know what it really meant. ¡°But¡­ that can¡¯t be cured.¡± said the silver-scaled dragoness. ¡°If grandfather has that¡­ then¡­ why did he tell me he can be cured with Bloody Mushrooms?¡± Seryanna asked as she lowered her sword and looked with a furrowed brow and squinted eyes at me. ¡°It¡¯s part of a remedy that can alleviate the symptoms, but it can¡¯t cure them.¡± I told them what the old man told me. ¡°How long?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Sorry, what?¡± I looked back at her. ¡°How much longer does he have?¡± ¡°Erm¡­ two weeks at most.¡± I told them with a shrug. Hearing that, Seryanna dropped down on her knees. She suffered a bit of a shock. It would be the same for me if I heard that my grandfather only had a few weeks left to live, but in my case, I would think it¡¯s maybe a heart problem, cancer, or something like that, not a magical illness created as a result of overusing one¡¯s magic channels. If I were to go with such a problem to a doctor, they would raise an eyebrow, look back at me and ask me what I drank because they wanted some too. ¡°I have a way of curing him. Using one of my skills, the [Bartender], I can technically create a potion and offer it up to him. I just need to level it up a bit and learn to use the skill. Two weeks should be more than enough, I think, unless we can find a Grand Master Alchemist somewhere on a short notice.¡± I explained. ¡°You are Grand Master Alchemist too?¡± Kataryna asked surprised. ¡°No, it¡¯s just that one of my skills is similar to that¡­¡± I told her. ¡°Interesting. I¡¯m really glad I bumped into you. You are the most interesting man I had ever met in the past few centuries! Hahaha!¡± the dragoness laughed. Ignoring her, Seryanna looked up at me and asked with a serious tone of voice ¡°What do you need?¡± ¡°Well, an alchemy lab for starters. I¡¯ll need to make some simple potions to understand how this skill of mine works, then it should be a piece of cake, plus you in a nightgown.¡± I said and smirked. ¡°I don¡¯t think that last one is mandatory.¡± the dragoness squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Maybe, maybe not?¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°Oh? Then how about if I sleep with you from now on? After all, I already made up my mind to make an egg with you, it should be very very interesting if we succeed.¡± Kataryna said and grinned while she hugged me from behind. ¡°An e-e-egg?¡± Seryanna was surprised. ¡°She¡¯s just joking.¡± I told the dragoness then looked back at the one hugging me. ¡°You are joking, right?¡± Kataryna replied by simply curling her lips up and waving her tail behind her. ¡°Wait! Wait! Wait!¡± Kleo butted in. ¡°Hm?¡± the silver-scaled blinked and looked curiously at the goth girl. ¡°IF you want to have an egg with this guy, you have to stand in line! Sister dearest already declared that she wants him first!¡± she nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t mind.¡± giggled the former bandit. ¡°KLEO!¡± shouted Seryanna with her cheeks puffed up, and her face turned bright red. ¡°But it¡¯s the truth! And the dirt on both of us proves it!¡± she nodded shoving her hands in her face. ¡°I-I-I¡­ YOU!¡± the redhead was left speechless. To spare her of any more uncomfortable attacks from Kleo and Kataryna, I stepped into the conversation and said ¡°How about we leave this sort of conversations for later, when we aren¡¯t tired, grumpy, stressed, and lacking a ton of sleep? Besides, there¡¯s also the matter of the cure that needs to be solved, and Kataryna needs to tell us if there are any more bandits lurking around or if the one who pulled us all into this mess is still hiding or not.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have any restraints about releasing all the information I know on the bandit networks here.¡± the silver-scaled shrugged. ¡°You have no problems in betraying your former comrades?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°They were never my comrades to begin with. They were simply there¡­ I don¡¯t know what to call them, specs of dusts that began to move around me because of my power?¡± she said tilting her head to the left. It was a bit of a mean way of putting it, but it was also a highly accurate description of their relationship. From what she said and how she reacted, I was her first friend in a very long time. It was a bit of an awkward start for me, but if it turned out I got an ally with her strength, then why the hell not? I only hoped the egg part was a joke of theirs. I wasn¡¯t ready to be a father¡­ or sire. ¡°I do not accept you nor do I trust you, but if Alkelios does, I will so too¡­ for now.¡± Seryanna declared as she stood up and threw a glare at Kataryna. ¡°Only time will tell if you can trust me or not. It would be foolish of me to request such a thing from you from the very beginning. What I can say is that as long as you are Alkelios¡¯ friend, and you won¡¯t try to harm him in any way, I will even let you be his first wife.¡± Kataryna said with a smile. ¡°Hear that, sister? First wife!¡± laughed Kleo. ¡°Sigh¡­ I will never be a human¡¯s wife!¡± shouted the redhead dragoness, but we all knew she was just shy about it. I am not getting married any time too soon! That¡¯s a guaranteed! God forbid if these three will ever think about this seriously! I thought after I felt a chill run down my spine the moment the women hinted at marriage. Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! :D And here''s a little joke: Seryanna: Why, Alkelios, why? Alkelios: But she is my friend¡­ Sryanna: So was I¡­ [Civil War] Chapter 22: Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths It was getting really dark as we got close to the Draketerus mansion, but it didn¡¯t even take us more than thirty minutes to fly there thanks to the Kleo dragon express. She transformed into her big lizard self and then flew us all on her back. While Seryanna threw daggers at Kataryna, the latter barely showed a reaction to her. If I were to put my finger on it, I would say the dragoness found the young knight amusing in a way. As for me¡­ I was riding on the back of a black dragon, enough said. ¡°This is so awesome!¡± I said to myself as I looked around. The best way to describe the scenery was to think about flying on board of a WWII airplane, maybe an IAR 80, but without the loud sounds of a piston engine. The scenery was simply flowing past me, giving me an adrenaline rush every time it felt like we were about to collide into some trees. Kleo was a skilled flyer and showed off her chance with every opportunity she got, but if it wasn¡¯t for Kataryna pointing the way back to Tomeron, we would have gotten lost from the very moment we took off. The black-scaled dragoness wanted to fly us in the exact opposite direction. ¡°Fufu! Be happy you are riding with me, otherwise, you would be running on the ground!¡± said the dragoness. ¡°Yes! This is incredible!¡± I said with a nod. ¡°You weren¡¯t so impressed when I carried you, what¡¯s the difference?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Envious?¡± Kleo turned her big head and showed her a big toothy smirk. ¡°No, curious actually!¡± replied calmly the other. ¡°Well it¡¯s different¡­ Riding on the back of a dragon and being flown around by someone my size gives off a different feeling. I don¡¯t think I can explain it.¡± I said scratching the back of my head. There was also the whole experience with Jophiel as well, but the flight with her was more on the deadly side than the fun side. ¡°Hm?¡± Kataryna wasn¡¯t convinced. ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± announced Seryanna as she pointed at the half-burnt mansion in the distance. ¡°I¡¯m going in for the landing!¡± announced Kleo. We held on tight to her back spikes. The landing itself was easy and without any difficulties unlike when she first met me. That time, she dropped like a rock on top of me. The first one to jump off was Seryanna, then me, and lastly Kataryna. With all of us on the ground, Kleo returned to her humanoid form. Regarding the way the dragons changed shapes was rather interesting. While we flew, Kataryna explained the process for me. What happened was that their bodies were enveloped in a magic bubble the color of their scales, in Kleo¡¯s case, it was black. Inside, their bodies underwent a fast transformation, fueling their cells with nearby Magic Energy. When the transformation was over, they emerged as a full-sized dragon with four limbs and a pair of wings on their back, a long neck, sharp claws, and scales covered them from head to toe. Their length from the tip of their tails to the tip of their nose varied from 20 meters to 100 meters. The older they were, the bigger their dragon bodies became. Kleo was around 24 meters in length and with a wingspan of about 80 meters. In my eyes, her size was impressive, but Kataryna claimed she can grow bigger. She didn¡¯t tell me how big though. To return to human form, she went through the same process of turning into a magic sphere. The entire process lasted only mere seconds. As for their clothes, they just told me that it goes away for a while. What exactly that meant, I had no idea, but maybe I would find out in due time. Overall, the awakened form was the true form of a draconian, while the full-sized dragon form was their natural form. Which was a bit confusing for me. The way I saw it, both were their real forms, including the pre-awakened one. ¡°Mistress Seryanna, you have returned and¡­¡± the blue-scaled maid who came to greet us saw Kataryna in that moment and gulped. ¡°We have returned. Do not worry, for now¡­ she means no harm. Isn¡¯t that right?¡± said Seryanna as she glared at the other dragoness. ¡°Who knows?¡± she smirked and waved her tail a little. I had a feeling she was starting to find the idea of teasing the redhead as ¡®interesting¡¯. ¡°Master Brekkar is this way.¡± the maid made a polite bow and swallowed her fear for the silver-scaled dragoness. ¡°Let¡¯s go to grandpa, then!¡± said Kleo after she returned to her human form, running past us. ¡°I¡¯m sure the old man will be happy to know that we brought his granddaughters back to him safe and sound.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Of course.¡± the maid replied and led the way for us. A few moments later, we arrived in the part of the house that wasn¡¯t completely burned to the ground. There, Brekkar was talking with a couple of unfamiliar old dragons about something. With the sun having set already, the entire place was lit up with those special magical stones or the eventual classical torches here and there. ¡°Hm? Seryanna! Kleo! You are safe¡­ and you?¡± the old man said when he saw his two granddaughters, the goth one going up and hugging the old man, while the redhead made a polite bow in front of him. His brow turned into a frown when he saw the silver-scaled dragoness. Kataryna simply smiled and looked around. Of course, her presence there would unsettle them, but she returned with me and everyone else, which made it clear that she wasn¡¯t going to attempt another attack on the old man¡¯s life. ¡°Alkelios, what is she doing here?¡± the old man asked me. ¡°Well¡­ long story short, I turned her into my friend, and she wasn¡¯t behind the attack. So for now, please excuse her?¡± I explained and at the end slapped my palms together and made a short bow. Brekkar looked at me for a long moment while he thought what to do about this. In the end, he let out a sigh and shook his head. ¡°You are one strange lad¡­¡± he complained. ¡°It appears so¡­ hehe.¡± I said scratching the back of my head and showing him an awkward smile. ¡°Well, as long as she isn¡¯t here to cause any more trouble, let¡¯s say I pardon her, although I fear that even if I tried to take any action against her, there¡¯s not really anyone here who can defeat her.¡± he said and then looked at Kataryna. ¡°Except for this one, he defeated me.¡± she spoke with a purr as she wrapped her tail around my waist. ¡°Ah! Stop that! It tickles!¡± I pulled away. ¡°Him?¡± Brekkar asked surprised. ¡°Yes, this human.¡± she confirmed. When she mentioned my species, the other dragons there looked at each other a bit confused, but they kept quiet for now. I only hoped these old geezers weren¡¯t something like a council of prunes, who would later try to get rid of me or claim their superiority over me. Basically, the typical nonsense you would expect from an elder when they heard you were part of their enemy¡¯s camp. Then again, if Brekkar approved of me, and I ¡®defeated¡¯ Kataryna, I probably wouldn¡¯t need to worry too much about them. ¡°He¡¯s just lucky.¡± Seryanna spoke with a low tone of voice. ¡°Very lucky.¡± I added with a smirk. She simply squinted her eyes at me. The dragoness still wasn¡¯t too pleased about letting Kataryna walk away freely, but Brekkar raised a good point though, none of us could match Kataryna¡¯s strength if she were to get serious. If she was a normal draconian like Brekkar, maybe, but she was a Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark, meaning that she had absolute control over two elements. This made her incredibly deadly and dangerous. Turn your enemies into your friends, and you will have nothing to fear! Or so said some Chinese wiseguy from who knows how long ago? I thought as I looked over at the slightly bored silver-scaled dragoness. When she caught me looking in her direction, she winked at me, and I turned my head away. Don¡¯t remember those sweet, delicious kisses! Don¡¯t! Just¡­ but boy oh boy¡­ hehehe¡­ I shook my head and stopped myself from drooling before I angered a certain redhead. ¡°Something the matter, Alkelios?¡± Brekkar asked me. ¡°No, sir! No!¡± I quickly replied. ¡°Well, if she¡¯s not a threat, then what happened to the Twin Daggers bandit group?¡± he asked. ¡°Most of them are probably dead. Your granddaughter and my new friend here proved to be more than they could handle. If you wish, I can point you out towards any hideout of theirs I¡¯m aware of.¡± explained Kataryna and then offered him a small smile. ¡°That would help us a lot, thank you!¡± he nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should fully trust her, grandfather.¡± warned Seryanna. ¡°We shall see, my dear. For now, this is our best lead and knowing that their strongest fighter is now on our side will help us take them down much faster.¡± he nodded and crossed his arms at his chest. ¡°Then, while your men do that, I want to start working on the cure¡­ Erm, anyone knows where I can find an alchemy lab?¡± I asked. When I mentioned cure, the old geezers looked at each other again a bit confused. ¡°I have one in my ring.¡± said Kataryna. ¡°I¡¯ll bring you those herbs then. Say where you want to place it, and I will send one of my servants right away.¡± Brekkar declared. ¡°Any empty room would be good.¡± I said. ¡°Of course, there are still a few rooms untouched by the flames at the back of the mansion, where the fire was the weakest.¡± he told me. ¡°Great! I¡¯ll go there right now! Erm¡­ by the way, where do we sleep tonight?¡± I asked him. ¡°Sigh¡­ The inn, my friend. None of the bedrooms escaped the flames.¡± he shook his head. ¡°Aw¡­ Alright.¡± I nodded and then followed one of the maids all the way there. The room wasn¡¯t very big, and it was a bit dusty. An old dresser was sitting in the back, and the door had a few black stains where the fire licked the wood and tried to slip inside. Without even a rug or some piece of easily flammable furniture next to the door, it wasn¡¯t able to set the room on fire. Maybe another lucky break? ¡°This place hasn¡¯t been used in a very long time.¡± said the maid. ¡°I can tell¡­¡± I squinted my eyes and stepped inside. After opening the windows, Seryanna used a small wind spell to dust off the place. It was like a soft breeze that blew over everything and pushed the resulting cloud outside, without letting it get close to us. ¡°Where do you want the lab?¡± asked Kataryna afterwards. ¡°Over there, by the wall.¡± I pointed. The ring wasn¡¯t on her finger but attached to a string around her neck. After she equipped it on her right hand, she then cast the complicated spell to take out what she needed from inside it. The table with all of its instruments was pulled out of the ring and flew all the way to the wall, where it was carefully sat down. Not even a single glass or vial was broken, showing just how good the dragoness was with controlling her spells. That wasn¡¯t the only table she pulled out though, a cauldron and a few tables with enchanted magical vials and glass containers were also taken out and placed next to the initial one. When it was over, the entire room was stacked full with all sort of alchemy thingies, some weirder than the others. ¡°Everything a Grand Master Alchemist will ever need is right here!¡± said Kataryna with her hands crossed at her chest and a smug look on her face. ¡°I honestly have no idea what a Grand Master Alchemist needs, but let¡¯s get this started!¡± I said with a smile and then walked over to the room, where I sat down crossed legged. ¡°What are you doing?¡± asked Kleo a bit surprised. ¡°Meditating, now get out. Shoo! Shoo!¡± I said waving my hand. ¡°The man needs his private time, but if you need any of us to satisfy you, sugar, just call.¡± Kataryna winked at me. ¡°Not THAT kind of private time!¡± I retorted. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± Seryanna said with a frown. Both Kleo and Kataryna placed their hands on her right and left shoulders respectively. They let out a long sigh and then shook their head. ¡°Let¡¯s go sister¡­ When you will grow up, you will know.¡± said Kleo. ¡°What are you two doing? What are you saying? This doesn¡¯t make any sense!¡± complained the dragoness as she was being pushed out of the room by the other two. ¡°Something tells me I got a second prankster on my hand¡­ This time, one I can¡¯t stop¡­¡± I sighed and then opened the status menu. Let¡¯s see¡­ I¡¯m level 141. Last time I was level 63. 141 minus 63 is 55¡­ wait no, 78. I gain one upgrade for a skill every 5 levels, so the last one was at level 60, this means, I have 140 minus 60 equals 80 divided by 5 is 16. So I can upgrade my skills 16 times and gain another 8 skills. Actually now, last time, I only used 4 improve/upgrade options, leaving me right now with a total of erm¡­ 24 upgrades! That¡¯s awesome and probably more than I need! Alright! Let¡¯s do this! I wish to gain two skills, one that will allow me to survive better when hit by enemies and another that can grant me some sort of attack ability or spell. I thought and then opened my skill list. The amount was still as impressive as ever, but that was most likely due to people being unable to acquire these skills before gaining another ten levels. Thanks to my [Dragon Tamer] skill, the power-leveling boost I received was beyond incredible. In not even a month, I went past level 100! That was awesome! Now, getting back to the new skills I required, I began to look around until one of them popped in my view and pulled me towards it. Immediately, I selected it and with it, 10 points were gone. This ability was called [The Spartan Hamster]. I decided to ignore the name and search for the second one. In under five minutes of scrolling, I found what I needed and selected it. Thus, 10 more points vanished from my list, and I gained [The Effect of Tzuika]. It was spelled wrong, but thanks to my knowledge in lazy Romanian language also known as text language, I was able to translate it. The result was: [The Effect of ?uic?]. ¡°Great, I think I just gained the ability to train hamsters and get drunk¡­¡± I sighed and hoped that wasn¡¯t it. [The Spartan Hamster]: A passive ability which grants a defensive aura to the individual. 10% of any sort of physical damage is dampened. 10% of any sort of Magic Attack is absorbed and turned into the equivalent value of Magic Energy. [The Effect of Tzuika]: Grants expert magic ability to the individual. Currently in control of: 2 elements. The amount of spells usable with this ability are 1 for each element. Available Spells: [Fireball], [Earth Spike]. I selected the details for those two spells. [Fireball]: A spell from the Fire Element category. Turns the gas or liquids around the user into a hot ball of fire burning at 1500 degrees Celsius. Fueling it with more Magic Energy will raise its temperature and size. Initial cost: 25 Magic Energy Points. [Earth Spike]: A spell from the Earth Element category. It sends a flux of Magic Energy into the ground, which travels under the selected target and creates a sharp spike of earth under their feet. Initial cost: 20 Magic Energy Points. After the first Cast, the Second and Third are instantaneous at the cost of 20 Magic Energy Points each. Requires preselected locations for each Spike. Well¡­ I¡¯ll be damned! Don¡¯t know what¡¯s more confusing: the fact that the magic spells have normal-sounding names or the fact that the names of these skills have no relation whatsoever with what¡¯s being described in them¡­ Seriously? Spartan Hamster? I was thinking of a combat ability, not a defensive one! Who would think a hamster can be a tank?! Or the effect of Tzuika? Come on! That¡¯s should have a been a skill that allowed me to summon free booze, not shoot out fireballs! I complained in my mind, but on the inside, I was really happy about what sort of improvements these skills offered me. I was FINALLY able to cast REAL spells! Still, before I got all hyped about casting magic, it was time to improve and maybe advance [Bartender], so I pulled it up and got the first two levels. Now it was at level 3, and it only cost me 14 skill points. I wanted to cry, but I had to save Brekkar. I thought about giving it an advancement too, maybe it could help me. When I selected it, I learned that it cost a total of 5 points, so I skipped it for now. I was left with 46 points, so I went over the new skills I acquired and gave those two a boost. For a total of 8 points, I got [The Spartan Hamster] and [The Effect of Tzuika] at level 2. The effects I received from these were as follows: 20% in damage dampening from the first and for the latter, a new element and one more spell for the previous two. Thus, I could cast now the following spells: [Fireball], [Firewall], [Earth Spike], [Earthquake], [Water Ball], and [Water Wall]. It was amazing, so I added another 8 points in [The Effect of Tzuika]. Now, I had Air Element as well and the following spells: [Fireblast], [Earth Arrow], [Water Gun], [Breeze], [Air Barrier], and [Air Scythe]. I could tell just from reading the names what each of them did, after all, the weird naming sense of the God-like entity didn¡¯t apply for these spells. Which in itself was quite AWESOME! Now, it was time to improve my pride and joy: [Dragon Tamer]. Without even the slightest hesitation, I began to dump the last of my skill points into this one, hoping that maybe just maybe it will give me more stat points. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. This was the result after spending 15 skill points: [Dragon Tamer] [Level 4]: This is a passive, buff type skill. When a Hero develops any sort of friendly or intimate relationship with someone of a Dragon origin, this skill will allow the creation of a special bond between the two of them. The bond is indestructible by any other skill unless the Hero wills it. The Hero gains 30% of the Dragon¡¯s Stats, and the Dragon will gain the ability to level up 5X faster wherever the Hero might be. The Dragon will gain the equivalent of 10% of the overall buffed stats of the Hero when they are within 100 meters of them. [Advancement I]: The Hero can sense the direction in which he can find his [Selected] Dragon friend. Number of dragons that can be sensed at the same time: 1 This was¡­ amazing. I got a 30% buff and a party buff! What more could I wish for? But then I wondered just what level 5 would give me, so I decided to see. With a gulp, I said ¡°Improve [Dragon Tamer].¡± I blinked surprised and then close the message, canceling the improvement. Half dragon? I can¡¯t¡­ I¡¯m a human, not a dragon¡­ If I do this, then even if I previously had 1% chance of going back home, I would have a 0% chance now¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ This is scary! What am I going to do as a Half-Dragon? The humans will hate me, and the dragons will loathe me¡­ I won¡¯t have a place on either side¡­ NO! This improvement I can¡¯t do! I can¡¯t give up on my humanity! I¡¯m not a monster! I thought, but when I said the last word, Seryanna¡¯s smile flashed before my eyes. I looked down and clenched my fists. She¡¯s not a monster, but she¡¯s not a human either¡­ I, on the other hand, will become one if I change my species¡­ So I can¡¯t! I absolutely CAN¡¯T do this! I thought and then looking at my skill points, I realized I had only 15 points left. Even if I wanted to get it now, I couldn¡¯t. Without hesitation, I placed 8 points in [The Spartan Hamster], then wished for an ability to help me with sword fighting or something to do with swordsmanship. This was a sword and magic world, after all. ¡°Let¡¯s see what I got¡­¡± I said, but I wasn¡¯t as excited as I was a moment ago. My mind kept going back to the improvement and what it would mean to gain it. A lot more power, true¡­ but I would become something not human. I was afraid of that, of losing my humanity. There were many who would have jumped at this opportunity, but I wasn¡¯t one of them. I wanted to stay human. Although I didn¡¯t mind gaining absurd abilities and skills as I leveled up, changing to another species wasn¡¯t something I particularly wished for. As for my new skill, this was it: [Super Chihuahua Style]: Grants Apprentice Skill with any and all bladed weapons, one-handed or two-handed. Grants the following Combat Skills: [Dash], [Ten Strikes Attack], [Side-Step], [Block], [Parry], and [Dodge]. The last ones were actually just basic movements and passives. They basically allowed me to determine the right time to Block, Parry, or Dodge any Apprentice and Journeyman swordsmanship attacks. I improved this ability once and brought it to level 2. This granted me access to Journeyman skills: [Double Jump], [One Hundred Strikes Attack], [Blade Dance Counter], and [Taunt]. Although they were very interesting, the last one basically worked only on monsters, and the blade dance thingy was basically a passive that allowed me to counter, block, or parry the incoming strikes of the enemy. So instead of dodging and avoiding the sword, I would move my blade against his and push it to the side, away from my body. With this, I was left with only 1 skill point, which I didn¡¯t really need. All that was left now was to put my skills into practice and start brewing Brekkar¡¯s antidote, but not before I made a list with what I needed. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± I said as I looked around and realized that the maid with the bag of herbs had yet to arrive. About a few minutes later, she knocked on the door. I took it from here and opened it immediately to check what was inside. On one of the tables, I separated the plants needed for the cure and the ones I could use to make some random potions to test out how this [Bartender] skill worked. ¡°I¡¯m lacking some stuff¡­¡± I said scratching the back of my head. There were a lot of herbs missing, and I knew were to find them: in the Seculiar Forest. ¡°I need their help.¡± I nodded. Making a few short mental lists of what I needed, I double checked all the ingredients for my experiments and Brekkar¡¯s final cure. Once I was done with this, I stepped out of my lab and went to where Seryanna, Kataryna, and Kleo were all enjoying a cup of black tea and having a staring contest. The silver-scaled dragoness was winning. ¡°Girls, I need your help.¡± I said with a small smile. ¡°What do you need?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°More herbs. Here¡¯s the list, I made copies.¡± I said and handed one to each of them ¡°You can find some of these in the Seculiar Forest, I already used my Luck to make it so that you will find them. Can you go and fetch them for me?¡± I asked them. ¡°Do so, and I¡¯ll make something tasty for you?¡± I added the bribe. ¡°Tasty? Deal! But, I¡¯ll just get these ones here¡­ I can¡¯t go in too deep with my strength.¡± said Kleo. ¡°I can get the ones her. I just need to look for any strange plants that pop in my sight, right?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°Erm¡­ Yes, sort off. I made the wish for you a bit more complex so you don¡¯t need to bother with looks.¡± I smiled, and she squinted her eyes at me. Did I say something wrong? I wondered. ¡°Then I presume I am left to bring the more¡­ difficult ones?¡± Kataryna raised her eyes from the list and looked at me ¡°Still, even if you wish for us to find them, I highly doubt we will be able to do so immediately. It could take weeks, maybe months to find some of these.¡± she noted and pointed at the Nightmare Scarlet on the list. ¡°You will find them in no time, don¡¯t worry.¡± I smiled back at her. ¡°If you don¡¯t find them in the next four days, just return to me, and I¡¯ll go look for them.¡± I told her. ¡°I will find them.¡± Kataryna said grabbing the list and getting up from the comfy chair. ¡°I¡¯ll find mine before you do!¡± said Kleo and poked her tongue out at her. ¡°Sister dearest, that¡¯s not polite.¡± Seryanna warned her. ¡°You are just afraid that I¡¯m going to finish my task before either of you!¡± she grinned and then ran off. ¡°Then how about a bet? The first to bring their herbs back gets a kiss from Alkelios?¡± Kataryna suggested looking back at Seryanna with a smirk. ¡°What? That¡­ something like that!¡± she blushed strongly. ¡°See you in a few days!¡± Kataryna flew off, leaving the redhead dragoness behind. Clenching her fists, Seryanna glared back at me and declared ¡°Don¡¯t you dare let that wench finish first! No cheating!¡± and then she stormed off. ¡°Well now¡­ Guess I should go to work as well.¡± I blinked a bit surprised. For the tasty reward, I asked the maids to bring me a bunch of fruits. I was preparing to make some tasty jam. Five years in a row mom forced me to help her out in the kitchen whenever she made traditional food, including jam. Some of those recipes had been literally hammered in my brain through experience alone. [Brekkar¡¯s point of view] To think that a youngster like Alkelios knew the cure to my incurable disease. If someone told me a hundred years ago that a human would enter one day in my home and save my life as well as go after my granddaughter¡¯s tail, I would have smeared their face with their own blood and stuffed their mouths with cacti. Nonetheless, that was the truth¡­ The weird part was that this fellow, Alkelios was now my friend and also the same one who made the notorious Kataryna Greorg walk away from the life of a bandit. In a kingdom, those with a power over 1000 were greatly sought after. The nobles and even the king went through great lengths to acquire their loyalty. Killing them was by far considered an unfortunate loss for the entire kingdom. Thus, Kataryna¡¯s ¡®mischief¡¯ would be more or less considered as non-existent by most officials as long as she fought on our side. Besides the king, there were maybe 16 at most who reached the Awakened Breakthrough. I was once counted among them before that accursed illness struck me and pushed me back to a mortal life. If Alkelios¡¯ cure worked, then I still had a chance of offering my services to my king¡­ And to think that the one who helped us, the dragons, was none other than one of our enemies, a human. Still, I was getting worried about this so-called cure of his. It has been around 4 days since he sent my granddaughters and the former bandit after those herbs. Ever since then, my servants reported strange sounds coming from the boy¡¯s laboratory. I as well heard him giggling like a madman at once, then there were the explosions. From time to time, something blew up in there and either something broke, or he was thrown out the window. Luckily for him, those vials were enchanted to survive such unfortunate events, but it made me wonder if I should trust him with the cure of my illness or not. ¡°Master, can you please tell that human to stop? Yesterday he dropped a vial of some weird yucky white stuff on me! Now, my skin turned green!¡± complained one of my maids. Indeed, she was as green as grass. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t. The boy simply wishes to improve and find the cure to my illness¡­ Please, look past his¡­ problems.¡± I said and showed her a forced smile. BOOOM! Something exploded so loud it made even me jump out of my chair. ¡°That wasn¡¯t me!¡± shouted Alkelios from outside the mansion. BOOOM! BOOOM! BADABOOM! ¡°Ok¡­ Now THAT was my fault¡­ Ouch¡­¡± he said, and I rushed off to the window. For a moment there, I thought my heart would stop in place. By the gods! I didn¡¯t know what was going to kill me faster, the illness or this boy and his potions! Looking out the window, I saw him walking back to the mansion. His body was emanating a weird green smoke, and his hair was pink. Stopping in front of me, he lifted a finger up and opened his mouth. ¡°Never mix Tiber Rice with Green Zerdrak¡­¡± and then walked off like nothing happened. ¡°Tiber Rice and Green Zerdrak?¡± I said and furrowed my brow. I never heard of those two herbs in my entire life¡­ Just what was that boy concocting in that lab of his? ¡°Ah! My skin is back to normal!¡± the maid jump up in joy, and I could only sigh. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] If there was one thing I was forced to learn about my [Bartender] skill that was the fact that it was a bit hard to apply in practice. On one note, following the recipes made things far easier, but actually getting the right quantity in was a nightmare. For some of the simpler potions, I was able to easily make them, but the harder ones were very hard, but I was improving at a surprising rate, most likely due to the skill¡¯s influence. When it came to using the knife, I was a master. I always made perfect cuts, but using the balance wasn¡¯t so easy. The skill showed me the recipe step by step on how to make it, but the quantity was offered in grams, while the dragons had some weird symbol on it translated as Merk, which was the rough equivalent of 1.25 grams. Surprisingly, only Alchemy used this stupid weight measuring system. Either that or Kataryna offered me some old tools that weren¡¯t updated to the new measurement systems. The first two days, I spent them practicing making simple potions and getting the weights right. That being said, who knew you could make exploding cabbages? On the other hand, I did better in making jam. Well, most of those things were nothing more than practical jokes. Their usefulness in real combat was close to zero, but maybe a skilled prankster would make some good use of them. Either way, they weren¡¯t going to be part of my weapon arsenal. About 6 days after I sent the girls to bring me those herbs, they finally returned with everything on the list. Both Kataryna and Seryanna were out of breath and looked like they went through Hell and back. They were both dirty, and their armors were in tatters. Of course, they were wearing different ones than those they used when we went to rescue Kleo. Seryanna¡¯s dragon knight armor was cracked and damaged in various places. As for Kataryna¡¯s, let¡¯s just say it stopped serving the purpose of armor the moment it began to disintegrate as a result of a certain Phoenix¡¯ attack. Speaking of which, she managed to finish her task before the end of the day. I had no idea how she did it, but apparently she was the one responsible for a new rumor spreading around town, something about spooky dark shadows moving left and right through the woods. I didn¡¯t ask her, and I simply played the innocent fool. What I didn¡¯t know anything about couldn¡¯t hurt me, especially when it came to ghosts. ¡°So? Who won?¡± asked Kataryna while swaying her tail left and right. I had the feeling she enjoyed the hunt for the herbs. ¡°Who?¡± asked Seryanna, squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Erm¡­ no one. Both of you got here at the same time.¡± I shrugged and looked through the herbs. ¡°Then¡­ I¡¯ll just do this!¡± said Kataryna with an annoyed voice. The moment when I looked towards her, I saw a very rare and sexy scene¡­ The dragoness grabbed the redhead¡¯s head with both palms and gave her such a kiss, it simply dumbfounded the knight. I was gasping as well because I never thought the silver-scaled dragoness would do something as outrageous as that. ¡°I¡¯ll give my thumbs up for that!¡± I said with a perverted grin. ¡°Hihihi!¡± Kataryna winked at me. ¡°What was that all about?!¡± shouted Seryanna as she threw a nearby empty basket at me. Using [Dodge], I was able to avoid it, while Kataryna played the joke a bit further and slapped the redhead¡¯s behind. ¡°Hey!¡± she shouted. The silver-scaled dragoness ignored her and walked off, swaying her hips left and right. Pouting, Seryanna shot me a glare and then left as well. I smirked and returned to my work. Of course, I did tell the maid to offer them some of the jam I cooked up. Apparently, Brekkar found it delicious. About one day later, I finally managed to brew the potion. It was a nightmare to do so, especially since I ruined the first batch because I sneezed. Using my [Bartender] skill and after training on how to more or less approximate the correct quantity, I was able to do it properly. [Night Breeze Potion of One Million Deaths] potion was a very complicated one because it actually required to make four different potions, then I had to mix them up like one would do an alcoholic drink. Stir the result with a silver spoon, then dip a root of Rosiette in it, leave it like that for two hours, and it was ready to consume. ¡°Here!¡± I told Brekkar with a big smile. ¡°Alkelios? What is it? It¡¯s three hours past midnight¡­ Can¡¯t we do this in the morning?¡± he asked. ¡°Nope! When brewed, you drink! That¡¯s the rule!¡± I nodded. ¡°Ugh¡­ Do I really have to?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow at me. ¡°Yes!¡± I nodded a few times. He took a glance at the suspicious-looking drink and then back at me. ¡°Really really?¡± he asked. ¡°Ask one more time, and I¡¯ll call Kataryna here to hold you still, and I will pour it down your throat no matter if you want to or not. I stayed up for three freaking nights to make this¡­ Don¡¯t mess around with a sleepy alchemist.¡± I glared at him. Actually, just two days, the first parts were ready by the time Kataryna and Seryanna showed up, but meh¡­ who¡¯s counting? I thought. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Brekkar was reluctant, but he picked up the glass and slowly poured it down his throat. It was a bit murky and probably tasted like crap, but who cared? It had all the right ingredients and most importantly, it was the genuine stuff. ¡°There¡­¡± he said. ¡°Alright, now, just sleep. When you wake up, your body should be cured¡­ Erm you have no problems with growing breasts and maybe a hand an extra hand from your stomach, right?¡± I told him and then shrugged ¡°Meh, you¡¯ll get used to it.¡± I turned around, and with a mischievous smirk on my lips, I walked out. ¡°What? Breasts? An extra hand? What in the name of all the gods did you put in this thing? Alkelios! Hey! I demand you answer me! Ugh¡­ I don¡¯t feel too good¡­¡± and he dropped like a bomb. ¡°Just as I predicted, although¡­ I should probably pull him back in bed.¡± I said as I walked back to him. ____ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it! :) Chapter 23: The readheads escape Two days after Brekkar consumed the strange thing I cooked up, he was up and full of energy like a child on a summer day. The potion worked perfectly and repaired his magic channels, eliminating those vortexes which gobbled up all of his Magic Energy and turned him into a walking time bomb. ¡°I feel great!¡± said the old man while sparring with Seryanna in the middle of the court. ¡°I can see that grandfather. Alkelios¡¯ potion did its job perfectly!¡± said the redhead with a smile before blocking one of his attacks. Jumping to the left, she rolled over and tossed a simple [Fireball] at him. He cut it in half after infusing his sword with Magic Energy. That was one skill I had yet to discover how exactly it worked, but it had many uses apparently. ¡°Hahaaa! Is that all you got?¡± the old man asked and then turned into a blur. Seeing this, Seryanna turned around and raised her sword up, blocking the downwards strike of the old dragon who appeared behind her. What just happened? I asked myself looking a bit surprised at them. ¡°Oho! You can block that? Very good! Very good!¡± he sounded excited. Jumping back, Brekkar focused his Magic Energy into his left palm and then pointed it at the dragoness. She raised her sword up and infused it just like he did. In the next moment, a tornado formed from the tip of his hand and went straight at Seryanna. Using her blade, she pushed it forward and split the attack in half, but when it was over, the old man wasn¡¯t there anymore. It was too late, but by the time she realized he was behind her, Brekkar was smiling and pointing the tip of his sword at her. ¡°You have won, grandfather.¡± the dragoness said with a small bow. ¡°Yes, I did, didn¡¯t I?¡± he smirked and then took a pose: hands on his hips, pushing his chest forward, and showing us a confident smirk. ¡°It¡¯s amazing, grandfather!¡± said Kleo from the sidelines. ¡°At first, I didn¡¯t really believe you could do it, but it appears as though I was wrong. I never thought I would see someone with [Berserker¡¯s Burst] being cured. The potion isn¡¯t easy to make, but just with this, you could earn a great amount of prestige.¡± Kataryna said with a nod. ¡°Meh, I don¡¯t really care about that.¡± I said with a shrug. Usually, such things gained you the hate and spite of other nobles, putting a big target mark on your head. Unless you had the strength to back it up, it was best not to try to go down that route. After all, it was easy to kidnap me, lock me up in a cell, then simply force me to make all those potions, especially if they sent dragons with a level over 1000. After the spar, we had lunch in a picnic fashion, since the dining room was still in the middle of repairs. A blanket was placed on the grass, we sat down on it, and a maid brought us the food in a basket. The food was simple, mostly sandwiches, but we didn¡¯t ask for any delicacies either. We could have gone back to the inn and grabbed something to eat there, but we didn¡¯t feel like making the trip. For the past couple of days, everyone slept at the inn. While doing my experiments, I ended up snoozing in the corner of the alchemy lab, although, on two separate occasions, I found myself cuddled up in Kataryna¡¯s arms. How she got there, I could more or less guess, but the sexy semi-transparent white nightgown she loved to wear was giving me all sorts of ideas. At least, she didn¡¯t do more than that. I found out over the past few days that she was a rather strange person. Although she barely interacted with the other dragons in the house, they all seemed to be aware of her strength and kept clear out of her path. Between her and Seryanna or Brekkar, only sparks could fly, but they never engaged in a serious battle. In my eyes, she was just another woman minding her own business and at times butting into mine. She wasn¡¯t annoying, but she did have the vibe that she knew more than she let on. If I were to guess why it was so, maybe it had something to do with her aura? Lucky midnight visits from Seryanna never occurred, and I didn¡¯t cheat by wishing for them, but she did drop by from time to time at the alchemy lab, but never stepped inside. I could tell because I had her tracked with my ability. Speaking of which, once I was done with Brekkar¡¯s potion, I made a couple more just to test them out and see what I would get. I spent most of my time like that. About two weeks after the unfortunate fire burnt down he Draketerus mansion, it was finally rebuilt thanks to everyone in Tomeron town pitching in a helping hand. The more eye-catching furniture would have to wait, since it would have to be brought over from the capital, but until then, we were offered simple beds the local woodcrafters could make. Life was simple and very calm. With the powerhouses there for protection, none of the bandits dared to make a move. The Twin Daggers group was disbanded and hunted down to the last man. The one who planned the attack was killed back at the cave. He was one of Kleo¡¯s accidental victims. When Kataryna offered us the basic description of the guy, the goth dragoness told us she already finished him off. Well, it was a lucky break, and with it, all the loose ends were tied. Things could finally get back to normal around here. All that was left was for me to somehow find a place in this world. For a while, I believed nothing would change, but I knew this was merely an illusion, a momentary peace waiting to be shattered. [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] Ever since that wench Kataryna came to my father¡¯s house, she was nothing but a pain. When I tried to get close to Alkelios, she stood in my way. I had less and less time to spend with him, but then again¡­ why did I even wish to do so in the first place? To be honest, I realized that my heart was slowly swaying in his direction. He cured my grandfather and helped me out when I needed to. Instead of running away from that battle, he returned to fight by my side with the little bit of strength he had. When I told him this, my grandfather was surprised. He said that normally, a human like him would have tried to run away. Even an awakened soldier dragon would have taken the first chance to flee, blaming it on his lack of strength when compared to our opponent. This was true, those who were weak never picked a fight with those stronger than them. It was logical, but at the same time, it was believed that running away to fight another day was better than dying in a hopeless battle. Yet, even those who were weak could defeat one who was stronger than them if they worked together. My battle against Kataryna was a proof of this. Even with Kleo¡¯s help, I couldn¡¯t have won, but when Alkelios joined, with the little bit of strength he had and his insane amount of Luck, we managed to turn the tide of the battle. If Alkelios ran away that time¡­ We could have died¡­ Of this, I was fully aware. That was the reason why I wanted to talk with him in private. Up until now, he made allusions about becoming my boyfriend, well¡­ now I had no reason to say ¡®no¡¯. If he wanted me, maybe we could give it a try and see how things worked out, but thanks to Kataryna, I never got the chance to do so. She was guarding him even at night. Well, I believed that one of these days, I would get the chance to speak with him, after all, she wasn¡¯t going to be there all the time. Unfortunately, something changed. It was about two weeks after we rescued Kleo. Grandfather received a letter addressed to me. Without delay, he called me over in one of the newly rebuilt rooms of our mansion. ¡°Seryanna, glad you came. Here. This is for you.¡± he told me. I furrowed my brow and took the letter from his hand. The royal wax stamp was on it, meaning that only a member of the royal family could have sent me this. It was an official letter, and the sender could be none other than my master, the third princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater. Unfortunately, I was too far away from her, otherwise, she would have used the telepathy link of my armor. After Kataryna¡¯s attack, it was probably slightly damaged, but maybe it could still connect me to her. Once I reached the capital, I planned on having it repaired. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. My dear knight and friend, Seryanna Draketerus, I send you this letter to let you know of the upcoming tournament organized by the royal family. As one of my knights, your presence is mandatory. I know you are in Tomeron Town to help Sir Brekkar Draketerus with his illness, and I hope this letter doesn¡¯t arrive at an inopportune time. The king also requested your presence this time, otherwise, I would have excused you from this silly tournament. I hope your journey back to the capital will be a peaceful one. The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher I folded the letter and closed my eyes. In my mind, I repeated what was written in it over and over, but it was clear, the time for me to depart from this place had finally arrived. It was beautiful while it lasted. Now, I could only wonder just when I would be able to return here. As one of Elleyzabelle¡¯s only knights, I couldn¡¯t neglect my role and place by her side. Maybe it was never meant for me and Alkelios to be together. He will remain my friend, and with Kleo and Kataryna by his side, I¡¯m sure he will turn out to be a powerful individual, maybe even achieve Awakened Breakthrough on his own. I thought and then let out a sigh. ¡°What will you do?¡± asked my grandfather. Even without reading it, he already knew what the letter was about, after all, he received many of them throughout his lifetime. ¡°I need to return to my master¡¯s side, but¡­¡± I looked down ¡°Grandfather, can you please keep this a secret until I am far away from Tomeron?¡± I asked him. ¡°You mean keep it a secret from Alkelios?¡± he asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Please?¡± I showed him a weak smile. ¡°Sigh¡­ I will, but that lad won¡¯t like it.¡± he looked down and shook his head. ¡°It is not something I wish to involve him in. Thank you, grandfather.¡± ¡°Seryanna, maybe I am wrong, but¡­ are you trying to run away from him?¡± he asked me, hitting the nail right on the head. ¡°I¡¯m a knight, but also a woman¡­ I wish to give up before I make a mistake. Besides, he has Kataryna¡­¡± I said and then turned around to leave. ¡°I¡¯m not going to say anything, it¡¯s your choice, your life, but¡­ I don¡¯t think they have that sort of relationship as far as I could tell.¡± he said before I closed the door. After leaving the room, I took a deep breath and looked at the folded letter in my hand. I have to go¡­ I thought and then went to pack my things. The only thing I could worry about was Alkelios¡¯ tracking ability, but as long as I left quickly, he wouldn¡¯t be able to use it on me. Well, that was the plan at least, and I knew it was a bit bad of me to run off like this, but I was certain he would understand. Farewells would have to wait for another time¡­ Maybe they will forgive me if I left without saying anything. ¡°Sigh¡­ I hope he will¡­¡± I told myself. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] ¡°What do you mean she¡¯s not here?¡± I asked Brekkar. ¡°She already left four days ago.¡± he told me. I blinked surprised. That was the first time I heard of something like this. ¡°Four days ago? Why?¡± I asked. ¡°An official letter from her master came, recalling her to the capital.¡± he sighed and looked out the window. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me sooner? Why did you wait for so long?¡± I questioned him. ¡°Alkelios, you are my friend, and you have my gratitude for healing my illness, something I probably won¡¯t be able to repay in this life time, but when it comes to royal matters and the request of my granddaughter, I can¡¯t refuse.¡± he said shaking his head. ¡°Request from¡­ You¡¯re telling me Seryanna asked you to keep this a secret from me?¡± I asked him. Why would she want to keep this a secret from me? If she didn¡¯t want me to tag along, she could have just told me so to my face! What was she thinking? Did all of these past weeks we spent together meant nothing for her? I asked myself while trying to contain my anger. Still, Brekkar was right. I had no say in whatever she decided or did, but even so, I felt a bit betrayed¡­ From the way I saw things, there was absolutely no reason for her to keep me here unless she felt ashamed with me in her presence. Well, I was a human, and my knowledge about good manners for dragons was a bit out of date¡­ sort to speak. ¡°She asked me to keep this a secret, yes, but only until she is far enough from Tomeron. By now, she is in the Ihtyar City, the one after Andromeda. If you were to leave now, I highly doubt you can catch her before she reaches the capital.¡± Brekkar sighed and shook his head. In other words, once she¡¯s in the capital, I literally had no way of catching her anymore. If I do, what do I want to tell her? Why should I go after her? Ugh¡­ I can just ignore her? I thought. ¡°Well, what are you going to do, Alkelios?¡± Kataryna asked me with a purr as she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me from behind. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± I replied honestly. ¡°I say you go after her.¡± she smiled. ¡°You aren¡¯t worried about you having one less rival?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°She was never a rival, and you being happy and interesting is more important to me.¡± she replied. ¡°In other words, you won¡¯t have anyone else to tease anymore, right?¡± ¡°Yup! You know me well, my dear Alkelios!¡± she nuzzled me with her cheek and then pulled back. ¡°Guess there¡¯s no other way, right?¡± I said and sighed. ¡°Hey! Alkelios! I got pancakes! Want to eat some?!¡± Kleo called out after she entered the room. ¡°Not now, Kleo. I¡¯m going to go after Seryanna!¡± I smirked. ¡°Go after sister? Oh?! She ran away?! I¡¯m coming too!¡± she raised her hand up and smirked. ¡°But how will you reach her in time?¡± asked Kataryna curiously. ¡°I have a certain rooster who can help me!¡± I smirked. ¡°Rooster?¡± the silver-scaled dragoness tilted her head a bit confused. It was finally time to test out the [Speedy Rooster] skill! As for Seryanna, I had no idea what I wanted to tell her or why I felt like I would make a very big mistake if I didn¡¯t go after her, but the one thing I was certain about was that this was going to be the start of a brand-new adventure! ____ Note from the author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this story! This is the end of Arc 1: Dragons can be cute too! I''ll start posting the next chapters as soon as I have more on my site. You can always contact me on FB or send me a message here if you have any content related questions or stuff like that. :) Side Story (1): The journey of a random hero [Rezia Dellan''s point of view] Hear me now, mortals of this world! In thirty years from now, a warmongering species shall surround your planet and lay waste to your civilization! That was the message of the self-proclaimed God-like entity when it first revealed itself to the population of Earth. The second time was when it literally kidnapped 10 million of us and brought us to some unknown place. I so screamed like a little girl when this happened, but I was fortunate for the fact that I couldn''t temporarily control my body. Maybe this was a precaution installed by the God-like to avoid mass panic among us. After a short explanation I understood the general idea. We were supposed to be sent to a new world and begin a new life as Heroes or whatever else we wanted to do. It sounded simple in theory, but I knew there was a catch or something. There always was one... The biggest surprise for me wasn''t the whole Hero thing but the game-like skill management system the God-like introduced us to. The idea of a status menu and skill points existed only in games, so for those of us who had no idea what they were, we received quite a bit of a shock. Fortunately, I wasn''t one of them. Back on Earth, I was a 24 years-old manager at a nearby fish market. Not the most delightful of jobs, but it paid the bills and allowed me to indulge in past time activities such as gaming. The problem was that I was more of a FPS player than an RPG one... Thus, when the status menu appeared before me for the first time, I recognized the general layout and understood what a Stat and Skill point was respectively, but I was at a complete loss of what was best to pick. Then the God-like gave us the 10 seconds ultimatum, and I started to add points where I thought mattered the most. When I was done, this was my status window: [Name]: [Species]: Human [Level]: 1 [Strength]: 31 [Speed]: 24 [Dexterity]: 22 [Magic]: 50 [Luck]: 30 [Magic Excellence]: 5% [Skills]: [Skill Points]: 1 [Stat Points]: 0 Since it had Magic, I wanted something related to it, maybe cast an awesome [Fireball], but I also didn''t want my luck to be so bad that I would end up praying at a temple all day long to get it higher. Of course, I had no idea at that time that my Luck stat was unchangeable. That being said, with that one single skill point, I picked up the skill: [Fuzzy bolt] The name was ridiculous, but it granted me access to Lightning Magic. I received two spells with it: [Lightning Bolt] and [Electrocute]. After we picked them up, a strange light enveloped us and then the God-like spoke to us one last time: ¡°Well, the first group was sent off. They are those among you who either ended up with a RIDICULOUSLY powerful skill or have very high Luck stat! The next group will be those who will be RANDOMLY placed around the planet, an lastly those who will be sent as result of Hero Summoning Rituals! Have fun my little guinea pigs... Ahem, I mean Heroes! Yes, heroes... hehe.¡± You let that one slip on purpose, didn''t you! me and probably half of the people here screamed in our minds. That being said, I was part of the Random group... The God-like transported me together with 200 other humans on a vast plains near a small human village. Despite the differences between our ages, nationalities, and even political views, we managed to get along pretty well. The most important thing we noticed was that we could understand each other, but we spoke a different language than our mother tongue. Apparently, this was our little gift from the God-like so we could properly communicate with the natives. Afterwards, a group of men from the village arrived. They were dressed in strange armors and wielding dangerous sharp weapons such as spears and swords. We were all Level 1 at that time, so we didn''t try to make a fuss or pose a danger towards them. Thus, we were invited into the village and presented to the chief as unknown individuals. We told him the truth. Thanks to that, we were helped to register ourselves as citizens and members of the village, then we were trained by the men who first greeted us, a group of retired adventurers. From my point of view, all of this was something like a tutorial. During the first week, we managed to adapt to our situation and by hunting around the village, we raised our levels, but then the problems appeared... Being so different and with such strange abilities, not all of us were cut out for the adventurer lifestyle. There were those who had abilities more useful towards simple jobs, such as working the field or being a waitress at the nearby inn. As such, after the first week, we decided to spread out. A group of twenty aimed for the city, another group decided to work in the village and then there were those like me who struggled to raise their levels before going to register at Adventurers Guild in a city. This was the Human Kingdom Ten Sword, a small one from what I heard, but rather peaceful as long as the Akutan Empire didn''t request a battle force against the Dragon Continent. To be honest, we all feared at first that once our prowess in combat was shown, we would end up recruited either as mercenaries or soldiers. Reality proved otherwise. Being transported from Earth didn''t automatically grant us unknown knowledge of martial arts and nerves of steel. Weak-minded we were back there, weak-minded we were here as well.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. At the very least we would have ended up fighting dragons as simple soldiers... Even so, the reputation of those monsters wasn''t a pleasant one. Each individual dragon was several times stronger than a typical human soldier, while their generals were monsters who could raze a country to the ground. Another big difference between Earth and this world was the existence of Slaves. Humans here saw it as their right and duty to be seen as the best of all species. In other words, non-humans were treated as something akin to... items. Unlike human slaves, they could never be set free. The same went for half-breeds. Of course, some of us didn''t enjoy this sort of behavior and mentality, but we couldn''t do anything against it. Those who tried ended up labeled as... ''problematic''. After the first month, I began hearing rumors of how some of us, earthlings, ended up being either locked up as prisoners or sold off as slaves for disturbing the local laws. Others... were killed. I heard that initially, the nobles saw us as some sort of invaders, but because we were all technically humans, we were pardoned by the kings and emperors of the human species. Inside their kingdoms and empires, we were their loyal subjects governed by the laws they dictated, but outside of them, we were told that we would be nothing... that we would be killed immediately. There was some truth to that... A lot of the creatures we found around the small village I arrived in were incredibly weak. The typical goblins and wolves who ran around the forests were between levels 1 and 20 at most. During the first month, I managed to raise myself up to level 16, but I heard rumors of some of us reaching past level 100. Of course, those were just rumors. The older adventurers laughed when they heard about this. On that note, it would be good to mention that only earthlings could easily check their own levels, everyone else had to go to a Temple and find out. Even so, they called it Power Level or Level of Power. As for the other stats, they didn''t have a clear notion of them or measured them in numbers. We, earthlings, were the only ones capable of this. Two months after we arrived in this world, I finally reached level 24, and I was able to leave the village. Not long after that, I became an Intermediary Rank Adventurer at the guild. This meant I could pick up more dangerous missions. But was I among the strongest? No... There were many others far stronger than me, even some who reached level 50. [Name]: Rezia Dellan [Species]: Human [Level]: 24 [Strength]: 82 [Speed]: 65 [Dexterity]: 70 [Magic]: 110 [Luck]: 30 [Magic Excellence]: 6% [Skills]: [Fuzzy Bolt] [Level 4]; [Windy Wind Windigo] [Not the skill I want] [Skill Points]: 0 [Stat Points]: 0 I spent ALL of my points in those three skills, but I gained a few others as well, such as cooking, mercantile skills, gardening, toilet scrubbing, and other stuff like that. Despite the impressive [Level 4] skill, my abilities didn''t grow in strength, I just gained a few more spell that consumed more than I desired. Nevertheless, I could take out a Wolf with one [Lightning Bolt]. As for the second skill, it was an ability that turned me into a walking Air Conditioner. The last one was a skill that granted me a 30% Evasion bonus for EVERY attack, even a random curse that was tossed my way. Unfortunately, it reflected my Luck. The higher the Luck, the higher the Evasion bonus. Even so, it was mighty useful in combat because it was a passive skill. I was planning on leveling it up later. Oh, the name? That one was the will of the God-like. None of us could keep our old names, but at the very least, they weren''t as bad as our skill names. Windy Wind Windigo? Seriously? Well, as far as adventures went... it didn''t work like it did in games or web novels. Problems and heroic events never popped out of nowhere, and even when they did, the knights took care of them... quickly. Saving the damsel in distress, buying a sexy slave, or anything like that was the stuff of dreams. Most of the slaves I saw were either grumpy men or old, ugly women. Cat girls, elves, or pretty princesses... there was no such thing for us. In other words... we left an ordinary world, came to a fantasy world, and ended up living ordinary lives. To make things worse, once we were strong enough, we had a high chance of being recruited and sent to the front-line to fight against the monstrous dragons. That was basically the life of each and every one of us who acted within the confines of the human laws... And as always, after a hard day of hunting outside of the city, I stopped by my favorite inn and ordered a mug of beer. ¡°I said it once, and I''ll say it again! May the one who remembered how to make beer be praised in all the Heavens!...¡± I smirked as I looked at the cold golden liquid. ¡°Yup! Although, I heard she was able to make it only thanks to her skill.¡± my adventurer friend and fellow earthling, Kyle Rohangis said that. He was younger than me with three years, but looked like a chiseled statue of Adonis. Apparently, he was a former model, but his skills in this world were those of a vanguard. Saved my life more times than I wanted to admit. ¡°Yup! It was a woman too! But I heard that in order to spread the recipe, she had to get engaged to some noble in the capital. Poor girl.¡± Zeya Paraleya let out a sigh. That name of hers always made me giggle. She was a redhead with freckles and native of the place. ¡°Aye!¡± said Bruthus Balavay, the big guy to my right. Wearing thick armor and sporting a two-handed sword on his back, this fellow was once a pro basketball player on the road to success, but a knee injury stopped him one year ago. Coming to this world allowed him to fully recover. He was also our healer... It was a weird combination. ¡°Have you heard anything of our friends across the border?¡± I asked as I carefully looked around us to see if there was anyone listening in on us. ¡°Yes.¡± Zeya replied with a quick nod. ¡°Well?¡± I asked as I awaited her reply. ¡°Apparently you were right, not all of you earthlings are on this continent. I heard that many of you landed over on the Elf Continent. Others landed on the Dwarf Mountains, and quite a few in the Relliar Forests. But I heard another strange rumor...¡± she said and nodded again. ¡°What is it?¡± asked Bruthus curiously. ¡°Well... It''s said that some of you appeared on the battlefields... on the Dragon Continent. They are making quite the performance there. They are said to be as strong as Knights of Power Level 100, but the strongest among your people are said to be the Heroes, who are over level 50 now!¡± she told us with a smile. ¡°Oh? Interesting...¡± I said as I rubbed my beard. ¡°Indeed. I''m barely level 20, level 50 is... a lot.¡± nodded Kyle in agreement. ¡°Leaving the levels aside, I wonder if maybe we were sent here to unite the species and fight against the dragons?¡± I wondered. ¡°Could be... You know, all the tales back on our world were the same. Everyone gathered to fight against monsters.¡± Kyle said and shrugged. ¡°It could explain why none of us was summoned on the Dragon Continent.¡± I said. ¡°Isn''t it more because that place represents the ultimate difficulty? Besides... there are also rumors of the Demon King''s awakening.¡± said Bruthus. ¡°Well, we''re not going to eliminate any possibility, but so far... I have yet to encounter a dragon, friendly or otherwise. Besides, you need to be at least Level 100 to be sent to the front-line.¡± I nodded. ¡°True... Let''s take it easy then! I''m sure there are others who strive to be the strongest! As for me, living the peaceful life of an adventurer is all I want! Cheers!¡± I raised my mug up high. ¡°Cheers!¡± the others joined the toast. Level 100 wasn''t impossible, but it was insane for us right now. Even with rigorous training and the potential possibility of power leveling, it would take us at least a year. At our current pace, maybe a lot more... Chapter 24: Catching up with Seryanna Six days after I left Tomeron, I found myself sitting at a table at Turos¡¯s Inn in Dertan. It was a town located to the far East in the Elmendyar Plains, right after crossing the Sparyx river. Up until yesterday, the weather was on my side, but then it started to rain. It was a real downpour, and I even heard some people saying they barely managed to cross the river. Traveling through this sort of weather was possible, but it would take too long, but most importantly, I would be forced to camp outside. Unfortunately, on the road from here to the village Pertiko wasn¡¯t even a traveler¡¯s inn or cave where I could take shelter from the rain. I could run non-stop. I had the potions, but I wasn¡¯t in the mood to exert myself like this. The past few days, I felt strange, maybe I was just a bit depressed? My mind went back and forth between what awaited me at the capital and what I left behind in Tomeron. Alkelios was part of the reason, but I was a knight, and this was something I couldn¡¯t give up on no matter what. I had a duty, a job, a mission¡­ I couldn¡¯t tell if he was worth the risk¡­ the consequences of my betrayal. I could literally lose everything¡­ I often thought whenever these questions popped in my mind. Of course, a knight in my position, someone who made an oath to protect her country and master shouldn¡¯t even think about something as preposterous as falling in love with a human man. For others, it was an aberration, but I wasn¡¯t a god, I was a dragon¡­ I was allowed to make mistakes, to think, to hope and dream, to be happy¡­ Although, thinking about it and doing something about it were two very different things, and I feared the latter. At this inn in Dertan, I found myself sitting alone and staring at the half-filled tankard of honey wine, also known as mead. Normally, I wasn¡¯t a drinker, but after leaving Tomeron, the alcohol was the only thing able to keep my head clear of questions and depressing answers. By the time I reached the capital, I would need to forget about Alkelios and restrain myself from thinking about useless things. Idiot¡­ I thought and then let out a sigh. While everyone was chatting and pouring mead down their throats, the door at the entrance was opened wide, and the fury of the storm outside rushed in. I guessed it was probably some local or unlucky adventurer, so I didn¡¯t even bother to take my eyes off my drink, but then I heard him¡­ the one person I was trying to forget¡­ the idiot who made me feel this way¡­ ¡°It¡¯s raining cats and dogs out there! ACHOOO!¡± complained Alkelios. ¡°How could it rain nekatars?¡± asked Kataryna. I gulped and squeezed the tankard in my hand. Beads of sweat were forming on my forehead. It can¡¯t be him¡­ Why are they here? How did they get here so fast? Just¡­ how? I asked myself unable to believe my own two ears. I couldn¡¯t look up at him¡­ I didn¡¯t have the courage to do so¡­ Someone pulled the chair in front of me and sat down, but my eyes were locked onto my tankard, and my whole body was stiff like a rock. My breath was trembling, but despite all of this, he didn¡¯t say a single word. He just waited there. After a very long moment, I gained the courage to slowly lift my eyes up from my drink and look at him. Alkelios was sitting right in front of me, showing me a big smile like nothing was wrong. It¡¯s really him¡­ I thought. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] After the long journey through Hell and back, we finally managed to arrive at this inn in this simple town. If I knew what sort of trouble we would end up getting ourselves into if we rode with that idiotic giant rooster, I might have suggested something a bit different, like having Kleo or Kataryna turn into a giant dragon and flying us all the way here. Less time, less effort, and at that altitude, there were certainly no bugs flying around aiming for my face. When we entered the inn, I think it was called Turos¡¯s Inn or something like that, I immediately looked around for my redhead dragoness. When I spotted her, I wanted to call out to her, but there was something wrong¡­ she wasn¡¯t looking up at us, and her fingers were clenched around the tankard in front of her. What¡¯s wrong? Is she mad? I wondered and walked over to her. Kataryna saw her and waited patiently at the bar, keeping the black-scaled one from causing a scene. A level 1296 was a lot more powerful than a level 214. As for me, I was only at level 156. I grew quite fast, especially when I got us lost in one of those mines near Permundar town¡­ Looking at her from afar, I realized I was feeling a little awkward towards approaching the redhead dragoness. It was as if I was trying to pick up a girl for the first time in my life, except I wasn¡¯t babbling, my hands were shaking, and I wasn¡¯t sweating. Still, my heart was beating quite fast in my chest, and the more I looked at her, the more I realized how beautiful she was, but maybe that was only because as an unawakened, she was still quite similar to a human. While some of the other people at the inn were wondering who we were, I ignored all of them. For me, only Seryanna was in that room, everyone else was background noise. Thus, I approached her table and calmly took a seat in front of her. With my hands on the table, a bunch of leafs in my head, and dripping wet, I had my gaze locked onto the dragoness who refused to look up at me. Now, why are you acting like this, Seryanna? I wondered. I had no idea, but I planned on waiting until she made the first move. It didn¡¯t take long, and she eventually raised her head to look at me. ¡°Yo!¡± I said with a smile and raising a hand up. ¡°Al-Alkelios?¡± she asked with a trembling voice. ¡°That¡¯s me.¡± I nodded. ¡°How?¡± she asked shaking her head in disbelief. ¡°You want the long or short version of the story?¡± I asked tilting my head to the left and raising an eyebrow. She glared at me. ¡°Well, what do you want to know?¡± I asked with a shrug. Seryanna remained quiet for a moment and then asked ¡°When did you leave?¡± ¡°Three days ago right after Brekkar told us you were heading off to the capital without even so much as saying a good-bye.¡± I grinned. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to say good-bye.¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because I didn¡¯t believe¡­¡± she stopped and looked down at her drink. There was a feeling of insecurity around her. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Yes?¡± I pushed. ¡°I didn¡¯t believe you would let me go¡­¡± she said. ¡°Why would I do that? It¡¯s not like we are married or anything.¡± I shrugged unknowingly of the blunder I let slip with a smile. She furrowed her brow and clenched her fingers around the tankard. ¡°Yes¡­ you are right¡­ there¡¯s nothing between us.¡± she said, but I didn¡¯t catch on what she meant by those words. ¡°Seryanna, there¡¯s no need to worry about me.¡± I said with a smile and gently touched her hand. ¡°You saved me from the Seculiar Forest, we even went and defeated the local bandits. We saved your grandfather too, so there¡¯s a bit of history there. If you¡¯re having any troubles or anything, you can rely on me as well.¡± I said, but like a fool who didn¡¯t know how to talk with a woman or understand what she was feeling at the moment, I said all the wrong things I could have possibly said. I¡¯m an idiot¡­ I should have just confessed and said I came all the way over here because of you¡­ I¡¯m such a big idiot¡­ I thought while unable to remove the kind smile from my lips. Glaring back at me, Seryanna grabbed her tankard and splashed it on my face. ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯m a knight, not some damsel in distress! I can handle myself!¡± she growled and then left the table. I blinked two times confused. ¡°Huh? What? Why?¡± I asked while I stared blankly at the chair in front of me. [Kataryna¡¯s point of view] When we entered the inn, I was soaking wet. My clothes were clinging to me, and I had a branch or two stuck in my hair. The little brat, Kleo, wasn¡¯t doing any better either, but thanks to her wearing ONLY cloth, she ended up showing more of her forms than she wanted to, especially with the way they clung to her body. Actually, scratch that! This little brat was a pervert who wouldn¡¯t shut up about letting Alkelios ¡®sleep¡¯ with either her or me¡­ Yes, I got to know just where her mind was going most of the times, and so far, I had yet to see it jump out of the gutter. While Alkelios walked over to the dragoness, I made sure the brat wasn¡¯t running there to ruin the mood, so I went to the bar and ordered some hot wine. ¡°Sure thing!¡± said the innkeeper. ¡°Thanks¡­¡± I said as I left two coppers on the table. ¡°So where are you from? Not many dare to brave this sort of weather.¡± he pointed at the door. ¡°We¡¯re from Tomeron, and yes, you could say that.¡± I nodded. To be frank, I was surprised when Alkelios pulled out of thin air a Royal Rooster. It was a big bird about four meters tall, with lustrous dark-red tail feathers, a red crest leaning backwards, powerful legs, and the attitude of someone working directly under the king. I thought I was dreaming. That bird was known not to listen to anyone unless they were of royal blood. Even Kleo asked him if he wasn¡¯t a foreign prince or something. He claimed he wasn¡¯t. Apparently, the bird was summoned there thanks to his spell. The moment we got on its back, the bird started running ten times faster than a Khosinni, and it didn¡¯t care what it was hitting. Alkelios tried to control it, but as expected, it was hard for him to do so. For the first two hours, we fought against trees or rather their slapping branches. We were cutting them faster than a royal gardener could. Afterwards, we stopped when we reached Andromeda. The breaks were so powerful and sudden that all of us were sent flying off the mount and into the wall. I was lucky I spread my wings in time and avoided the impact. Thinking back at the moment, I realized just how lucky the human was. Instead of hitting the rock wall like a certain necromancer dragoness did, he smashed through a weak point and landed right into the full hot tub of the commander dragoness stationed there. While he survived the impact with relative ease, the slap he received from the naked dragoness was powerful enough to send him flying into the other side of the room. We got scolded by the commander there for almost one hour and then we had to fix the wall by hand. I have no idea why I didn¡¯t just make her eat the dust at her feet. How dare she make a dragon who achieved Awakened Breakthrough do something like that?! Either way, we had a quick meal at the inn and then we continued our journey. As for the Royal Rooster, it was dismissed the moment the commander knocked out Alkelios with a slap, so nobody saw it. He had to summon it again outside of the city. Without any delay, we did a repeat of the earlier battle against the slapping tree branches. The human managed to get a better control of the beast, but he was still rusty with it. Me and Kleo were sort of wondering to ourselves why wasn¡¯t he asking us to change into our bigger forms and fly us out of there. I could literally fly without end for a couple of days at best. Catching up with Seryanna in three days or so would have been entirely possible, but I had to admit, the Royal Rooster was very fast. No wonder it was called the fastest mount alive. ¡°Any interesting tales you wish to share?¡± asked the innkeeper. He was mostly looking for gossip he could tell to his various other customers. Basically, something with which he could start or slip into a conversation. ¡°Maybe?¡± I replied and took a healthy gulp from my mug of hot wine. The hot drink felt so nice as I poured it down my dry throat. It was simply amazing! As for those stories, I didn¡¯t wish to tell him anything. There was a chance he could ask more questions than I wished to answer or knew how to answer. It still eluded me as to why Alkelios had such mysterious skills, but if there was one person at this inn who knew about his little secret, that could only be Seryanna, the reason why we ran all the way here at max speed. Thanks to him being unable to steer the Royal Rooster properly, we ended up on the other side of the Permundar mountain, the one from which all the residents in the town wearing its name mined all sort of minerals and jewels. This time, I was ready for the sudden stop and held tight to the mount¡¯s saddle. Alkelios was sent flying into a tree and Kleo into a rock. The impact wasn¡¯t powerful enough to kill them, but they ended up a bit bruised. The black-scaled dragoness was immediately complaining. That reminded me of an old children¡¯s game going something like this: Greg! Greg! Greg of the jungle! Strong as he can be! Dragon Greg watch out for that¡­ Oooh¡­ TREE! It was a fun a game in which we had to jump out of a tree and land safely on the ground. If one of us stumbled or landed last, they ended up being called Dragon Greg until the entire day. Once Alkelios and Kleo recovered, I jumped off the Royal Rooster, which was shortly after dismissed. Only that mountain was left between us and Permundar town. We could have gone around it, but Alkelios refused and pointed at an abandoned mine. With his luck, he knew it was the way through. The only problem with this option was the fact that he forgot to wish for anything before entering. We ended up getting lost in a maze filled with bats and giant spiders until we found a mine cart. We hopped in and using my strength, I gave us a decent boost. The mine cart sent us straight towards a gaping chasm, where the line ended. I took off immediately and grabbed the two with me, leaving the cart to meet its fate as a crushed pancake at the bottom of the chasm. I flew us over and from there, we walked on foot. This time, Alkelios wished for us to quickly find a way out, and we did. Once out, we camped outside and spent the night there. The human was very cuddly, but the black-scaled brat bit my tail in her sleep. I was this close to crushing her face into the ground out of reflex. Morning came with a rude awakening from a bunch of wolves. For me, it was dinner time, but right after we killed them, a bunch of monsters appeared out of nowhere. We fought for an hour until all of them were gone. I gained a lot more power than I should have for those kills. It felt like we killed five times more. Either way, it was a good experience, so Alkelios summoned the rooster again and we left without collecting anything from the monsters. On our way, we encountered a bunch more, so we fought them off as best as we could. Thanks to those attacks and the branches blocking our sight, we didn¡¯t see the river coming, and the stupid bird walked us right off a cliff. We all landed in the water before I had a chance to extend my wings. To make it worse, the bird kept running until we were out of there. By the end, all of us were spitting out water, and I even had a fish who slipped between my breasts. That was a tad bit embarrassing, I have to admit. After pulling that stupid fish out, I ate it without mercy. From there, we traveled a bit more until we reached the second river. We stopped and made camp on the shore. For dinner, we had fish, and no monsters decided to bother us that night. The following day, we got up as soon as the sun was up in the sky. We didn¡¯t even bother with cleaning ourselves up. I had leafs and dirt stuck in all the nooks and crannies of my armor. In theory, we were supposed to follow the road, but thanks to Alkelios¡¯ [Dragon Tamer] tracking ability and his inability to control the Royal Rooster, we ended up skipping Permundar and Ihtyar completely. In the end we reached Dertan all soaking wet, dirty, tired, bruised, and above all hungry. As I finished recounting our journey here, I heard a splash and turned my head to see Seryanna stomping out of there furiously. The human was now covered in mead¡­ Did something happen? I wondered and then drank the rest of my wine. ¡°Go and speak with him, Kleo. I¡¯ll go see what our knight has to say about that.¡± I untied my tail around the brat¡¯s neck and left calmly after the dragoness. ¡°Why you! Why should I?¡± she glared back at me. ¡°Cause I can punch you all the way back to Tomeron.¡± I squinted my eyes at the brat. ¡°Good point!¡± she nodded and then went to sit at the same table as Alkelios. One of the branches in my hair was getting annoying, so I pulled it out and left it on a nearby table. Finding Seryanna¡¯s room was going to be easy, I just had to knock on all the doors until I found her. The oldest and best strategy in the book. _________ Note from the author: Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! Chapter 25: A kiss under the rain [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] The door behind me was slammed shut, the key turned, locking it, and I dropped on my knees on the floor. Tears welled up in my eyes, the result of my emotions bursting out like that. I was angry, frustrated, and mad at that idiotic human! Of all the things he could have said, those were the only words I didn¡¯t wish to hear! Why couldn¡¯t he have said that he came all this way for me?! I shouted in my mind as I clenched my fists, nearly poking holes in my palms with my nails. At least, I left before everyone else saw me crying. As a knight, I had to always keep my chin up, standing strong and proud in front of anyone and anything. Nothing was supposed to move me, to disturb my flow, yet here I was, crying because of some words spoken by a stupid human. I was a disgrace¡­ Knock! Knock! ¡°Who is it?¡± I asked after wiping my tears. ¡°Not Alkelios.¡± a woman replied. I recognized her voice immediately. ¡°Kataryna?¡± ¡°Yes. Open up. I¡¯m alone. The moron is downstairs with your sister.¡± she told me. ¡°How can I trust you speak the truth?¡± I asked while I got up from the floor. ¡°Really, girl? Open up before I bust this door open and make you eat your own tail!¡± she threatened me. With a gulp, I turned the key in the hole and pressed on the handle. The door squeaked, and I peaked outside. There, I saw the silver-scaled dragoness looking back at me with a raised eyebrow and her arms crossed at her chest. ¡°Are you going to let me in, or what?¡± she asked. I nodded and then moved out of her way. After she entered, I locked the door and looked back at her. ¡°The boy really made you cry, didn¡¯t he?¡± she smirked. ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡± I glared, unwilling to admit the truth. ¡°Your eyes are red and tearing up as we speak.¡± she pointed out. I wiped my tears, trying to get rid of the proof, but what was the use? They didn¡¯t stop and kept flowing one after another. With my face red and cheeks wet, I gave up and sat down on the bed. Kataryna took a seat next to me, but she didn¡¯t say a word, she remained quiet and looked out the window. ¡°How was the journey?¡± I asked while trying hard not to let go of a single whimper. ¡°Pretty fun. We ended up traveling on top of a Royal Rooster instead of flying all the way over here. We got lost in an abandoned mine, almost drowned in the river, got chased by monsters. You know, the usual.¡± she shrugged, but there was nothing usual about this adventure of theirs. Most adventurers or travelers would usually take the safe route, traveling on paths most of us knew of. Monsters usually avoided them, and bandits had a harder time picking a suitable prey. For me, it was a rather boring journey without any kind of attackers. I was well prepared just in case, but from the dragoness¡¯ words, there was only one part that caught my curiosity. ¡°Royal Rooster?¡± I asked. Even I knew the name of that mount. My master had one as well, and it was terrifyingly possessive of her as well as strong and proud. ¡°Yes, he summoned one using his skill. It was quite strange, indeed.¡± she nodded. ¡°His skill?¡± I then remembered the fact that Alkelios was a human brought here from another world by a god. If I hadn¡¯t already witnessed his skills and Luck at first hand, I might have thought of him as a simple madman, but too many things about him didn¡¯t add up when I was comparing him with the humans from my grandfather¡¯s tales. One of them was the fact that he found me attractive. From what I was told, humans instinctively despised all other species except themselves, even more so when it comes to the enemies of their kingdoms. Alkelios never showed hate or despise towards me, it was actually the opposite, yet that was more of a reason why I couldn¡¯t understand why he said those words to me. Did he change his mind after we rescued Kleo? I wondered while looking down at the floor. ¡°He is the strangest and the most interesting human I have ever met!¡± said Kataryna with a grin. ¡°For me, he is the only human I have ever met¡­¡± I said with a low voice. ¡°Hm?¡± I let out a sigh and looked back at the silver-scaled dragoness. ¡°Did you mean it when you said those words?¡± I asked, but there was a tremble in my voice. ¡°What words?¡± she tilted her head to the left, and her tail tip waved left and right like an upside down pendulum. ¡°A-About wishing to mate with him and have his egg?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded without showing even the slightest doubt about it. ¡°Is that so¡­¡± I let out another sigh and looked down. ¡°Oh? Do you like him? You do, don¡¯t you?¡± the dragoness smirked. ¡°I-I¡­¡± blushing, I turned my head away. I was embarrassed and even though I knew there was no way to hide it anymore, I still couldn¡¯t say those words. ¡°My poor child, you don¡¯t have to worry about me!¡± she patted me on the head. ¡°What do you mean? You clearly said that you wanted to m-mate with him!¡± I retorted and glared at her. ¡°You are blushing like a young girl after being confessed to by the boy she likes.¡± Kataryna showed me a big, wide, grin. I fell right into her trap. ¡°Um¡­¡± I looked down embarrassed and closed my eyes. ¡°As I said, I only want him to give me a child, I don¡¯t wish to be his lover. I think you are better suited for that spot.¡± she said as she patted me on the shoulder. ¡°Isn¡¯t¡­ Isn¡¯t that cheating?¡± I asked and slowly peeked at her. ¡°For humans maybe.¡± she shrugged. ¡°Why isn¡¯t it the same for us?¡± I questioned her. The dragoness grinned and then all of a sudden pushed me back on the bed, laying on top of me and looking straight into my eyes. ¡°Because we are dragons, foolish child, and I have achieved Awakened Breakthrough. Once you reach this point, you realize that all of your past beliefs aren¡¯t the same anymore. There¡¯s no wrong in me wishing to carry the child of a man I found worthy. Besides, I doubt there will ever be another opportunity for me for a very very very long time¡­ However, while I only get one part of him, you get the rest and more. But for me, it¡¯s enough because I don¡¯t wish for anymore. If the gods have other plans for me, only time will tell.¡± she shrugged. I listened to her words carefully. The gaze in her eyes was that of a woman who spoke the truth and of someone who wasn¡¯t afraid to assume the path they have chosen. After all, carrying the egg of a man who wasn¡¯t even her mate¡¯s was not something any woman could agree to with such an ease and unwavering determination. At the same time, I was feeling as though if I let her do this, I would lose Alkelios for good. What if he finds her better than me? She is already an Awakened¡­ She is more beautiful and stronger than me. I am a knight, so I¡¯m not even sure if I will ever be together with him. I began to think, but every word that flowed through my mind brought a sharp pain to my heart. ¡°Why don¡¯t you want him as your mate?¡± I asked and gulped. A soft smile appeared on the tips of her lips, and she looked at me with caring eyes for a rather long moment before answering. ¡°Because I¡¯m not in his heart the same way you are. With me, he¡¯s only a friend, and I respect that. Other men wouldn¡¯t have hesitated to jump into my arms, but not him¡­ Even throughout this entire journey, he never stopped talking or thinking about you. We all slept together, but he never touched me like he wished to touch you¡­¡± she then closed her eyes for a moment ¡°Yet, for me,¡­ it¡¯s not painful to see him like this.¡± she opened her eyes ¡°On the contrary, I sort of admire this side of him¡­ As I said, few men can do it. As for why I wish him to offer me an egg, well¡­ it¡¯s just that I never had a family before, and I don¡¯t think I will have the chance any time too soon. That¡¯s why I can only ask him as a friend to help me out. And you¡­ you don¡¯t see him as just a friend. You don¡¯t want to be just a friend to him, you want more.¡± she smiled. Even though I didn¡¯t want to admit it, I knew she was telling the truth about me. I didn¡¯t want to be just friends with him, but there were so many things working against us, so many shadows cast down upon us and threatening to break the little bit of rope tying us together. I was afraid of how we might end up, of where this path would lead us, and of our imminent breakup. Wouldn¡¯t that be too painful for me? But then again, Kataryna only wants him to offer her an egg, while I could have him entirely even if it¡¯s going to be just for a little while. But can I do it? I thought while I looked in the dragoness¡¯ eyes. ¡°Yes, I want more¡­ but how can I tell him this?¡± I closed my eyes and let go of a few tears. If she was right, then the words he said to me were because he didn¡¯t know how I felt. Basically, he stumbled in his own feelings and pulled the wrong strings. ¡°Well¡­¡± she pulled back, but just then, there was a loud crack heard coming from the door. ¡°Oops! Erm¡­ I didn¡¯t mean to¡­ I didn¡¯t know you and Kataryna are like this¡­ I mean¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­ And for the door¡­ Good bye.¡± Alkelios said flustered as he let go of the broken knob and dashed away. ¡°What¡¯s he on about?¡± asked the silver-scaled dragoness a bit confused. Looking back, we both noticed at the same time the weird position we were in. That idiot misunderstood! No, wait! HOW can he misunderstand something like this in the first place?! I screamed in my mind while blushing strongly. ¡°Well, I do swing that way from time to time. A threesome isn¡¯t so bad with the right dragons, you know?¡± Kataryna winked at me. ¡°Please stop with the dirty jokes!¡± I pushed her off me and then ran after Alkelios. I had to stop that idiot. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] Letting out a long, depressed sigh, I bumped my head on the table. The mead was sticky, but I was too annoyed to go wash it off now. Well, one thing was clear, I made a mistake, and my one and only redhead dragoness ran off from me¡­ again. ¡°I¡¯m an idiot¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°Well, I usually don¡¯t see my sister that mad unless I do something very very stupid. Like stealing her panties and using them as a flag to conquer unknown lands.¡± the black-scaled dragoness said as she sat down in front of me. She wore a black, slightly ripped, and completely drenched Gothic Lolita dress similar to the armors of the Summoner class in the MMORPG I used play back on Earth. Well, my daily quests were probably expired by now, and so was my 7 days boost. I let out another sigh as I remembered that I haven¡¯t touched a computer in a month now. Well, there was no way to get an internet connection in the middle of a dragon kingdom on another planet in another Universe¡­ right? ¡°Hello! Are you listening to me?¡± Kleo poked my cheek. Chomp! I bit her. ¡°HYAN! H-Hey! W-What are you doing?!¡± she screamed and quickly pulled back her hand. ¡°Leave me alone¡­¡± I grumbled. ¡°No!¡± she replied shaking her head. ¡°Why?¡± I asked as I turned my head away. ¡°Because you don¡¯t look too¡­ energetic?¡± ¡°I ran out of batteries¡­ Go buy me some. There¡¯s a shop on the other side of the planet.¡± I grumbled. ¡°I don¡¯t know what those are, but I¡¯m pretty certain I can¡¯t use them for anything perverted. Also! Why are you trying to get rid of your friend like that?! You are mean!¡± she said grinding and twisting her fist on my head. ¡°Ouch! Stop that!¡± I said slapping her hand away and rubbing the sore spot. She showed me a big grin. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°What?¡± I asked her. ¡°Huhuhu! You really like my sister, don¡¯t you?!¡± she showed me a mischievous smirk. ¡°Nooo¡­ yes.¡± I let out a defeated sigh. ¡°So? Why can¡¯t you just tell her that?¡± she shrugged. ¡°Erm¡­ If I wasn¡¯t thinking of it seriously, I could. I would just take it as a joke, a game, but I can¡¯t do that.¡± I slumped back on my chair. ¡°So to be clear, you are just afraid to say THOSE words?¡± she asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Yeah¡­ I mean, what if she says no?¡± I asked. ¡°Weren¡¯t you in this exact same situation since you met her? What¡¯s with the drama?¡± ¡°Erm¡­¡± I scratched the back of my head. I technically ran all the way over here because I wanted to be together with her. I knew I held more feelings towards her than I did for anyone else at the moment. Even so, I didn¡¯t feel ready for this step. There was also the matter of our species¡­ Could I make her happy? Would I be able to satisfy her? And not in that kind of way¡­ well, maybe in that kind of way too. ¡°What if I¡¯m not the one?¡± I asked. ¡°Does it matter?¡± she shrugged. ¡°It does¡­ doesn¡¯t it?¡± I tilted my head. Putting a foot on the table and glaring at me like a yakuza at a bar, she asked me ¡°Are you an idiot? How will you ever know if she¡¯s the one or not if you don¡¯t even have the guts to go and try?¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°NO BUTS!¡± she cut me off, showed me her palm, and shook her head. ¡°Listen! When you feel that you like someone, you go with it, you don¡¯t run away from them. You go and confess! And no matter what happens, you know that you at least tried. She might not be the one, or you might end up in a two-days relationship. It doesn¡¯t matter! You at least tried, and you can move on!¡± she said proudly and smirked. ¡°But she¡¯s a knight.¡± I added. ¡°Yeah, that might make things complicated, but¡­¡± she raised a finger up ¡°this didn¡¯t stop you until now to flirt with her. Tsk! Tsk!¡± she shook her head left and right. I looked down and sighed. Yes¡­ it didn¡¯t stop me¡­ so why am I hesitating now? I wondered. Even though it was Kleo the prankster who was lecturing me about love, her words were indeed true, and deep inside, I agreed with them. Maybe I was only a fool who looked at things from the point of view of fear rather than simply letting everything be as I did until then. Am I afraid to lose Seryanna? Even though she¡¯s not a human, I¡¯m afraid to lose her? I thought and looked at the empty tankard she dumped on me. ¡°Listen¡­¡± Kleo said, and I raised my eyes up ¡°I think you are just being a bit of a coward now. So listen to me and go to her now and confess! Worst-case scenario, you get Kataryna. She¡¯s already into you.¡± she grinned. I only raised an eyebrow at her last remark. The age difference was a bit too much for me to handle it right now. Then again¡­ Seryanna was an ancient granny by human standards too. ¡°Ugh¡­ yeah¡­ Nothing to lose. Maybe I am just being a coward.¡± I nodded and got up from the table. ¡°Two silvers he gets dumped.¡± said one of the dragons who overheard us. ¡°Oh? Bets? I¡¯m betting five!¡± said Kleo. ¡°Why are you betting against me?!¡± I asked the black-scaled dragoness. ¡°Ehehe!¡± she merely laughed and rubbed the back of her head. Letting out a sigh, I turned around and made my way to the bar. Is this really going to be alright? I wondered. ¡°Excuse me, can you¡­¡± I tried to ask the bartender. ¡°Third room on the right. Go get her, kid. I¡¯m betting two silvers on you!¡± he grinned. ¡°You too, huh?¡± I sighed and went up. I guess, one way or another, people found something interesting to do when everyone was bored as hell thanks to the weather. Should I have placed a bet as well? I wondered as I climbed the stairs. Once I was in front of the door, I took a deep breath and turned the knob. Unfortunately, I forgot about my strength and ripped it right out of the door. ¡°Oops!¡± I said and then noticed Kataryna laying on top of Seryanna on the bed. ¡°Erm¡­ I didn¡¯t mean to¡­¡± I took a step back as I began to mumble something. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you and Kataryna are like this¡­ I mean¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­ And for the door¡­ Good bye.¡± I dropped the knob and ran away. Why am I running? What the heck?! I thought as I climbed down and flew past Kleo. ¡°What happened? Where are you going?¡± she asked from behind, but I just went out the door. It was still raining and my mind was going left and right, up and down, in circles, everywhere. I honestly didn¡¯t know what to think, and as a man, I wanted to punch myself in the face for the stunt I just pulled. Why did I run? Damn it! I shouted in my mind as I stopped outside of the town, breathing hard and letting the rain soak me to the bone. The sky was split apart by a lightning, and a loud thunder soon followed. I clenched my jaws and wondered if I was crying, but this was really stupid. Why the hell do I feel like I lost? What the heck? I¡¯m a man! I tried to force myself not to feel like a piece of crap, but even I didn¡¯t know why I felt like that. Normally, wasn¡¯t the girl supposed to be the one to run away, and I to follow her? That was the normal way of how things worked! I could have gotten mad at her or something, not run away like this! ¡°Crap¡­¡± I cursed and punched the tree. It broke like a toothpick and fell down. ¡°Alkelios!¡± Seryanna called out. I didn¡¯t turn around. I didn¡¯t answer. Why is she here? I wondered. ¡°It wasn¡¯t what it looked like! I swear! Me and Kataryna aren¡¯t like that¡­¡± she said. Oh god, please just kill me now¡­ Actually, I have weird luck, so cancel that and please don¡¯t? I thought and then let out a sigh. I closed my eyes and let a moment pass as I cleared my mind of all the unnecessary thoughts gathered in my skull. Without a care, I turned around and looked straight into her eyes. Taking a deep breath, I confessed ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°What?¡± she asked with big eyes. ¡°I love you.¡± I said it again and blushed. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ erm¡­ I don¡¯t know what to say¡­¡± she avoided my gaze and looked down. I let out a sigh and looked up. ¡°Today¡¯s been a real roller-coaster ride.¡± ¡°A what?¡± she asked confused. ¡°Emotions going up and down, left and right¡­ It was a mess; a strange, barely understandable mess. I probably made a fool of myself by running off like that and even thinking you and Kataryna are an item already¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°Me and Kataryna aren¡¯t like that!¡± she retorted strongly. ¡°Yeah, I know¡­ It was only me thinking stupid things¡­¡± I laughed, but maybe I was crying too? I couldn¡¯t tell, it was raining too hard. ¡°Then your words just now?¡± she asked a bit quietly. ¡°They are the truth¡­ I didn¡¯t come all this way just to tell you that we are friends. Yes, we are friends, but I came all this way because I didn¡¯t want to let you go. Because maybe, somewhere deep inside, I want to be with you.¡± I answered her truthfully. Seryanna looked at me without sketching a single gesture. Thanks to the rain, I couldn¡¯t even tell if she was crying or not. All this time, the sky kept getting lit up by lightnings now and then, while the ensuing thunders tried to cover our voices. ¡°But I¡¯m a dragon.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m a human.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a knight.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m technically a hero.¡± I smiled. ¡°If my master tells me to choose between you and the kingdom¡­ I¡­¡± she stopped herself and clenched a fist at her chest. ¡°You will do the right thing.¡± but what I wanted to say was ¡®You will choose me.¡¯ ¡°Alkelios¡­ I¡­¡± she approached me and stopped when she was just a step away from me. ¡°Seryanna¡­¡± ¡°If we can be together¡­ I want us to be together. I love you too¡­¡± she told me with a soft smile. In reply to her words, I stepped forward and embraced her. Our kiss was the most pleasant one I had in my entire and rather short life. The rain wasn¡¯t calming down at all, and the skies kept rumbling above us. It wasn¡¯t exactly the most romantic place we could be, but that kiss was simply divine. It made everything around us seem insignificant, including the downpour, which washed away all the fear and worries from our hearts. [Kataryna¡¯s point of view] After Seryanna rushed out, I got up from the bed and looked at the broken door. ¡°I¡¯m not paying for this.¡± I muttered and went down. ¡°Hey! Hey! What happened?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Long story short, the idiot thought me and the redhead were together.¡± I told her. ¡°What?! You and sis were in a relationship? Why didn¡¯t you call me?!¡± she complained. I raised an eyebrow and looked at her dumbfounded. ¡°Seriously, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± I asked. ¡°Nothing¡­ I¡¯m a cute, normal dragoness. Tehe!¡± she poked her tongue out. ¡°In what kingdom?!¡± I retorted. ¡°Anyway, are you going to be for or against Alkelios? Huhu! Everyone placed a bet already!¡± she grinned. Looking around, I saw the other people here smirking. ¡°Alright, 20 gold coins on Alkelios winning Seryanna¡¯s heart.¡± I smirked. ¡°What?¡± Kleo blinked surprised. ¡°No point pulling back now.¡± I grinned. ¡°Hey! Hey! Not fair! That¡¯s too much!¡± she complained. ¡°Fine¡­ 5 silver coins then.¡± I told her. ¡°Huhu! That¡¯s much better! Now all bets are closed!¡± she grinned. Well, I already knew what was going to happen, there was no point in me betting against Alkelios. If the human didn¡¯t say or do something incredibly stupid, then there was no way for them not even try to be in a relationship. Then again, the threesome idea still stuck around in my head for a while. Maybe we should actually give it a try? I wondered as I sat down in front of the bar and paid for a drink. Alkelios and Seryanna would return soaking wet and holding hands. I won a hefty sum, which I used to pay for more drinks. The boy paid for the door he broke, and it was repaired by the time dinner was ready. Still, some of the dragons there congratulated Alkelios, but if they knew he was a human, things might have been a bit differently. Even Seryanna looked like one with all of that armor on her. After we ate, we decided to call it a night, but due to the lack of renting space, we all got crammed up in the same room. The two lovers slept together in the bed, while me and Kleo used our outdoor camping bags. ________ Note from the author: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! ::) Here''s a small drawing of the two: Chapter 26: Pertiko and the Paladins [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] With the light of the sun grazing my skin, I opened my eyes and cast my gaze upon the sleeping human holding me in his arms. A smile appeared on my lips when I moved closer to him, and he tightened his embrace around me. If I had a tail, I would have wrapped it around him, but since I didn¡¯t, I resumed only to playing with his hair. Alkelios was sleeping peacefully, and I felt strangely relaxed and happy to wake up like this, in his arms. There was a small flutter in my heart, and I couldn¡¯t stop smiling. This sort of feeling was a first for me, and I liked it! I wanted to wake up like this every day for the rest of my life! But he¡¯s a human¡­ so maybe only another 60 years at best? I thought as I gave him a kiss on the forehead. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] I woke up to the sweet fragrance of my redhead dragoness. I holding her in my arms, nuzzling up to her chest, and she wasn¡¯t pulling back, meaning that yesterday wasn¡¯t a dream or an illusion. It really did happen, I confessed to her and she to me. We became a couple, and now I was holding her in my arms. Our relationship was still at the beginning, so I wasn¡¯t trying to rush it by jumping in her pants already, although my thoughts steered in that direction several times. I couldn¡¯t help it, she was beautiful, and I was attracted to more than just her captivating dark-brown eyes and red hair. I was a man even if I was only 18 years old. When I opened my eyes, I saw her lips, and I moved in to capture them. The kiss was gentle and soft, but the moan she let out was very cute. I gave her another kiss, and my right hand moved slowly on her back, my fingers searching for those sensitive hidden scales of hers. ¡°Hm?¡± a certain dragoness showed me a big, wide smirk. Before I had the chance to make another move on Seryanna, I saw Kataryna looking at us like a spectator at the movies. ¡°Ehehe¡­ Good morning.¡± I said with an awkward smile. ¡°Good morning, Alkelios. Please don¡¯t stop because of me, it¡¯s getting interesting.¡± she said. ¡°Good morning¡­¡± Seryanna said with her face red from the embarrassment. ¡°Mou! You ruined everything!¡± Kleo poked the silver dragoness in the cheek. ¡°Ow! Stop it!¡± she swatted her hand. ¡°What are you two doing?¡± asked Seryanna as she glared back at them. ¡°Nothing, sister! Nothing at all!¡± Kleo smiled and pulled back. ¡°We were staring at you two love birds.¡± I had a feeling Kataryna dumped all of her skill points into her bluntness instead of her subtility skill. ¡°Jealous?¡± the redhead asked with a grin. ¡°Nope! I¡¯m just waiting for the right time to strike.¡± she shook her head and then pulled back. ¡°We¡¯ll be downstairs. Don¡¯t break the bed!¡± Kleo shouted as she walked out of the room. After the two left, we both let out a sigh. ¡°Sorry¡­¡± said Seryanna. ¡°What for?¡± I asked and pulled her closer into my embrace. ¡°My sister being a jerk¡­ She wasn¡¯t always like this¡­¡± she looked away. ¡°Something happened, didn¡¯t it?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, but let¡¯s forget about that¡­ Should we¡­ change?¡± she asked and looked down a bit embarrassed. Seryanna was wearing a rather sexy nightgown. It covered everything, but it did nothing to hide her sensual forms. I looked down and then smirked. With a hand around her waist, I pulled her over me and then gave her a big kiss. ¡°Let them wait a bit, besides, I actually enjoy being close to you and holding you without fearing of being splattered on the floor.¡± I laughed. ¡°Me too¡­¡± she said with a blush and then kissed me again. A little while later, after we had our breakfast, we packed our things and left the town of Dertan. With a clear sky above us, it looked almost as though the only purpose for that rain was to keep Seryanna here until we reached her. My 100 Luck was probably to blame for this, and I sincerely apologized in my mind to anyone who met any sort of bad luck during this time. Surprisingly though, when I suggest to use my [Speedy Rooster] skill and summon Gragh¡¯jaggar to take us to our next town, I was outvoted by all three dragonesses. I honestly didn¡¯t see what was wrong with this mount. It belonged to the Royal Rooster species, and we all had a fun time riding it. The alternative to Gragh¡¯jaggar was the Khosinni. We rented two of them. One was for me and Seryanna and the other for Kataryna and Kleo. The beasts were big enough to carry our bags too, but one of us had a ¡®Purse¡¯ ring, so we didn¡¯t need to. Six hours later, we stopped to let the Khosinni rest, and we grabbed a bite to eat. There was no reason to start the fire because we didn¡¯t plan on cooking or roasting any meat. We had a bunch of cheese, some vegetables, and smoked sausages. It was more than enough to fill our bellies until we arrived in Pertiko. Two hours later, we packed up and continued our journey. At our current speed, we would arrive in the village by nightfall, so there was absolutely no reason for us to camp out in the middle of the plains. Technically speaking, it would have taken us at least two days if we traveled with normal horses, not these six-legged monstrosities. To be fair, if we traveled by foot, it would have taken us more than three or four days. The mounts on this continent were very fast and powerful, but since I didn¡¯t have the chance to visit any of the other continents, I could only presume they were among the best. Anyway, I had nothing to complain about because Seryanna was guiding the Khosinni, and I was sitting in the back, enjoying the scenery. Both Dertan town and Pertiko village were located in the Elmendyar Plains, which spread as far and wide if not more than the B?r?gan Plain. It was beautiful, but probably far better maintained by the dragons. So far, I had yet to see fields of corn and grain spreading as far as the eyes could see; tall grass didn¡¯t count. Given enough time, the dragons could probably clear out the monsters around here and start cultivating this steppe plain. Looking up at the sky, I could see a couple of dark clouds gathering ahead of us, but it didn¡¯t smell of rain yet. Maybe they were the remnants of yesterday¡¯s storm? Either way, we would get to the village before we ended up drenched by the rain. ¡°I can see the village!¡± announced Kataryna, who was riding at about ten meters ahead of us. ¡°Erm¡­ is it supposed to be on fire?¡± I asked after I squinted my eyes at the horizon. ¡°No, but I hope it¡¯s not a bandit raid.¡± said Seryanna. ¡°Maybe someone tried to cook and burned his house down?¡± I shrugged. ¡°Even so, I really doubt there¡¯s no one there who knows a water spell. No, this fire was left to burn.¡± said Seryanna shaking her head. She was right though. In a society based on magic with children playing ¡®catch the fireball¡¯ in the middle of the street, it was impossible for someone around them not to know how to put out the fire. Even if they didn¡¯t have a water spell user, they could just dump a pile of dirt on top of it and get it over with. Yes, it would have been messier, but also a good alternative. If I remember right, water isn¡¯t the best thing to use to put out a fire because it evaporates and turns into hydrogen and oxygen, basically fuel. Something with a gelatinous consistency is far better. At least, that was what certain articles on the net said. I thought as I remembered when they were trying to put out the fire on Brekkar¡¯s mansion. Back then, they used spells that didn¡¯t allow the water to evaporate so easily. It stayed there until the flames died out. At least, some of them did, the others just poured down the Niagara Falls and hoped for the best. I would have used sand. Looking from afar, the village of Pertiko was rather small, spanning only up to a quarter of Dertan¡¯s whole surface and maybe half of Tomeron¡¯s. The biggest building there was probably the temple, and it most certainly didn¡¯t have a Guild Hall. Speaking of which, I was determined to get my registration as an adventurer as soon as I reached the capital. My only concern was whether or not it would reveal the fact that I was a human. Getting surrounded by an angry mob of fire-breathing dragons wasn¡¯t my idea of a cozy welcoming party. I was expecting to see a wall surrounding the village, but there was no such thing. At best, only a few houses had a big fence around them, but that was it. Maybe the monsters here were weaker than those in the forest? Tomeron was rather close to the Seculiar Forest, which was regarded as dangerous even by a certain God-like entity. A few minutes later, we arrived at the entrance. Two guards greeted us with their spears pointed at us. Both of them wore thick leather armors, a rather simple defense when compared to Seryanna¡¯s shiny steel enchanted armor. In terms of looks, one was a blue-scale, the other was a green-scale, and both had anthropomorphic characteristics, but with human-like faces instead of reptilian ones. ¡°Halt! On the order of the Paladins, no one may enter!¡± shouted one of them. When she heard the name, Kleo glared at the guard, but didn¡¯t say a single word. It was Kataryna who spoke. ¡°The what of the who now?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°The Paladins? What are the Paladins doing here?¡± asked Seryanna as she pulled her Khosinni closer, ignoring the silver-scaled dragoness¡¯ confusion. ¡°I do not have the authority to answer this question!¡± declared the guard. Seryanna let out a sigh and rubbed her forehead with two fingers as if to point out her disgruntle at dealing with the likes of him. This could be fun! I giggled in my mind. ¡°My name is Seryanna Draketerus, a royal knight. If you think you have a higher authority than mine, then do tell so I can properly inform her highness, The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher.¡± declared the redhead. The two guards gulped and looked at each other. They certainly did not have such an authority and even daring to state otherwise could grant the knight the right to deal with them as she saw fit. If I knew this much, then certainly they did as well. ¡°Pertiko village has been dealing recently with an influx of zombies from the nearby dungeon. The Paladins have been dispatched by the Temple of Light to get rid of them and prevent further casualties. We are led to presume this may be the work of a recently awakened dragon necromancer. So far, there had been six deaths, including the village elder and his youngest son. The Paladins ordered us to keep anyone from entering or leaving the village until they can determine who is the culprit behind all of this.¡± reported the guard. My eyes sparkled when I heard about Zombies and Dungeons, but they turned into a squint when I heard that this may be the fault of a dragon necromancer. While it was interesting to know that I could go Dungeon Exploring in this world, facing someone similar to Kleo made me wonder just what was the relationship between all of the ¡®classes¡¯ of this world. In the past, I played plenty of games where a necromancer was seen as the bad guy but played the good guy¡¯s role. It was rather odd from one point of view, but I always remembered that Paladins were usually their mortal enemies. I wouldn¡¯t have been surprised if this was the case for these dragons as well. The only problem was that in my games, human Paladins were quite notoriously tough. This reminds me of that one MMO where if you had a PVP match between a Paladin specced on Heal and another similar to him, the match would end up as the longest in PVP history. Hit. Hit. Heal. Repeat. Worst of all, they could Overheal, so when they reached something like 20% life, they could go back up to 100%. Well, any other healing class was similar, but the Paladin had shields and other defensive buffs that reduced incoming damage to below the minimum healed value. I thought. On the same note, the Paladin¡¯s high defense was also his weakness because the class gave up on massive damage. If the same applied to these Paladins, all we had to do was do more damage to them than they could heal. ¡°Maybe we should take a detour?¡± asked Kleo all of a sudden. Looking back at her, I saw that she was a bit worried about meeting these Paladins. Seeing how she was a necromancer and all, it was highly likely that they saw her as their enemy. Seryanna looked at her for a moment and then let out a sigh ¡°Sure¡­ We¡¯ll take a detour.¡± ¡°Thank you¡­¡± the black-scaled dragoness replied. Kataryna didn¡¯t comment, and I didn¡¯t feel like this was my place to drop my opinion. I for one wanted to see these so-called Paladins, but not if it meant throwing Kleo on top of their swords, no perverted jokes implied. ¡°Who goes there?¡± somebody shouted at us. Please tell me this isn¡¯t that clich¨¦ situation where we meet the one who brings us inside¡­ I thought and looked towards the new guy. It was a dragon with glistening, white scales and wearing a heavy steel armor. Thick armor plates engraved with strange runes protected him from attacks. He was a walking tank with a tail and a pair of wings. A shield on his left hand and a drawn sword in his right gave him a more intimidating look, but unlike I often saw in games, this guy was actually wearing his helmet. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Me and my blasted luck¡­ I grumbled in my mind. Getting the girls and through extension me into trouble wasn¡¯t my idea of ¡®good luck¡¯. ¡°Seryanna Draketerus, knight of The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher!¡± she identified herself. ¡°What of the rest?¡± he asked pointing his sword at us. ¡°I don¡¯t feel like giving you my name, but I¡¯ll tell you this. I¡¯m not someone to mess with!¡± Kataryna warned him with a chilling smile. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ er¡­ what am I exactly?¡± I asked as I tilted my head. Seryanna sighed and shook her head. ¡°They are with me. None of them pose any danger to you or this village. We heard your situation and understand it. We will walk around the village and be on our way!¡± she declared. ¡°If you are indeed a knight, then by no means will we force you to go around the village! I offer myself as your guide until you pass through!¡± declared the paladin as he sheathed his sword. We looked at each other for a moment, but seeing how he offered himself like that, it would have come out as suspicious or rude if we declined. Kleo gave us a small nod, and we passed by the two guards. ¡°What brings you to these remote parts, Sir Seryanna?¡± asked the paladin. She didn¡¯t reply, only gave him a long look almost as if she was intending to crush him under her foot. ¡°Ah! Pardon me! My name is Blake Merchant. I¡¯ve been a Paladin for six whole years now. A pleasure to meet you!¡± he said, stopping and bowing like a real gentleman. Only then did Seryanna averted her glare. ¡°I¡¯m simply returning from my grandfather¡¯s home. Last time I passed by this village, it didn¡¯t seem to be under any sort of threat. When did the zombies start attacking?¡± she asked coldly. She¡¯s a real ice queen¡­ Glad I¡¯m here to warm her up! I smirked in my mind, seeing how my hands were resting on her waist. ¡°About two weeks ago. The dungeon to the north of here started to act strangely, and an entire wave of zombies popped out. They were taken out with ease, but they kept coming and coming. From time to time, a dullahan or a group of skeleton warriors would try to attack the village, but we managed to push them back.¡± Blake explained while guiding us through the village. At first sight, I thought we were walking through a ghost village, but upon a closer look, I noticed the frightened eyes of the villagers peeking at us from behind their windows. No one was outside except for those brave enough or the Paladins. There was quite a number of them too, not only one or two. So far, I counted six of them and about eight villager guards. ¡°When did you suspect that this might be the work of a necromancer?¡± asked Seryanna. Speaking of which, Kleo was hiding her face and clinging tight on Kataryna¡¯s back. This was definitely a clear sign that she didn¡¯t like the presence of these armored folks. ¡°Four days ago when some of the villagers who disappeared returned as flesh-eating zombies.¡± he replied. ¡°Is there a difference?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°From those spawned by a dungeon? Certainly! The ones spawned by dungeons can¡¯t leave its territory and are far easier to kill. Reanimated corpses, on the other hand, need to be chopped up into pieces and then burned down to make sure they stay dead. Of course, we Paladins are capable of casting [Repel Undead], [Holy Light], and [Release Soul]! With these spells, no necromancer can stand in our way!¡± Blake declared proudly. ¡°Yet, if your power level is smaller than that peculiar necromancer¡¯s, you will fail in your cast and at most only injure their creations.¡± snorted Kataryna. ¡°In the end, chopping them up is the best option, huh?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Ahem! Yes, for the non-Paladin, it is so.¡± he refused to admit defeat. ¡°So the fire we see over there?¡± asked Seryanna pointing at the pillar of smoke to our right. ¡°Corpses burning, nothing more.¡± Blake replied shaking his head. We continued to walk on the main road through this village, while looking around curiously at both the villagers and Paladins who patrolled the area. I was starting to guess that they were preparing for something bigger, especially giving their numbers and diligence. All this time, Kleo didn¡¯t utter a single word and continued to hide herself between Kataryna¡¯s wings. Maybe she could also hide her necromancer energy behind hers as a well. So far, the Paladin next to us didn¡¯t seem to have noticed, but if one were to, I had to wonder if they were going to attack us or not. Going by the order of things on the scale of stupidity, they will see Seryanna as a non-awakened and brush off her authority. Kataryna will most likely defend Kleo, and I certainly won¡¯t stand around to watch them get attacked by these dragons. Worst comes to worst, I¡¯ll summon Gragh¡¯jaggar to take us out of here, and Jophiel to clear our way. Or better yet, I¡¯ll test out [The Effect of Tzuika] and [Super Chihuahua Style]. Somehow the second sounds more like a side effect of the first. I thought while looking at these Paladins. When we reached the center of the village, we saw the signs of a recent battle here. There was blood splattered on the ground, a broken sword laying down next to a well, now plugged with earth, and a lot of slash marks on the nearby buildings. Other than that, the village didn¡¯t seem to have suffered any major damage, meaning the attackers were most likely lured here, where there was space to fight. Looking around, I spotted a group of four Paladin coming towards us. One of them had a better-looking armor, with more shiny things on it, so I was guessing he was the top dog/dragon around here. Either that or an overzealous rich noble. ¡°Paladin Blake! Who are these people? Why did you let them in?¡± the man in the shinier armor asked furiously. ¡°Great Paladin Baltros! She is Sir Seryanna Draketerus, and these are her companions. I let them in because I thought it would be rude of me to tell them to go around the village.¡± he reported after he saluted by placing his right hand over his heart and making a small bow. ¡°I understand. So, Sir Seryanna, what brings you and your companions to these parts of the country?¡± Baltros asked while taking a long look at each and one of us. ¡°Personal matters, Great Paladin Baltros.¡± she replied coldly. He looked into her eyes and then over at me. I gulped and hid behind her. ¡°It matters not, please be safe on your way out of this village. As you can see, we have our hands a bit tied up at the moment with our current zombie problem.¡± he spread out his arms in reference to the whole village. ¡°I see. We will be on our way then.¡± Seryanna replied. ¡°Understood!¡± he nodded. It was then when one of the Paladins behind Baltros stepped forward. ¡°Wait!¡± he shouted. Seryanna raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°Paladin Iolaus, what is the meaning of this?!¡± Baltros demanded, shooting a glare at his subordinate. ¡°Great Paladin Baltros, if she is Sir Seryanna Draketerus, then the one behind the silver-scaled dragoness is none other than Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus!¡± he declared. WOW! Not only did he remember her full name but also knows how to pronounce it?! was my first thought before the rest of my brain woke up and understood the danger this moron was putting all of us in. ¡°And?¡± Baltros asked. ¡°Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus is a black-scaled dragoness necromancer. She may be the one who conjured up these zombies and disturbed the dungeon!¡± he declared. ¡°How dare you accuse me, you no-good cheater!¡± shouted Kleo. ¡°Cheater?¡± I asked confused. Seryanna sighed and rubbed her forehead with two fingers. ¡°I am not a cheater! If I had known what you are back then, I would have never said those words!¡± he shouted back. ¡°Sir Seryanna, is what my subordinate saying true?¡± asked Baltros as he placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. ¡°About him being a cheater?¡± she asked a bit confused. ¡°The other thing¡­¡± ¡°Even if it is, you don¡¯t hold the authority to take down my sister. If you dare to, you will have to pass through me.¡± she threw him an ice-cold glare and placed her hand on the hilt of her sword. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I do! I was tasked by the king himself to eliminate any and all necromancer scum who pass through here under the suspicion of being the cause of the plague that has befallen this poor village! If I let this¡­ thing go, then I might as well leave these poor folk to their faiths!¡± Baltros declared and unsheathed his sword. ¡°Erm, can¡¯t we just talk about this?¡± I asked, hoping to calm them down a bit. ¡°All those who side with a necromancer are the enemies of the Temple of Light and as such, the enemies of this kingdom as well!¡± declared Baltros quickly. Blake pulled away from us and unsheathed his sword as well, while the rest of their comrades followed suit. ¡°He¡¯s not listening, is he?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope!¡± Kataryna said with a giggle. ¡°Question, Paladin Baltros!¡± I shouted. ¡°That¡¯s Great Paladin Baltros for you!¡± he corrected me. ¡°Great Paladin Baltros then. Has any of you surpassed power level 500 or achieved an Awakened Breakthrough?¡± I asked him with a smile. The dragon squinted his eyes at me. To be clear, they all looked similar in terms of what their awakened form looked like, meaning humanoid head with a few scales and dragon eyes, a long tail, wings or no wings, depending on the individual. ¡°What do you mean? What if we haven¡¯t?¡± he asked. ¡°Then you can¡¯t defeat EITHER of us. You will all die a miserable death as we break your bones and grind your muscles into paste!¡± I smiled ¡°There won¡¯t be even a spec of dust left if we go all-out on you. Heck, she can sneeze and you would all die an agonizing death!¡± I laughed and pointed at Kataryna. I was half-bluffing and half-hoping this would scare them enough not to try and seriously attack us. They weren¡¯t the bad guys, just misguided fools, but if they tried to kill us, they were dead misguided fools. ¡°If this isn¡¯t enough, then Brekkar Draketerus will make sure you will die for touching his granddaughters.¡± I shrugged, dragging the name of the famous general into the pile of threats. ¡°The old general has been struck by an incurable illness! Everyone knows that!¡± he tried to put off my words. ¡°Is he now?¡± I showed him a wide smirk. ¡°The kid cured him, so not anymore.¡± Kataryna backed me up. ¡°So? What will it be? A battle to your agonizing and painful deaths or¡­¡± I said with a smile, but before I had a chance to finish my words, someone came screaming. ¡°The zombies are coming! The zombies are coming!¡± he shouted and ran right between us. It was a simple anthropomorphic dragon villager. We all looked at him as he passed by and went to hide in his house. ¡°Erm¡­¡± I looked back at Baltros. He squinted his eyes at me and then sheathed his sword. ¡°Sir Seryanna! Do you swear on the name of the king that your sister is not the culprit for this disaster?¡± he asked. ¡°I swear on the name of the king that Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus isn¡¯t the one you are looking for!¡± she declared. ¡°Very well then, I¡¯ll believe you. MEN! To your posts! We have a zombie army to send back to their graves!¡± shouted Baltros and then looked at us ¡°Since you are all here, your power might be needed in this battle. You wouldn¡¯t leave one of the king¡¯s villages to suffer from this sort of attack, would you?¡± he asked. ¡°Of course not! Me and my companions will lend you a hand in eliminating this threat. This way, I will prove to you that we are not your enemies!¡± Seryanna declared and unsheathed her sword. ¡°Wait, a swear was all it took for him to back off, seriously?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°The swear of a knight on the name of their king should never be taken lightly.¡± Seryanna told me as she dismounted. ¡°Dragons! Tonight we fight for the Light! Let us prevail against our undead foes!¡± shouted Great Paladin Baltros as he charged towards the zombies together with the rest of his comrades. ____________________ Note from the author: Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it! :) Chapter 27: An unexpected turn of events The enemy we were facing was the unstoppable horde of the undead. Rotting zombies, skeleton warriors, Dullahans, Liches, undead beasts and other monsters, the whole lot of them were pouring out of the dungeon and marching towards Pertiko village. It was a real army off undead. The only thing missing from it was a general of sorts, but maybe that one was the Necromancer staying deep inside the dungeon. The ones defending the village were the paladins and my group of four, consisting of a human, a dragon knight, a dragon necromancer, and a dragon thief¡­ well, former thief. While the paladins were glaring at the undead and holding their shields up, ready to face their own fates. Victory was the goal, defeat was not an option. Meanwhile, on our side, Kleo was glaring at the paladin who snitched on her; Seryanna was relaxing in my arms on the horse; and Kataryna was yawning while swaying her tail left and right like a bored cat. ¡°Am I the only one worrying about the army in front of us?¡± I asked with an awkward smile as I looked towards the rotting undead. ¡°You worry too much. This army isn¡¯t as powerful as you think it is. Their power levels are below our, or well¡­ mine, yours, Kleo, and Kataryna¡¯s.¡± Seryanna said as she gave me a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Even so, should we be so relaxed?¡± I asked curiously as I tightened my arms around her waist. ¡°Although we arrived here more than an hour ago, the undead had yet to make a move. Until we know what they are planning, charging up against them would be simply foolish.¡± explained Seryanna. ¡°Sooo, we aren¡¯t strong enough to defeat them?¡± I asked, and the idea of all of us being weaker than those undead monstrosities frightened me. ¡°No chance! I alone am enough to wipe out all of those monsters!¡± Kataryna snorted. ¡°True.¡± the redhead confirmed. ¡°Then what do you think they are doing right now?¡± I asked as I looked towards the army of zombies. ¡°Waiting¡­¡± Kleo said squinting her eyes at the battlefield. ¡°For what?¡± ¡°An order from their master.¡± I let out a sigh and looked back at the village. When Great Paladin Baltros let out that battle call and all of us rolled out towards the other side of the village, I was expecting to encounter countless enemies. When we arrived here, there was only one zombie that stumbled on its own feet and fell on the ground. Paladin Iolaus stepped forward and smashed its head with the hilt of the sword, then it vanished in puff of black smoke, leaving behind only some dust and an iron nugget. I was actually expecting to see coins and maybe a weapon, but apparently monsters created by dungeons usually turned into Magic Dust and if you were lucky, some sort of mineral in the form of a nugget. There were items too, but those could be found deep in the dungeon in special rooms filled with traps. Those were usually created as bait for adventurers. ¡°What happens if you die inside a Dungeon?¡± I asked. ¡°Your gear is taken away, your body is reduced to mineral nuggets, and your Magic Energy is absorbed by the Dungeon. If it used real monsters that breed, then your body will be turned into food for them.¡± Seryanna explained. ¡°I see, but if you attack with Magic Energy, won¡¯t the Dungeon absorb it?¡± I asked. ¡°Only residual Magic Energy, which represents about 5 to 10% of all the energy you put into your attack.¡± ¡°Are Dungeons living things?¡± I asked, wondering if it was similar to those in games or maybe in certain novels I used to read. ¡°No, they are the creation of a species with Neutral standing towards all intelligent species in general. Many consider them to be geniuses of both Magic and Technology, and since they provide us with Dungeons, we don¡¯t dare to either attack or provoke them. Kingdoms usually bargain or trade various basic goods with them in exchange for their creations.¡± ¡°It sounds to me like they are at a loss¡­¡± I said and scratched my head. From the way I saw it, if they were more technologically advanced, then they could have just conquered the species with inferior technology. If they didn¡¯t do that already, then it was most likely due to certain factors and conditions. Or, they were actually a peaceful species that didn¡¯t wish to meddle in the business of others. ¡°We don¡¯t know actually¡­ Their continent is surrounded by an impregnable barrier, and so far¡­ no one was able to enter as far as we know. Regarding their military and economic power, everything is a big mystery to us.¡± she shrugged. ¡°Interesting.¡± I said rubbing my chin. What I wondered about was whether or not someone from Earth was dropped there as well like I was on the Dragon Continent. Unfortunately, there was no way to test it out and even if I could, I had no idea if they were going to be a friend or a foe. After about another quarter of an hour or so, the undead army finally started to move. The first row of zombies advanced towards the village at a silent pace. If not for our keen eyesight, we wouldn¡¯t have noticed them until it was already too late. ¡°They¡¯re coming!¡± shouted Great Paladin Baltros. Seeing the movement, our group also changed from a relaxed stance to a more serious one. Even Kataryna, who was yawning non-stop until a moment ago. As for Seryanna, she pulled out of my embrace and unsheathed her sword. I followed suit and stood by her side, looking at the fearsome army approaching us. ¡°Just remember, Alkelios. If you want to kill them, either destroy their skulls or shatter the crystals in their hearts. This rule applies to every undead monster spawned by a Dungeon.¡± Seryanna reminded me one more time about what I had to do in order to defeat my opponents. ¡°But, I only have a sword, wouldn¡¯t a mace or some other type of blunt force weapon be more suitable?¡± I asked. ¡°Not needed. Your sword is enchanted, and your strength far surpasses that of those Paladins over there. Just remember my words, and you¡¯ll be fine. Besides, we¡¯re also going to be there for you.¡± she showed me a gentle smile. About five minutes later, the two forces clashed. The Paladins were the first to attack. Wielding their swords and maces, they aimed them at their opponents and finished them off without mercy. One by one, the zombies turned into a pile of dust and a metal nugget. In front us, another line of zombies marched forward. The entire army was approaching, however, all of these undead weren¡¯t human undead, they were all awakened dragon undead. Some had tails, others wings, there were some who even showed the usual anthropomorphic characteristics, meaning a beast-like head. This fact frightened me a bit, so before I attacked, I decided to try something. ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus].¡± I whispered as I focused on one of the zombies. [Monster Name]: Zombie Undead [Type]: Elite [Level]: 96 [Strength]: 400 [Speed]: 24 [Dexterity]: 65 [Magic]: None ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. These monsters are weak! Very weak! I shouted in my mind and closed the window. With my confidence restored, I marched forward together with Seryanna and chose my first target. Upon locking onto him, I decided to try one of my skills. ¡°[Ten Strikes Attack].¡± I whispered to myself and then allowed the magic to flow through my body. The moment I activated the spell, I moved forward and quickly executed ten, super fast slash attacks. The zombie in front of me was chopped up into pieces and even the ground suffered a bit of damage. ¡°WOW!¡± I said surprised. In that moment, a zombie attacked me, but [Block] activated, and I managed to avoid getting my armor damaged. From the looks of things, it appeared as though the skills from [Super Chihuahua Style] were separated into Active and Passive ones, just like in a video game. Well, it was good. I didn¡¯t need to shout out the skill¡¯s name every time I want to use it. Maybe in the future, I would even learn how to do it without calling out its name. It would be embarrassing if I end up with a super weird spell. The thought of it made me shudder, and I was 100% sure this was just that God-like¡¯s idea of a fun thing to watch. Yeah, the legends would be like¡­ And so, the mighty warrior Alkelios, wielding his trusted blade The Shredder of Life and shouted towards the skies: Lightning Chicken! And thus, a mighty Phoenix of unimaginable power came forth! I thought. Just hearing it in my mind sounded like a line from a very bad or maybe just weird comedy show. I shuddered. While I was finishing off the zombies with simple attacks, Seryanna and Kataryna were pretty much doing the same thing. The only difference was that the latter was just flicking their foreheads. The poor bastards didn¡¯t stand a chance against a dragon who achieved Awakened Breakthrough. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Thus, I took the opportunity to look at what the Paladins were doing. ¡°Stay in line, men! Don¡¯t fall back! Heal those close to you and keep them off your back!¡± shouted Great Paladin Baltros. They were actually struggling against this sort of foe. These easy to kill zombies I could literally just punch to turn them into a pile of dust were a foe against which these tough-looking dragons had to use tactics against? Even more so, heal those who got injured by them? Are they really that weak? I thought as I looked at them. Turning my gaze towards a nearby zombie, I decided to try Kataryna¡¯s attack and just gave him a flick on the forehead with all of my strength. The moment my finger connected, the zombie was sent backwards, crashing into a couple of other zombies, and I could swear I heard a sonic boom just then. ¡°Hah¡­ Is it possible that I¡¯m just insanely strong compared to them?¡± I tilted my head to the left. Well, with this being the case, I rubbed my hands together and decided to try out some spells before I ended up bored out of my mind. Thus, I first used the most basic of basic spells¡­ the [Fireball]. Aiming my palm at an incoming zombie and skeleton warrior pair, I released the magic. A ball of fire the size of a basketball formed in front of my palm and was then shot out at a speed of 100 km/h or so. It made contact and exploded, sending flames to nearby zombies and catching them on fire, while the two undead I targeted initially were turned instantly into a pile of dust. This attack in my hands was seriously powerful, but unexpectedly, it felt very weak compared to what Seryanna used back in the Seculiar Forest when she saved me from that black wolf. Continuing on, I tried [Earth Arrow], it created a stone spear that was shot at what I was pointing my finger at. Unfortunately, I was very bad at aiming and ended up missing completely even at the third try. I gave up on it, and tried [Air Barrier]. This one formed a shield of air around me. To test this spell, I approached a zombie and let him hit me. I was a bit nervous at first and prayed to the gods that I wouldn¡¯t die. If I died, I was certain Kleo would resurrect me so that Seryanna could kill me for dying while fighting against a weak opponent like a zombie. Thankfully, the barrier did its job and stopped the zombie¡¯s assault, but I could feel that with each strike, my Magic Energy pool was going down. After cutting the head of the zombie, I released the spell and continued to defeat them with simple sword slashes aimed at their heads or torso. It was a one-shot kill for me. Still, even if we could grind these stupid monsters with ease, there were still a lot of them. Worst of all, they didn¡¯t give me as much XP as actual monsters did. It was about a tenth of that actually. Either that, or I was used to attacking high level monsters. In any case, I barely heard the ding of a level up from time to time. After a while, the Paladins were seriously getting tired, and Kataryna was bored out of her mind. To be honest, even I felt a bit bored by this, and we only managed to exterminate about half of the army. The Dullahans weren¡¯t as fearsome as I initially thought either. Seryanna cut one in half horse and all. I used them as target practice for [Earth Arrow], and Kataryna slapped them into the ground. The only one who wasn¡¯t actively beating the magic out of the undead was Kleo. I haven¡¯t seen her cast a single spell since this battle started, and most of the time, she used a short sword to defeat them. Seryanna did well to protect her most of the time, but as a result of this, Kleo¡¯s kill rate was at one or two zombies every ten or twenty of ours. It could have been because a necromancer¡¯s spells weren¡¯t as effective against undead as they would have been against living beings. It was to be expected, that was why they sent Paladins here to defeat them and not simple Adventurers or Mages. At the very least, as long as she was within 100 meters of me, she gained the 10% of all my buffed stats as a buff through [Dragon Tamer]. My friend list also acted as a party list, and we sort of shared the XP, or as the dragons put it: Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption. So, there was no need to worry about her not getting more powerful as a result of us killing more than her. ¡°Another zombie battalion is coming from the other side of the village!¡± a guard from the village shouted as he ran towards us, but kept his distance from the horde of zombies. ¡°By the gods!¡± Great Paladin Baltros said. ¡°I¡¯ll go!¡± shouted Kleo unexpectedly and ran towards that place. ¡°Ah, wait! Kleo!¡± Seryanna shouted. The black-scaled dragoness didn¡¯t listen and continued to run. ¡°What¡¯s she doing?¡± I asked. ¡°I think she wants to prove she¡¯s not part of this attack. Even if she¡¯s a necromancer, raising undead is one of her self-imposed taboos.¡± explained Seryanna. ¡°Paladin Iolaus be careful out there!¡± shouted Great Paladin Baltros. Turning my head, I saw the volunteer who ran after Kleo. ¡°That guy¡­¡± I muttered. I had a really bad feeling about this. ¡°I¡¯m going too!¡± I announced. ¡°Be careful!¡± called out Seryanna. ¡°Don¡¯t worry! If anything happens, I¡¯ll come back running to hug you! Ah, before I go¡­ I wish that all of you will finish this battle without any losses or serious injuries!¡± I said and then left. ¡°Thank you, take care!¡± said Seryanna. ¡°Be safe!¡± said Kataryna. Kleo was the first to arrive at the scene, where more than 300 undead zombies and skeleton warrior approached the village. Behind the unit was a Dullahan who issued the orders. This is¡­ this is a Pincer Vancouver¡­ I stopped and rebooted my brain. Pincer Maneuver¡­ Why did I say Vancouver? Isn¡¯t that like a city or region in the states? I sighed and shook my head. However, before this battalion of merciless monsters stood only one woman, a dragoness with black scales and wearing Gothic Lolita type clothes. She was glaring at them and focusing on her magic, which began to seep out of her body in the form of a black gas, but I could tell it was also very powerful. ¡°Fiends of the Underworld, ghouls of darkness, and spirits of the Abyss! Hear my calls and come forth from the shadows around me! Answer my commands and submit to my will, fiends of darkness!¡± she shouted and then a large amount of Magic Energy was poured into the ground, but nothing happened at first sight. ¡°I order you to slay all of these undead fools who stand before me!¡± ¡°As you command.¡± a dark, frightening voice echoed all around us. It gave me the heebie-jeebies. ¡°I knew it¡­ She¡¯s in league with the lot of them!¡± accused Iolaus, who was standing not that far away from me. ¡°She¡¯s not, you idiot. She¡¯s fighting against them.¡± I rolled my eyes. After Kleo gave the command, the battalion of undead faced an invisible attack. From their shadows, dark, shadowy hands came out and crushed their heads one after another. Because they were so slow, they couldn¡¯t counter them in any way or manner, but if it was me or Seryanna, we could have jumped out of the way or blocked the attack. The undead fell one after another, and from this display of magic and power, I understood that Kleo was not to be underestimated. That incredible Magic Energy pool of hers was there for a reason despite the apparently low level she possessed. The battle lasted for only a minute and then the Dullahan was slain as well. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ It¡¯s done.¡± Kleo muttered as she fell on her knees. The magic she used was dispelled and the village was safe on this side. Seeing an opportunity in her weakness, Iolaus rushed towards her with his sword ready to strike. Kleo was out of magic and weak. If she was to be attacked by him now, she would die. I couldn¡¯t let this idiot kill her, so I ran after him. I was faster and stronger than him, so naturally, I was there before he was able to attack her. Grabbing his hand, I stopped him, yet Kleo turned around and saw his hate-filled glare. ¡°Why?¡± the dragoness asked with a sad look on her face and tears swelling up in her eyes. Seeing this shocked me. Why is she making that face? I thought. Before I had the chance to say something else, I saw a light from under me and felt my feet stuck to something. We were all standing under a magic circle. ¡°Ah crud¡­ I wish we¡¯ll all survive and come out of this uninjured.¡± I said and then the light intensified. We vanished from the battlefield. ___________ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you Chapter 28: Trapped ¡°Ugh¡­ Heavy!¡± I groaned as I moved the metal plate off of my face. ¡°Ungh¡­ Ow¡­¡± the paladin groaned as he was pushed off. Getting up, I looked around and massaged my shoulders a bit. My whole body was feeling sore, and I felt like Seryanna slapped me into a tree again. Of course, there was no sight of a tree anywhere around me. There was no sight of a field with angry undead or a village. I was in some sort of a tunnel, and the stench reminded me of old rotten food. ¡°What the¡­¡± I said surprised and walked over to the wall. I hope to dear God I¡¯m not in a sewer¡­ I thought and knocked on it. Without a doubt, this place was built with cold hard stone. Magic was definitely flowing through it, but I couldn¡¯t tell if the wall itself was created through magic or enchanted with it. This was definitely strange. Looking back, I noticed Iolaus pushing himself off the floor. ¡°Where are we?¡± I asked him. ¡°Why do you think I should know? Maybe this was all a part of Thraherkleyoseya¡¯s plot to kill us?¡± he smirked. I let out a sigh and walked over to him. With one punch, I sent his arrogant face into the ground. ¡°One. I appreciate the fact that you can actually spell her name right. For me, it¡¯s a tongue twister. Two. You are an idiot.¡± I then walked away from him, while he struggled to get up. ¡°Why¡­ How dare you strike a Paladin!¡± he shouted and rushed at me with his sword. I could feel the anger and hate in his glare, but he was slow. He was terribly slow! With a simple step forward, I grabbed him by his face and slammed him into the ground. The air left his lungs, and his body tensed as a result of the shock. I didn¡¯t kill him, of course, but this was just a simple self-defense against an idiotic dragon. ¡°Three. I¡¯m at least one hundred times stronger and more powerful than you.¡± I told him and then grabbed him by the collar of his armor and lifted him up. Pushing him into the nearby wall, I glared at him and then said ¡°Now, mister Paladin, unless you forgot your logic lessons at the capital or wherever you come from, tell me. HOW could Kleo be responsible for the shit that happens here when SHE was with ME for the past month in Tomeron?!¡± I then dropped him on the ground, while he looked up at me with shocked eyes. It wasn¡¯t my style to be so violent, and I didn¡¯t particularly fancy it, but morons like him usually didn¡¯t get it until you spat the truth in their face. ¡°It¡¯s not that impossible to cast a remote spell.¡± the Paladin glared at me. This bastard¡¯s not going to give up, is he? I thought while my cheek twitched. ¡°I give up. You are a lost case.¡± I shrugged and then walked away. ¡°Ah! Wait! Where are you going ally of the necromancer?!¡± he shouted and then ran after me. ¡°To find Kleo and get the Hell out of this place! And my name is Alkelios!¡± I retorted. That was my very first conversation with the dragon who went by the name of Iolaus. The fact that he was a paladin and acted like that made me wonder if he wasn¡¯t part of the brainwashed fools who were indoctrinated into weird cults that made absolutely no sense. Unfortunately, I never did remember a case where having around a fool like this one was a good thing. Worst came to worst, I was going to leave him to die, but there was a high chance that my sense of justice would push me into saving him. This was the truth, an incorrigible and unwavering truth. Not long after we started moving through those tunnels, we encountered our first group of monsters: two skeleton archers, one warrior, and a zombie mage. When I saw them, I didn¡¯t wait for mister Paladin to act and immediately used my skills to take them down. With a [Dash], I was in front of mage and stabbed him in his rotten heart. I used [Side-Step] to avoid the arrow, [Block] to stop the warrior¡¯s attack and then [Earth Arrow] to destroy him. Using [Dodge], I avoided the second wave of arrows and immediately used [Dash] to close the distance between me and the archers. Two side swipes were enough to finish the skeletons. The battle was over, and I was victorious. Paladin Iolaus wasn¡¯t able to do anything in this battle. By the time he arrived at my position, there were no more enemies for him to fight. I picked up the dropped items: two silver nuggets, two iron nuggets, and four fists of dust. The last one had few good uses in potions. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked the Paladin behind me. The dragon squinted his eyes at me and then at the spot where the undead had fallen. ¡°Even without a Light attribute, you were still able to defeat them.¡± he told me with bewildered expression on his face. ¡°Of course, didn¡¯t you see how I fought on the battlefield?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. He shook his head. ¡°I wasn¡¯t paying attention. You are an unawakened, right?¡± he asked me. Should I tell him the truth? Hm, dumb question¡­ I smiled ¡°Yes, I¡¯m an unawakened just like my girlfriend, Seryanna.¡± I said. ¡°Girlfriend? You mean to say that you found that knight to be attractive?¡± he raised an eyebrow. Do dragons around these parts have stones for eyes? What¡¯s not to like about Seryanna? I thought while squinting my eyes at him. ¡°Yes. I love her.¡± I told him bluntly, but I tried my best not to sound too annoyed by him. For some reason, this Paladin was rubbing me the wrong way. ¡°It won¡¯t last.¡± he said as he walked past me. Grabbing his shoulder, I asked him ¡°What do you mean it won¡¯t last?¡± and I glared at him. Slapping off my hand, he stared back at me and replied ¡°Because you don¡¯t know yet what sort of element she will have. If it¡¯s one opposite to yours, then your chances as a couple are non-existent, especially if it¡¯s something like Light and Darkness.¡± His words made sense, but I didn¡¯t see why it should matter to me, especially since I already knew what sort of element Seryanna would have. It was going to be Fire or High Flame. As for mine, it didn¡¯t matter. I wasn¡¯t a dragon nor was I ever going to change into one. My chance with her remained the same no matter what sort of awakened element she possessed. I really don¡¯t get what¡¯s up with him. I thought while continuing to explore these tunnels. [Kleo¡¯s point of view] With a groan, I woke up and tried to get up, but I couldn¡¯t. My arms and legs were bound in cold metal shackles preventing me from moving freely. Startled and surprised by this, I opened my eyes and looked down. Black chains kept me there, a prisoner. ¡°Ah! You woke up!¡± I heard a stranger¡¯s voice and moved my eyes towards him. It was a man about the same size as my sister, but he was wearing a black robe with a black hood covering his head, while its shadow hid his face from my gaze. All I could only see were his black beard and grin. He had no tail or wings, and there were no signs of scales on his hands either, meaning this man was an unawakened. ¡°Who are you?¡± I asked as I tried to focus magic in my palms to set myself free of these cuffs, but as soon as I did that, an electric shock surged through me. ¡°AAAH!¡± I screamed and fell on the ground, trembling. My muscles hurt, and my magic was gone. Purple runes were glowing on the black chains restraining me. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do that if I were you. Every time you will try to use Magic Energy, you will receive a nasty shock.¡± the man explained calmly in a rather gallant tone of voice and shook his head. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± I groaned and tossed him a glare. ¡°Ah! You asked who I was right?¡± he then rubbed his beard ¡°Hm, I can¡¯t tell you who I am, but I can tell you what I am¡­ I am a human¡­ A human hero to be more exact.¡± he grinned. What did he just say? I thought as I looked in shock at him. ¡°You know? I was quite surprise to find out there was a dragon necromancer around these parts.¡± he got up and walked over to a nearby desk filled with a bunch of potions and test tubes similar to what Alkelios used on his Alchemy Lab. ¡°I heard your kind is quite rare. The Paladins are hunting you down to extinction or something like that?¡± he turned around to look into my eyes ¡°But that¡¯s not true, is it?¡± he shook his head ¡°No, it¡¯s not. Dragons can be born with any element. One of a high chance while the others of a low one. But¡­¡± he lifted a finger up ¡°it¡¯s possible.¡± he grinned. ¡°What does it matter to you?¡± I asked and pushed myself up, taking a sitting position. ¡°Hm? I guess you could say¡­ that I¡¯m only interested in your magic? I managed to strip the magic of a couple of dragons in this place, but they were weak, they barely managed to level me up a few times. Your Magic Energy, however¡­¡± he looked back at me ¡°should give me a decent boost, especially since it¡¯s of the same element: Darkness.¡± he returned to his experiment. This man is a madman, but how did a human managed to get so far into the Dragon Continent? Is he similar to Alkelios? No¡­ this creep isn¡¯t in any way or manner like Alkelios! This human¡­ he¡¯s dangerous¡­ I shook my head and glared at this bastard. Between me and him stood only these enchanted black chains. It was true that they could stop my magic, but I also had a decent strength. Maybe I could rip them apart? It was my only shot. Although, what I was wondering about was what he said about stripping me of my magic. Is something like that even possible? I thought. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] I wish he¡¯ll tell me the truth about his relationship with Kleo. I thought at one point after we defeated the fourth group of monsters. Now we were at the 20th, and he had yet to say a single word about it. ¡°But seriously, what¡¯s up with you and Kleo?¡± I asked in the end. Iolaus frowned. ¡°What do you mean by ¡®what¡¯s up¡¯? I don¡¯t understand.¡± he said. ¡°Sigh¡­¡± I shook my head ¡°I mean what¡¯s your problem with her. Why are you two like this?¡± I squinted my eyes at him and stopped walking. ¡°Even though you are in a relationship with her sister and you are both unawakened, you don¡¯t know?¡± he asked. ¡°No! And what does it matter anyway if we are awakened or unawakened?¡± I glared at him. ¡°It does! If you fall in love with an unawakened, you will only end up suffering!¡± he shouted and then covered his mouth as if he didn¡¯t wish to tell me that. ¡°What did you just say?¡± I squinted my eyes at him. 100 Luck struck again. ¡°Nothing.¡± he looked away. ¡°Oh no! Don¡¯t you try to avoid the subject, mister Paladin who can¡¯t even kill a skeleton!¡± I pointed my finger at him. ¡°I was getting there! IF you hadn¡¯t intervened, I would have killed him!¡± he pointed his sword at me. ¡°Yeah, sure¡­ whatever.¡± I rolled my eyes. Of course I didn¡¯t believe him. Earlier, when I left the small fry for him, he was actually barely holding his own against the skeleton. It wasn¡¯t like he was weak, it was just that the monster was very strong. A normal human would have ended up squashed by him, but this guy was a dragon and a Paladin at that, I was expecting him to be able to put up a bit more of a fight. In the end, I killed the skeleton for him. Iolaus let out a sigh and looked down. There was a sad gaze in his eyes. ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± I told him in a calm tone of voice. ¡°We were young¡­ foolish. Neither of us knew our elements, but we didn¡¯t care¡­¡± he explained. ¡°Wait, you mean you and Kleo were together?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Yes¡­ We were lovers.¡± he looked up at me. [Seryanna¡¯s point of view] ¡°They are endless!¡± I shouted. ¡°They are boring!¡± Kataryna complained. I couldn¡¯t blame her, she was just slapping them and killing them instantly. I feared to think what would happen if she were to use spells or blades. ¡°Do you think Alkelios is alright?¡± she asked me. ¡°I¡¯m more worried about my sister.¡± I said as I slashed another skeleton. ¡°The Paladin what¡¯s his name?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. The dragoness forgot to attack, and a zombie was trying to chew on her forearm. When she noticed him, she flicked it on the forehead and send it flying. I cut three skeletons in half and stabbed a zombie in the heart. They vanished and turned to dust. Neither of us bothered to collect the metal nuggets. ¡°Yes.¡± I walked closer to her so the other dragons didn¡¯t hear us. ¡°Iolaus and Kleo were¡­ childhood friends.¡± I told her. ¡°That¡¯s surprising!¡± Kataryna said and then decided it was time to listen to me, since my story was far more interesting than the army of undead. With one spell chant, she sent a wave of ice spike towards them. Countless zombies, skeletons, and dullahans turned into puffs of smoke in the blink of an eye, and this assured us a few minutes of break time. But this was only on our side, the Paladins kept fighting with all of their might, although, I wasn¡¯t sure for how much longer they could keep going at that pace. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Do tell me more about it!¡± said the dragoness as she approached me with a wagging tail and big smile on her face. ¡°Well, when we were young, before grandfather became sick and our parents were still alive, we lived in our mansion in the capital, Drakaria. There were very few children in the neighborhood who were willing to play with us. Our noble blood and grandfather¡¯s reputation made their parents cautious and fearful of us. Just idiotic adults who believed that children playing together had the power to start wars.¡± I started to remember the old days, they were the most peaceful in my life. ¡°The old geezer didn¡¯t strike me as a big noble back in Tomeron.¡± Kataryna commented. ¡°At that time we were, but after he got sick and my parents died, our house declined. With Kleo¡¯s awakening, the Temple of Light and the Temple of Life put pressure on the king to further strip us of our power until we were forced to leave the capital. The only thing keeping Kleo safe and alive is my status as the princess¡¯ knight and grandfather¡¯s former reputation.¡± I let out a sigh. Right now, I feared even that might not be enough and if it came to be known that I had fallen in love with a human, thing could end up¡­ disastrous. My only hope was that Kataryna¡¯s existence and Alkelios siding with dragons would act as a trump card in the worst-case scenario. ¡°As I was saying, Iolaus and Kleo are childhood friends. My relationship with him was of acquaintances at best. He didn¡¯t come from a rich family, but he didn¡¯t care about our noble status either. He was a good dragon, but the more he and Kleo spent their time together, the more attached they became one to another. Eventually, they fell in love. It was about two decades later when he awakened as a Dragon of Light. He was recruited by the Temple of Light and became a Paladin Squire.¡± I explained. ¡°Then Kleo awakened, right?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Yes¡­ then she awakened¡­ and she was of Darkness, the complete opposite of his element.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Dragons of opposite elements can never be together¡­¡± said Kataryna as she looked down. ¡°It was the worst thing that could have happened to them¡­ Iolaus changed afterwards, they broke up¡­ now, he naturally hates her.¡± I looked over at the Paladins. If only their order didn¡¯t exist¡­ I thought. This was the other reason why dragon awakened men never looked at unawakened women. Even if they were beautiful, their element was what mattered the most. If one was of opposite to theirs, then it would have been hard to make an egg. In my case, with Alkelios was almost impossible, but I had already given up on that idea. As long as I could at least be by his side, I was happy. ¡°It¡¯s unfortunate, indeed¡­ Sigh, such a narrow vision those without a Breakthrough have.¡± Kataryna said with a sigh. ¡°Here they come again.¡± I said as I pointed at the approaching wave. ¡°Good! I feel like smashing something now!¡± she grinned. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] I sort of guessed it after he said that two unawakened could never find happiness. He was so sure about it, it was almost as if he was speaking out of his own experience. Apparently, that was exactly the case. ¡°So you and Kleo were lovers, huh?¡± I said and then leaned with my back on the wall. ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded slowly. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked. ¡°What do you mean? We both awakened, and ended up of opposite elements. Isn¡¯t that obvious?¡± he asked squinting his eyes at me. ¡°Not really¡­ ¡° I tilted my head. ¡°Hahaha! Now I understand why you don¡¯t think your future together with Seryanna is in any danger! You don¡¯t know what this means!¡± he laughed, and I felt like punching him in the face, but I abstained; my fist was too beautiful to break on his face. ¡°Do tell, why is it so?¡± I asked with a sigh. ¡°If she turns out to be of the Fire element and you of Ice, you two will never be able to have an egg together! It¡¯s impossible!¡± he grinned. I bet on all of my skills that if I wish for it, it will happen. But alas, he is unaware of the fact that I have 100 Luck. Let him live in his ignorance. I thought while smiling to myself. ¡°I don¡¯t really mind, I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll manage.¡± I shrugged. ¡°No you won¡¯t! No one manages something like that! That was why Thraherkleyoseya and I could never be together!¡± he glared at me. ¡°What do you mean? Weren¡¯t you two lovers? What changed?¡± I asked. ¡°You really don¡¯t get it, do you?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°I¡¯m an idiot, so enlighten me.¡± I said with a bored look in my eyes. ¡°Hmph! Before I awakened, indeed, we were in love. I loved her with all of my heart and all of my being. Even our first night together was an absolute bliss!¡± he said looking at his palm. ¡°Wait! Wait! Wait! Kleo¡¯s not a virgin?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°No. I¡¯m pretty sure I took her maidenhood that night.¡± he said furrowing his brow. I punched him in the face and sent him flying into the wall behind him. ¡°Ah¡­ Oops.¡± I said when I realized what I had done. ¡°Ugh! What was that for?!¡± he shouted back at me as he held his nose, which was bleeding. ¡°Sorry! Reflex¡­¡± I shrugged and offered him a potion. He drank it and then glared back at me. ¡°What sort of reflex makes you punch people in the face?!¡± he questioned me. ¡°Older brother reflex? Now, continue with the story.¡± I said with a smile while trying not to punch him again. This bastard¡­ How dare he do that to Kleo? I thought. ¡°Sigh¡­ Well, after I awakened as a dragon of the element of Light, I was recruited by the Temple of Light. While this happened, something changed¡­ I still loved Thraherkleyoseya, but whenever we were together, it felt odd. Then I found out why when she awakened. She belonged to the element of Darkness¡­ my natural enemy.¡± he looked down and clenched his fist. ¡°How exactly did that make her an enemy? You still loved her, right?¡± I asked tilting my head to the left. ¡°Yes, and I still do, but not the awakened Thraherkleyoseya. She betrayed me by turning into that! You have no idea what it¡¯s like to feel betrayed in such a manner! Anything else would have been fine, but Darkness was the absolute worst! Thraherkleyoseya became a monster!¡± he said and shouted at me. I punched him again and sent him crashing into the nearby wall. He coughed and spat out blood from a tooth I broke. ¡°This time, it wasn¡¯t a reflex.¡± I told him as I walked over. ¡°You bastard!¡± he jumped at me and punched me in the face. I didn¡¯t even feel it, but I grabbed his hand and then kicked him in the stomach. ¡°Ugh!¡± he groaned. I punched him in the face and broke his nose again. Pushing into the wall, his armor cracked, and he struggled to get free. ¡°A monster you say? You are the monster!¡± I shouted at him. ¡°Ugh¡­ Let go!¡± he struggled. I punched him in the stomach and then tossed him on the ground. ¡°Agh!¡± he groaned and coughed a few times. The armor was cracked, but still there. If it wasn¡¯t for that, I would have probably injured him even more. Actually, I was surprised I managed to control my strength a little. Maybe it was a reflex or pure luck, but if I were to hit him with my full strength, I would kill him instantly. ¡°You said that I had no idea how that felt like, right? Well, do you know who felt like this because of you? Do you?¡± I asked him as I pushed him into the ground. ¡°N-No¡­¡± he groaned and struggled to get up. ¡°Kleo did. You betrayed her. You, the follower or light who shouts Justice this and Justice that out of your ass, you betrayed her in a worse manner than anyone could have!¡± I told him. ¡°You lie! I never betrayed her!¡± he shouted back at me. Glaring at him, I grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up. ¡°Then tell me, what do you call someone who says he loves you but then attacks you just because your body changed a little?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t change a little! She¡¯s a Darkness element!¡± ¡°So what? Did her personality change?! Did her smile change?! Did her love for you change?! Or wait, you never did love her, did you?¡± I shouted in pure anger and then dropped him on the floor. ¡°My apology, I was mistaken, you never loved her in the first place, so my anger was misplaced.¡± I told him in a clear tone of disgust and then tossed him a healing potion. He grabbed it and glared at me. ¡°I loved her! I really did love her! I still love Thraherkleyoseya from before she awakened!¡± he shouted at me. I stepped on his chest. ¡°No, you didn¡¯t.¡± I looked into his eyes. ¡°If you loved her, you would have accepted her entirely. You wouldn¡¯t have cared if she was Darkness, Fire, Light, or even a freaking human! You would have loved her and accepted her entirely! Isn¡¯t that what true love means? To accept one without exception? To not have doubt in your heart about them and hold expectations of them?¡± I asked him while glaring at him. He didn¡¯t answer me back, he just stared in my eyes. ¡°If you do love her even now as you say, then you will do whatever it is in your power to stay by her side. You will fight the gods if you have to¡­ That¡¯s what true love is¡­ Yeah, it sounds lame, but unfortunately, that¡¯s the truth.¡± I removed my foot off his chest and then left him there. At the next corner, I stopped and leaned on the wall. My body was shaking, and I was breathing hard. All of those things I said, all of those words and the way I behaved wasn¡¯t like me at all. I knew of it in theory, I read about it in stories, in games, but the certainty I held in those words was abnormal¡­ Now, after the adrenaline rush was over, I couldn¡¯t even recognize myself. Thinking back at those words, it was like I was saying those things to myself and not him. It was like I was warning myself and not Iolaus. Did I say all those things because of my [Dragon Tamer] skill? I wondered. It was possible. Back when Seryanna and Kleo were in trouble, this ability turned something inside of me. It was a spark of courage, something that pushed me forward and told to help and rescue my friends. If it was instinct or not, I couldn¡¯t tell, but it was there. After what happened now, I could clearly remember that I had such moments before, but I never truly noticed them. This sensation manifested through a few words, or a glare, or something small, but this time, with Iolaus, it was the first time I reacted in such a violent and strange manner. Actually, I could hardly remember what he said or how he looked like when I said those things. All I could remember were those words, although a bit changed: If you loved her, you would have accepted her entirely. You wouldn¡¯t have cared if she was a human or not. You would have loved her and held not even a drop of doubt in your heart. I repeated those words in my head again and again while thinking about Seryanna. I knew I was supposed to follow them, I knew they spoke the truth, but my heart told me I still lacked something¡­ I wasn¡¯t there yet. I couldn¡¯t accept or love Seryanna entirely for who and what she was, but I didn¡¯t know why. It was like trying to look at a painting hidden behind a black fog. You knew the painting was there, but you couldn¡¯t see its beauty. Why am I like this? I asked myself as I looked at my trembling hands. ¡°Kakaka!¡± a skeleton¡¯s cackle pulled me out of my weird state of mind. I should clear my head¡­ Busting a few skulls open should help me out¡­ Yes. I thought as I got up and clenched my fists. ________ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it. I came to understand that some of you may think this story is dead or I''ve forgotten about it. No, I simply forgot to post on RRL or had too many things on my mind and kept getting distracted. Anyway, if you ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY can''t wait for the next chapters here on RRL, you can always go to my website to check the latest chapters of the story (currently up to chapter 36). The link is in my signature. Chapter 29: The final countdown [Kleo¡¯s point of view] ¡°Hm, it appears there are some strange individuals coming our way. One is a Paladin and the other an unawakened dragon, but he is quite strong.¡± said the man as he looked at the floating crystal. From where I was sitting, I couldn¡¯t see the crystal, but I had my guesses who those two could be. The only two people who were next to me when I got sent here were Alkelios and Iolaus. If it was my sister¡¯s lover, then he would certainly come over to save me, but the Paladin was probably aiming at severing his ties with me¡­ for good. In the past few hours since I woke up in this place, I came to realize a couple of things. First of all, these shackles were powerful enough to keep my magic at bay and sturdy enough to resist when I pulled on them with all of my strength. Although I could easily bend a human¡¯s steel sword, I was unable to rip these shackles apart. Second of all, this necromancer wasn¡¯t controlling the Dungeon. In fact, it was actively trying to destroy him, but he welcomed the attacks. Using a strange spell, he sent all the groups of monsters aiming for his life somewhere else. The first time I saw it was not long after I woke up. Two skeletons rushed into this room, but he simply held out his hands towards them and spoke in a strange language. In that moment, I felt the flow of Magic Energy shifting, and the monsters vanished. This event was repeated time and time again, but I never found out where exactly they were being sent. The last thing I found out was the reason as to why he wasn¡¯t killing me immediately. If he didn¡¯t want to destroy his own Magic Energy channels, he had to give himself time to adjust to the latest energy he absorbed before trying it again. In other words, my time was limited if I didn¡¯t free myself from these shackles or someone came to save me. On the bright side of things, he was planning on absorbing my Magic Energy only two days from now. It was more than enough time for my friends to come over and rescue me. Even so, I wasn¡¯t planning on sitting quietly until they did, I kept struggling with the shackles in an attempt to loosen them up a bit. My wrists hurt from my struggles, but even if I were to break them, I didn¡¯t plan on giving up. ¡°Maybe I should send a boss their way?¡± the man pondered. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± I asked him. ¡°Why should I tell you?¡± he snorted and then looked back at me. ¡°Nothing is 100% certain, dragon. They may still have a trump card up their sleeves, that¡¯s why I won¡¯t reveal any information regarding what I did and what I plan on doing. If you can guess, so be it. But I won¡¯t either confirm or deny it.¡± he smirked back at me. This man wasn¡¯t planning on letting me know anything. He was careful and saw our lives as nothing more than a way to boost his own power. As such, I didn¡¯t have any sort of doubt that he was the type to mercilessly kill all of us to obtain what he desired. My only worry was whether or not we were strong enough to defeat him. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] It¡¯s been a couple of hours since we were transported here. My [Dragon Tamer] tracking function would have been a good thing to use if we were on an open field, however, there were two problems with using it. On one hand, it was set to track Seryanna, and on the other hand, it was useless in a maze. At the moment, it was pointing behind me¡­ at the ceiling. ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired yet?¡± asked Iolaus as he leaned on a wall while I was picking up the loot from our recent kill. ¡°Not really¡­¡± I shrugged. ¡°You are a monster, and you aren¡¯t even awakened yet.¡± he shook his head. After our last bout, which resulted in me pummeling him into the ground, he kept quiet most of the time and when he spoke, he said things like that. ¡°I¡¯m done. Let¡¯s go.¡± I said as I continued to move on. The dragon groaned and whipped his tail in the air to show his annoyance. I ignored him and continued to march through those never-ending tunnels. The monsters varied from time to time, but the basic groups constituted of zombies, skeletons, and maybe a Lich or Dullahan. The other type of monsters we encountered were the giant undead scorpions, the undead snakes, and a drunk skeleton piano player. That last one was no joke. We actually encountered a drunk skeleton who played on the piano, and he was quite good too. We didn¡¯t kill him, just quietly walked up around him. As for bosses, there were none. We did arrive in what could be called a boss room, but it was empty. The chests were all empty along the way too, almost as if someone already went through this place and emptied it out right before we got there. Besides the nuggets and black dust, I didn¡¯t bother with collecting anything else because there was nothing else to collect, not even a rusty sword or damaged shield. Another thing I noticed was how often we encountered these undead groups. Instead of finding them in each room, we were lucky if we found a group once every 4 or 5 rooms. As for the tunnels, they were mostly empty. This led me to believe that maybe if not surely, we were quite lucky to spot those two groups when we got teleported here. ¡°Hey, Paladin Iolaus, did you ever visit another dungeon besides this one?¡± I asked him. ¡°While this may be the first time I entered this particular dungeon, I am experienced with other dungeons.¡± he declared proudly. ¡°Really? How often did you encounter monsters in those dungeons?¡± I asked him without turning my head around. ¡°Quite often actually. I am a bit surprised by the scarcity of the groups here. Normally, you don¡¯t find only one or two groups now and then.¡± he said as he looked down at the remains of the last group we killed. ¡°How many then?¡± I asked. ¡°You know¡­ I don¡¯t get it. You are incredibly powerful, yet I can tell you never stepped into a dungeon before.¡± he said and then shook his head. ¡°Aaand that matters why?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow back at him. ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s just that from what I know, an unawakened dragon can¡¯t get that powerful without training in a dungeon.¡± he explained and squinted his eyes at me. ¡°I lived in the Seculiar Forest until now.¡± I told him immediately. In the few days I spent away from Seryanna, I did wonder what I was going to tell those dragons who didn¡¯t know my secret, yet kept asking how I got so strong. One option was to say that I was trained in some far away dungeon, while the other was to say I lived in the Seculiar Forest. That place was known by all species to be one of the most dangerous places in the explored world. If it was the MOST dangerous in the whole world, it was debatable. Judging from what Seryanna told me about that Neutral aligned species who created dungeons, it was highly likely that on their continent, they had something far scarier than the Seculiar Forest. Iolaus didn¡¯t say anything else after I told him that. We continued to walk through the dungeon and killed off any monsters that popped in our way. For most of the time, I worried for Kleo¡¯s safety. With Kataryna up on the surface, I was certain my redhead dragoness wasn¡¯t going to get into too much trouble on her own. The village was probably safe as well for the time being, but something felt terribly off about this entire dungeon. The amount of monsters outside was outrageous, and they kept popping up one after another. They were like an endless wave, but why were they attacking in the first place? Why now? I thought after I destroyed another group. ¡°Where could Thraherkleyoseya be?¡± asked Iolaus, and did I actually sense a hint of worry in the tone of his voice? ¡°Not here by the looks of it. She¡¯s probably deeper inside the dungeon¡­¡± I said as I picked up the nuggets and ignored the dust. ¡°Why would a Dungeon abduct someone from the surface?¡± he asked. ¡°Doesn¡¯t stuff like this happen often?¡± I asked. ¡°No. Never! I have never heard of anything like this!¡± he shook his head. ¡°Is that so? Then maybe it wasn¡¯t the Dungeon who did this¡­¡± I thought and scratched the back of my head. While looking at the path ahead of me, I began to wonder if maybe this Dungeon also felt that it was in danger and was trying to attack the other threat. If that was so, then it was wasting a lot of energy against us here. Letting out a sigh, I looked up at the ceiling. ¡°Can a Dungeon understand our words?¡± I asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ What are you thinking?¡± Iolaus asked as he moved away from the wall he was leaning against. ¡°Something¡­ strange.¡± I replied. If this works, then I¡¯m a genius, if not¡­ at least I tried. I wish for this Dungeon to help us find Kleo. I closed my eyes as I expressed that wish, letting the 100 Luck do its job, when I opened my eyes, I looked at the path ahead of me. ¡°Shall we go?¡± asked Iolaus. ¡°Not yet.¡± I then took a deep breath and shouted at the top of my lungs ¡°Dungeon! I know you can hear and understand me!¡± I stopped and squinted my eyes. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Iolaus asked. ¡°Sh! Don¡¯t interrupt me.¡± I shooed him away. The Paladin crossed his arms and leaned on the wall next to me. ¡°Fine! Be crazy on your own.¡± he scorned. I ignored him, and shouted at the Dungeon again ¡°We are not your enemies! We wish to retrieve our friend, the black-scaled dragoness and leave this place! If you clear a path for us, even if it¡¯s next to your core, you have my promise that I won¡¯t try to destroy or harm you!¡± ¡°You maybe.¡± Iolaus commented with a smirk. ¡°You too, if you don¡¯t want me to rearrange the bones in your body.¡± I threatened him. ¡°Ugh¡­ fine¡­ me too.¡± he looked away and muttered something inaudible. I continued ¡°If there¡¯s someone down there who keeps her against her will and at the same time is using your monsters to attack the surface, I will try to defeat him! So, will you let us pass and show us the way, Dungeon?¡± This was my plan, but also a very long shot in the dark. Of course, who would believe that someone like me could talk some sense into an artificial creation with the only purpose of trying to eradicate all the adventurers daring to challenge her? Well, I was sort of betting on the idea that maybe¡­ just maybe, this Dungeon had an intelligence of sorts that could balance out the threats. If our status was changed from Enemy to Ally, then it would focus all of its energy on aiding us, not killing us. Of course, it could also just ignore us, but that was fine as well. A few minutes later, Iolaus let out a sigh. ¡°See! It didn¡¯t work!¡± he scoffed. ¡°Let¡¯s wait a little longer¡­ maybe it¡¯s thinking.¡± I told him. ¡°How to kill us maybe?¡± he smirked. ¡°It¡¯s better than nothing¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°Well, I¡¯m telling you, you are crazy! Something like talking to a Dungeon is prepooaAAA!¡± Iolaus wasn¡¯t able to finish his sentence as the wall behind him suddenly vanished and he fell on his back. ¡°You were saying?¡± I said as I walked over to him and showed him a smirk. ¡°This¡­ This can¡¯t be! I never heard of anything like this!¡± he said a bit bewildered as he got back up on his feet. ¡°It¡¯s a bit logical if you think about it. We aren¡¯t technically the Dungeon¡¯s enemies. We only want Kleo back not to conquer this place.¡± I shrugged and walked ahead. There was a straight path leading down. The walls were straight, barely illuminated by fluorescent crystals, but there were no traps or monsters on it. We still kept our guard up, but it was clear that this path was made for us in order to reach the one who was currently identified as an Enemy. My only question was if we were confronting a single individual or a group. ¡°Be on your guard, Iolaus¡­ We don¡¯t know what¡¯s up ahead.¡± I told him. ¡°That¡¯s Paladin Iolaus, and I know what¡¯s up ahead, a trap¡­ I¡¯m certain you led us straight into a trap!¡± he scoffed, but I ignored him. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. To be safe, I did use my 100 Luck. I wish we¡¯ll get out of this place safely. Although I hate it, I also wish for things to be resolved between Kleo and Iolaus. This hate between them is nonsensical¡­ just like my lack of desire to further Advance and Improve my [Dragon Tamer] skill. I thought. [Kleo¡¯s point of view] ¡°NO! Where are they?! Where are they?!¡± shouted the man as he grabbed his crystal with both hands. It appeared as though he had lost track of the two adventurers inside the dungeon. They certainly didn¡¯t die, they just vanished from within the tunnels, or maybe they just found that he was tracking them and somehow managed to avoid his spell? Inside my cage, I could only show a mocking smile. If it was indeed Alkelios who was inside the Dungeon, then this man was definitely underestimating him. He was the one and only human with an ability through which he could borrow the power of his dragon friends. I was one of them, but so was my sister, a knight, and Kataryna, who already achieved her Breakthrough. There was also the power borrowed from my grandfather, but what was amazing and simply mind blowing about this ability of his was the fact that he didn¡¯t steal this power from us, he copied it. In other words, the stronger we became, the stronger he became. The only thing I could worry about was the fact that this man before me could hold a similar ability as him, after all, he was able to bring me here against my will. ¡°This is strange¡­ I can¡¯t locate them. It¡¯s like the Dungeon swallowed them up!¡± he spoke in a clear tone of anger. I said nothing. Eventually, he grew tired of searching after them and moved away from the crystal. There was no point in trying to locate them if they found a way around his spell, but this in itself meant that they were more or less aware of the fact that they were being watched. Since I had no idea how exactly that spell of his worked, I didn¡¯t know what were the possible ways of interfering or dispelling it altogether. ¡°And we¡¯re here!¡± I heard Alkelios¡¯ voice coming all the way from outside of this room. ¡°It can¡¯t be¡­¡± the man looked worried and thought about what to do next. His gaze moved towards me and then back to his desk. Walking over there, he put on a ¡®Purse¡¯ ring and absorbed the entire lab. He proceeded to do the same with everything else in here, paying special attention to his papers written in some foreign language. He left nothing behind to be traced back to him. I stood there as his sole witness. ¡°Hmph!¡± he turned around and walked towards the exit. A mage staff appeared in his left hand. What¡¯s he up to? I wondered. ¡°Detonate.¡± he said before he left. A chill ran down my spine. The shackles around my wrists began to glow in a strong violet light, and strange characters appeared on them. They changed every second, counting down to something. ¡°No¡­ What is this?¡± I said surprised and tried hard to get out of my chains. I didn¡¯t know what it was, but it was scary. The Magic Energy that gathered in them was no joke, so I tried desperately to set myself free. ¡°Ugh! I can¡¯t¡­ I can¡¯t get them off¡­¡± I said struggling and struggling until my wrists began to bleed. I heard steps next to me, and I stopped for a moment to look back. There, in front of me stood Iolaus. His sword was drawn. ¡°Thraherkleyoseya¡­¡± he said as he looked in my eyes. Fear rushed through my whole body as I understood why he was here¡­ why any Paladin would stand before a chained Necromancer with his sword drawn. ¡°No please¡­¡± I squirmed back away from him and closed my eyes. [Iolaus¡¯ point of view] This absurd monster was out of his mind with him calling out for help from the Dungeon, but who was I say otherwise? Compared to him, I was weak. I could do nothing to stop him, but then again, no dragon ever tried something as crazy as this before, at least as far as I knew off. This dragon did say that he gained his absurd strength by living in the Seculiar Forest, which was renowned for the terrible dangers hidden within it, but I found it to be rather absurd. No one could survive on their own in that place! One of my seniors tried to challenge it before, but he failed miserably. He had a power level of 146, yet he returned without a hand and a terrible scar across his face. Even his own wife didn¡¯t recognize him. It cost him everything, yet this unawakened fellow claimed to have lived there? Maybe¡­ his strength could claim truth to his words, but something inside me didn¡¯t believe him. ¡°We¡¯re almost at the end of this tunnel¡­ ¡± I said as I walked behind him. ¡°Yeah. Wait one moment.¡± we both stopped, and he closed his eyes. ¡°[Kitty Eyes]!¡± he called out to one of his spells. His pupils turned from normal ones to those of a beastkin. They were slit horizontally. I had no idea what he was trying to do, but I waited patiently. Maybe it was some sort of scouting ability of his? If that was so, I never heard of a spell with such a weird name before. A few moments later, his eyes returned to normal. ¡°Here¡¯s the plan. You stay quiet, and I¡¯ll try to distract black-hooded fellow who kidnapped Kleo. While I pull him out of there, you will sneak past him and free Kleo.¡± he told me. ¡°Why should I trust you, and why would you trust me with Thraherkleyoseya¡¯s life?¡± I asked him while looking into his eyes. ¡°Well¡­¡± he looked away from me. ¡°What if I want to¡­ kill her?¡± I asked him, but those words weighed heavily on my soul. After what this unawakened dragon told me earlier today, I couldn¡¯t feel the same desire of killing my former lover. His words turned all of my morals upside down, but it wasn¡¯t the logic of those words themselves as much as the strength and confidence he put behind them. Maybe I was a failure as a Paladin? ¡°You hesitated now. That¡¯s why I¡¯m certain you won¡¯t. Besides, I wished for her not to get harmed and for us to rescue her safely. You certainly won¡¯t kill her and if you try to¡­ you will die. I guarantee this.¡± he told me with such a strength and confidence in his words that simply bewildered me. How can any dragon put so much faith and trust in an unknown future? I wondered. ¡°We¡¯re here¡­ Let¡¯s go.¡± he ordered. I nodded and unsheathed my sword. He moved ahead of me and turned left. I went right and hid inside the shadows of the labyrinth. There, I found a Skeleton Warrior. I stopped and gulped, raising my sword up. The monster looked at me and rattled his bones. It didn¡¯t attack, which was odd. ¡°And we¡¯re here!¡± shouted Alkelios. I heard him, but I feared that if I were to attack this skeleton or be attacked by it, then the one inside that room would have certainly noticed me. I pray to Lumenya, the goddess of Light, and Lumenos, her husband that what he said about the Dungeon being our temporary ally is true¡­ Then again, what was that dragon¡¯s name? By the gods, I will die following a man whose name I couldn¡¯t even remember! I thought in my mind while I stared into the dark, empty holes of the dragon skeleton before me. Surprisingly, it didn¡¯t move. He didn¡¯t attack me. While a bit bewildered by this fact, I noticed the hooded man leaving the room. I knew that was my cue, so I ignored the monster here and rushed inside. It didn¡¯t give chase after me. There, I found Thraherkleyoseya¡­ Her wrists were bleeding from her struggles to break free from her shackles, which looked enchanted for that matter. How much did she struggle to end up like this? I thought and a chill rand down my spine. The blood kept flowing from her wounds and for now, she didn¡¯t seem to be aware of me, but the more I looked at her, the more I saw a woman, a former lover, trying to break free of her chains and not so much a fierce necromancer who had to be put down. I stopped in front of her cage, and it was then when she noticed me. Looking up at me, tears ran down her cheeks. She was frightened. I thought necromancers are heartless monsters¡­ Darkness corrupts them¡­ So why¡­ why are you crying? I asked myself as I felt my heart waver. ¡°Thraherkleyoseya¡­¡± I called out to her, but I stopped. What am I going to say? No¡­ whatever that dragon said to me is a lie! I have to kill her here! In the name of my gods¡­ I have to kill her¡­ I have to kill this¡­ this¡­ I thought and gripped the hilt of my sword. ¡°No please¡­¡± she squirmed back until she touched the wall. With her hands up and closing her eyes, she trembled and tried to protect herself from me. Blood flowed down her wrists, her skin was cut and ripped apart from her attempts to free herself. Tears were rushing down her cheeks, and her whole body was trembling. While in front of such a woman, I held my sword in my hand ready to kill her. ¡°Please¡­ please don¡¯t hurt me, Iolaus¡­¡± she whimpered. My heart froze in that instant. My own hand trembled as I opened the gate. ¡°Please¡­¡± she begged me. My gods demands the death of all necromancers¡­ They demand me to slay you¡­ to kill you, Thraherkleyoseya, for justice, for peace, for¡­ love¡­ I thought and then raised my sword up. Love? I thought again. I remembered that dragon¡¯s words. I remembered what he said about what it means to love. I remembered my own words. No! I shook my head and clenched my jaws and fists. My whole body was tense and trembling, but not out of fear but from indecision. If she didn¡¯t have this power¡­ then I would have kept loving her¡­ I still do¡­ the old her, but¡­ I stopped and grabbed my face, struggling with my thoughts. ¡°I can¡¯t use magic¡­ These chains will kill me anyway¡­ If I¡¯m to die¡­ then at least I¡¯ll die by your hands¡­¡± Thraherkleyoseya said something unthinkable. Lowering her hands and crying rivers, she looked up at me with an expression that sent countless spears of guilt and pain in my chest. It appeared as though she was at wit¡¯s end. She saw no escape. Her only chance, the unawakened dragon¡­ wasn¡¯t there. Instead, I was here, the man who betrayed her¡­ the man who loved her¡­ ¡°Thraherkleyoseya¡­¡± I said and raised my sword up. She closed her eyes and waited. The runes on her cuffs were changing faster. Now was the moment of truth¡­ my final choice. She was right here before me, defenseless, easy to kill. I can¡¯t betray my gods¡­ The gods of Light! The¡­ I stopped and then I remembered¡­ the god of Darkness Nocturnia. The gods¡­ the stories¡­ No, why am I thinking of such? I shook my head, but the memory returned, the story of two ancient lovers Lumenos is the husband of Nocturnia as well¡­ She is his second wife, but while the Temple of Light views her as an impostor, a thief, a liar, Lumenos isn¡¯t. How can a god of Light share his love both with a goddess of Light and one of Darkness¡­ unless¡­ I remembered what the unawakened dragon told me again about love, about what it meant to truly love someone¡­ ¡°AARGH!¡± I shouted at the top of my lungs and swung down my sword. My decision was made, but through it¡­ I wondered if I betrayed my gods? ________ Note from the Author: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :) Chapter 30: A battle between two heroes [Kleo¡¯s point of view] ¡°Please¡­ please don¡¯t hurt me, Iolaus¡­¡± I whimpered. Just knowing and thinking that I was alone right now with this man brought shivers down my spine. Now of all times, I had no means of defending myself, no means of fighting him back. Iolaus was indeed a lover mine. I loved him and gave myself to him completely, but then he changed. From a kind, wonderful lover, he turned into monster willing to hunt me down no matter what. It was normal¡­ My goddess was Nocturnia, while his were Lumenya and Lumenos, those who were portrayed as the perfect lovers by the Temple of Light. How could I be considered one worthy of his love and embrace, when I was dirty and touched by the Darkness element? Ever since he found out, he never forgave me, he never accepted me¡­ he betrayed me. Now, my sister couldn¡¯t protect me. My grandfather couldn¡¯t protect me. Even my friend, Aleklios, wasn¡¯t here¡­ Who was I to rely on? I was chained and weak. There was nothing to hide, there was nowhere to run, so I did the only thing I could, I trembled in fear. ¡°Please¡­¡± I begged him with tears in my eyes, but I doubted he would listen. Why would he? How could he listen when all he heard were the teachings of a religion? Still, he hesitated in finishing me off swiftly. Why are you taking your time? I wondered. With fearful eyes, I looked down at my chains and saw the purple characters changing faster and faster. Did he notice this was a magic bomb? Is he waiting for me to die because of this thing? I don¡¯t want to¡­ I thought and bit my lower lip until I drew blood. When in front of making a choice, did he believe that he would stain his sword if he killed me? Is it better in his eyes if I am killed by this thing? I wondered. My heart was beating so fast from the fear, I could barely think straight. Seeing myself like this, without hope, without a chance to do anything else¡­ I was left to wonder what was there left for me to do even after I left this place. That¡¯s right¡­ there¡¯s nowhere I can go¡­ Nowhere to run¡­ Nowhere to hide. I¡¯m a necromancer¡­ I bring only bad luck and death to those around me. I know this¡­ yet¡­ I only hoped for a future for myself as well. I wanted to be free and smile¡­ Why wasn¡¯t I allowed to do this? Why was I chased by the Temple of Light? What did I do wrong? I thought, and my tears didn¡¯t stop flowing. The more I thought about it, the more I came to realize how hopeless my current situation was. Even if I survived, the Paladins would certainly send message to all the Temples of Light inside an outside of the kingdom. I would be soon found guilty of breathing and put to death no matter who my grandfather and sister were. Maybe I¡¯ve troubled them enough? I thought as I felt hope leaving me. Looking back up, I saw him struggling with his sword in his hands. Ah? Why is he hesitating? I looked down at my chains. He must be wondering how it is best to kill me¡­ I smiled to my self. Without a drop of hope left in my soul, I smiled back at him, and said ¡°I can¡¯t use magic¡­ These chains will kill me anyway¡­ If I¡¯m to die¡­ then at least I¡¯d like to die by your hands¡­¡± It was better than being slain by a bomb. At least, I would be killed by a man I once loved and maybe¡­ maybe I still do a little? ¡°Thraherkleyoseya¡­¡± he said and raised his sword up. I closed my eyes and waited the inevitable. I was just born unlucky¡­ that was all. The gods never favored me anyway¡­ unlike they did my sister, Alkelios, or Kataryna. If I had the strength, I wouldn¡¯t need to worry about my place, but something like that was but a dream¡­ a fickle of my own cursed imagination. ¡°AARGH!¡± Iolaus shouted at the top of his lungs. This is it. I thought and held my breath. My life was at it¡¯s end. I heard a clank, but I didn¡¯t feel pain. Opening my eyes, I saw Iolaus leaning over, with his face at just a palm away from mine. He was sweating hard, his brow was furrowed, his jaw clenched, and his whole body shivered. ¡°The gods may curse me if they will, but¡­ I can¡¯t do this¡­¡± he said and then looked down. I was bewildered. I couldn¡¯t even express myself. Did he¡­ did he refuse to kill me? What¡¯s he doing? I thought. Before I realized what happened, my wrists were free again, and he wrapped a hand around my waist. ¡°W-what are you d-doing?¡± I asked in a shivering tone of voice. ¡°Saving a necromancer I love.¡± he retorted and pulled me towards him, but he didn¡¯t kiss me, he just hid me behind his shield. ¡°What?¡± I asked. But before he could answer, there was a powerful explosion behind me, and I saw Iolaus as he struggled to keep the flames away. The shield was eating at his Magic Energy at an accelerated rate. Considering the explosion¡¯s strength, I would have certainly died if I got caught within it. Those shackles were a clever trap. They seeped away at a dragon¡¯s magic, preventing them from casting any spells, including a Magic Barrier of any sort. Without it, they were at the mercy of the explosion. Even Kataryna would have had a hard time surviving something of that magnitude. When it was over, Iolaus was breathing hard and smirking back at me. ¡°If you know how to put a pair of these on a dragon, you also know how to get out of them¡­ the metal hook between the two halves is strong against pulling, but fragile against the edge of a sword¡­ With enough strength, anyone can cut them¡­ open¡­¡± he said and then fell over me. He was completely exhausted, barely keeping his eyes open and even trembling a little. Iolaus exerted the last bit of strength he had left in his body in order to protect me, not caring if afterwards I could do anything to take my revenge on him. ¡°You idiot¡­¡± I said with tears in my eyes as I looked at him. ¡°If I¡¯m your worst enemy¡­ why show me this weak side of yours?¡± I flicked his forehead gently. Iolaus didn¡¯t reply, he was too exhausted and in the end fainted, so I let him rest. Staying there wouldn¡¯t have been a good idea, so I placed him down on his shield and using my magic, I controlled the shadows underneath it. Without him infusing his body and armor with magic, the Light element couldn¡¯t manifest and burn them away. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here¡­¡± I said as I looked back at him. [Alkelios¡¯ point of view] While Iolaus was going to retrieve Kleo, I planned on luring out the black-hooded man and defeat him. If I could bring him out alive, I would, but I feared that with my enhanced stats, I would crush him like a flea. Regarding the Paladin, I was quite certain he wasn¡¯t going to harm Kleo. If there was even 1% chance that something was going to happen to keep him from doing so, my 100 Luck would make sure of it. Thus, my only concern was the one who dragged us here. After I announced my presence in this place, I hid behind a nearby wall and waited for him come looking for me. The one thing I had to worry about was if he was the type to skip introductions or not. I was hoping for the latter because I wanted to get some information out of him. Where is he? I wondered as I took a peak around the corner. There was no one there. All of a sudden, I felt a chill run down my back and instinctively jumped out of there, landing a few steps in front. A sword¡¯s blade cut into the wall, right where my neck was supposed to be. The hell?! I shouted in my mind and saw the black-hooded man standing there. ¡°Lucky little lizard¡­¡± he said annoyed. I got up on my feet and drew my sword, however, I was a bit confused about how he got there. Behind me was a dead end, so there was no way he could have sneaked up past me. Can he turn invisible? I wondered. ¡°Who are you? Why are you doing this?¡± I questioned him. The man only smirked and then spoke in English, but with a British accent. ¡°If you knew, you primitive, you would be surprised!¡± ¡°What?¡± I replied, but I did so in the Eastern Draconic language. The man simply shook his head and let out sigh. I thought about using this moment to charge at him, but just then, he vanished from my sight. This sudden display of his ability took me by surprise, and I was stunned for a moment. A flash of light was caught in the corners of my eyes, and I moved out of its way, dodging his blade by millimeters. ¡°You dodged again. That¡¯s odd.¡± he said. The black-hooded man was sitting right behind me. Turning around, I was at a sword¡¯s length away from him, but he didn¡¯t seem concerned about it. He¡¯s fast¡­ I didn¡¯t even see him move. I thought.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. It wasn¡¯t impossible to believe that there were individuals out there who could run faster than the eyes could see, but I didn¡¯t feel the movement of air around me, no sudden gust of wind as a result of this superhuman action. This man simply vanished and then reappeared at the same time. Only my skills and most likely Luck was what saved me from instant death. Before he had the chance to vanish again, I looked at him and said ¡°Status of target!¡± The following information was displayed before my eyes: [Name]: Unknown [Species]: Human [Level]: 264 [Unknown Stats] When I read those details, I was surprised and astonished at the same time. This man, he wasn¡¯t a dragon, and more than that, he was a human. Although, I should have guessed that the moment he spoke in English. ¡°You¡­ You are a human?¡± I asked and looked back at him with big eyes. ¡°What? How did you know?¡± he pointed his sword at me. Without a doubt, he was the same as me, a human from Earth. ¡°USA or UK?¡± I asked him calmly. There was a moment of silence between us, and he lowered his weapon. ¡°UK¡­ but how? Where are you from?¡± he asked me. ¡°Romania.¡± I replied. ¡°Ah, the land of gypsies¡­¡± he said with a bit of disgust in the tone of his voice. ¡°No, they are a minority there¡­ and Romanians aren¡¯t gypsies.¡± I retorted. ¡°In this world it matters not, so you are the same as me then? A hero brought here by the God-like? Why are you on the side of the enemy?¡± he asked me. ¡°What enemy? You are the one who attacked us!¡± I pointed my finger at him. ¡°Because I believed you are an unawakened dragon. But answer me! Why are you taking the side of those monsters!¡± he shouted. ¡°Monsters?¡± Hearing him say that shocked me. From my point of view, none of the dragons I met could be called monsters. Some of them were idiots, indeed, but they weren¡¯t vicious beasts who ripped apart everyone who stood in their way. Heck, my lover was a dragoness. ¡°Don¡¯t you know?¡± he asked. ¡°Know what?¡± I replied furrowing my brow. ¡°Humans are at war with Dragons for the past countless centuries. Dragons are brutes and monsters who wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill us the moment they saw us! If they let us live it¡¯s only to toy with us!¡± he declared in a bitter tone of voice. What?I know they are at war, but they never seemed to be¡­ I mean, considering what I¡¯ve been through, why would I ever believe such words? I thought and my resolve stood firm. ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t wish to kill a fellow human, especially a hero from Earth. We all want to save our precious planet, after all¡­ that¡¯s why we were brought to this primitive planet.¡± he spoke in a rather superior tone of voice. For some reason, he was starting to annoy me. I had the feeling this guy was one of the not-so-sane-and-polite British people. Or in other words, the type even his own countrymen would find unpleasant to hang around with. ¡°Lower your sword and join me! If you will continue to live together with these monsters, you will only have to suffer! They will abandon you! They will harm you!¡± he clenched his fist and spoke with an incredible conviction and determination in the tone of his voice. It was almost like there was no other way besides HIS. ¡°I don¡¯t believe it¡­ I¡¯ve met some very decent dragons who became my friends.¡± I retorted. ¡°They are just lying to you!¡± he scoffed. ¡°You never met or spoke with any of them, how can you be so biased?¡± I questioned him. ¡°Because unlike you, I¡¯ve been on the battlefield! I¡¯ve seen the horrors they are capable of! I know they never show mercy towards our kind! Friendship? It¡¯s only a lie! I¡¯m certain they wouldn¡¯t even let you shake your hand out of disgust because you are a human!¡± he shouted. Well, Kataryna tries to drag me into her bed, Seryanna kisses me, Kleo hugs me, Brekkar almost broke my hand with his powerful handshake, the lovely maids at the mansion helped me with a lot of things, and the list goes on. I thought to myself as I remembered all those moments, and among them, Seryanna¡¯s kiss under the rain was the most beautiful of them all. ¡°I¡¯m pretty certain that¡¯s not true.¡± I said squinting my eyes at him. ¡°You are just a fool¡­¡± he sighed and shook his head. ¡°Maybe¡­¡± I replied and entered a stance. ¡°Although you aren¡¯t a dragon, I can feel that you are quite powerful. I will enjoy stealing your Magic Energy, but relax¡­ I won¡¯t kill you. Once you are weak and helpless, you will see for yourself how quickly these dragon friends of yours will take to abandoning you.¡± he smirked and then the room around us changed. We were in an open room with a high ceiling and walls covered in strange inscriptions. On one of them, I could see a big, black crystal, pulsing from the stored Magic Energy inside of it. At this moment, I realized what this human¡¯s ability was. Teleportation¡­ I thought and raised my guard. ¡°Show Status.¡± said the man with a smirk. I looked at him and prepared myself for an attack. ¡°Such a low level when compared to me¡­ This will be an easy win.¡± he then slashed the sword in the air. ¡°ARGH!¡± I groaned as I felt the cut on my left hand, forcing me to drop my sword. What happened? I asked myself a I looked at my bleeding hand. The cut was in the only place where my armor was weaker. It wasn¡¯t that deep, but I couldn¡¯t hold the sword properly now. ¡°You have no chance of winning against me.¡± he declared arrogantly. I wish I will win this battle! I wish to beat this bastard! I wish to get out of this place alive and without my power stolen from me! I thought as I quickly set the grounds with my 100 Luck. He tried to cut me again, but I let instinct guide me. The blade came from the left this time, towards my right leg. I avoided the injury by jumping to the left. Without a weapon at hand, I was defenseless, so I tried to grab it again. ¡°I won¡¯t let you!¡± he shouted and the sword vanished. This skill of his is powerful! I thought, but I already began to think of its limitations. For once, I didn¡¯t think he could teleport something inside my body or off of it. He could probably teleport me, but there had to be some conditions to that as well just like there were with my [Dragon Tamer] skill. After all, it would have been incredibly easy for me to just go around making ¡®friends¡¯ and gaining insane stats, but the limit imposed was the fact that it had to be a mutual and honest thing. Not anyone could be my friend, and not anyone was willing to be my friend. I couldn¡¯t go over their right to an opinion. Maybe there was something like that attached to this skill of his as well. Then there was the cost of this ability. Unlike the [Dragon Tamer], this one was an active skill which required Magic Energy. Considering the effect, it was probably a spell that needed a lot, and unlike dragons, humans had a lower Magic Energy pool. Fortunately, I had other abilities that didn¡¯t need a sword. ¡°[Air Barrier]! [Earthquake]!¡± I called out. The ground began to shake under our feet, and a barrier of air formed around me, stopping his next blade attack. The tip of the sword didn¡¯t materialize inside the barrier but outside of it. ¡°You can use spells too? Interesting¡­¡± he muttered to himself and then jumped back. Instinctively, I jumped at the same time and a boulder fell on the spot I was sitting. If I didn¡¯t move, it would have crushed me or at the very least distracted me while I tried to get out. ¡°[Earth Arrow]!¡± I shouted and conjured the next spell. Unfortunately, without an instant and silent cast, I gave away both the type and timing of my attack. He simply lifted his hand up and the arrow vanished and reappeared behind me. The barrier deflected it, and I was able to run to the left. What can I do against him? I thought. My biggest problem right now was the way I had to use tactics. Unlike in a game, where you could eventually pause and think about what to do next or even study the battle beforehand, I had to think on the spot. With my lack of experience in fighting opponents on equal grounds, I made a lot of mistakes. Instead of being on the attack, I was on the defensive, constantly trying to avoid his teleporting blades and my own repelled attacks. Also, for some reason, I kept attacking him with more ranged spells as if the first one wasn¡¯t proof enough that they didn¡¯t work on him! In short, I was panicking and couldn¡¯t think straight. I was in a very dangerous position¡­ What can I do? At this rate, I¡¯ll be the one defeated! Is he that much stronger than me? I thought and struggled to dodge his attacks. Seeing that he wasn¡¯t able to get me that easily, the man suddenly vanished and appeared before me. With a powerful strike of his blade, the barrier vanished around me and then he struck me in the face with all of his might. Worst of all, I forgot to dodge this time around. This is going to hurt¡­ I thought and closed my eyes. ¡°Huh?¡± I felt a light bump on my face, but nothing else happened. Opening my eyes, I saw him holding his fist and groaning. Was that it? ¡°Did you punch me?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°YES! What¡¯s your face made out of? Concrete?!¡± he shouted. ¡°Huh?¡± his words surprised me because I didn¡¯t fully processed what happened. Is it possible that¡­ I thought and looked at his sword ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus].¡± I said calmly. (Sword of Thonbar): Legendary sword wielded by the now dead human general Thonbar. It has the power to ignore Magic Defense. Upon imbue with Magic Energy, it has the property to cut 10 times better than an ordinary Steel Sword. Being made out of Draconium, a legendary metal that can easily absorb Magic Energy and by doing so increasing its endurance, it is far more sturdy than an ordinary Steel Weapon. So the reason he was able to cut me was because of his sword¡­ Is it possible that he isn¡¯t actually that powerful? I wondered and to test it out, I activated [Dash] and moved in front of him. I punched him in the face, and at the same time, I grabbed his sword out of his hand. These actions were done in the course of a split second. The man didn¡¯t even know what hit him, but I was 100% sure my fist didn¡¯t meet any sort of resistance when it hit his face. As a result of this, the man was thrown into the wall on the other side of the room. I didn¡¯t worry about killing him because I didn¡¯t use my full strength. Besides, as a level 264, I was certain he had some interesting stats, but he couldn¡¯t compare in strength to my girlfriend or even Kleo for that matter. He probably underestimated me by believing I had the same stats as he did when he was my level. After all¡­ ¡®Show Status¡¯ doesn¡¯t show my true stats, which are ridiculously boosted thanks to my friends. I thought with an inner smile. Once again, I was glad I decided to be friends with the dragons. ¡°Huh? So it¡¯s like that¡­¡± I said and then rushed towards him before he recovered. I kicked him in the stomach. The shock caused him to drop down on his knees and vomit up his food. I had but a split second to avoid the mess, but with this, I knew the man was far too weak to fight against me. His only advantage were his skills and his sword, while I had the pure, awesome brute strength of several dragons. ¡°You¡¯re done.¡± I said and pulled back his hood, revealing his face. He was a blond male several years older than me, with half of his face burnt and covered in hideous scar tissue. It looked really nasty, and I could only imagine the pain and suffering he went through when he got it. A fire accident maybe? I thought unaware of the true story behind it. There was something else I noticed about him then. He wore a leather collar with a black lock attached to it. Several runes were inscribed on it with black ink, and I could feel the presence of Magic Energy pulsing from within them. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I asked him. He opened his mouth, but the runes on his collar started to glow yellow. Instead of telling his name, he smirked. The runes calmed down as a result. ¡°What¡¯s with this collar? Tell me!¡± I tried ordering him, but he wasn¡¯t willing to reply. At least, as long as I held him by his hood, he couldn¡¯t teleport away, or so I thought. ¡°Pika Boo Blink.¡± that was all he said and then he vanished from my sight. I was left there alone, holding only a perfectly cut piece of his hood. Angered, I tossed it aside. ¡°That coward!¡± I shouted. Apparently, his skill worked that way as well. I was a fool for thinking that as long as I had my hands on the item, he wouldn¡¯t be able to use it, but with a level of 264, he probably upgraded it a couple of times or maybe he focused only on that one skill? At the very least, I got his sword as loot. Putting it in my scabbard, I walked over to the black crystal and looked at it. ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus].¡± I said, and the following information appeared before me. (Dungeon): Difficulty rank: Heroic. Type: Necromancer. [Level too low to investigate any further.] I sighed and closed the message. ¡°During our battle, we could have shattered you, and you know very well that I have the power to do so, but I made you a promise, and I won¡¯t do it. Just point me towards the exit.¡± I told the dungeon. On the opposite wall of this room, a pathway opened up. I walked through it and left the place. All I had to do now was find Kleo and return to the surface with them. The Dungeon was certainly not going to pose a danger to me now. Still, the fact that I wasn¡¯t able to get any sort of information out of that human hero was annoying me. I wanted to know who sent him here, why, and if there were more like us on this continent. Maybe there were more ways than one of getting here? [Somewhere on the outskirts of Drakaria, the capital of the Albeyater Kingdom] The human hero with the weird teleportation ability appeared near the old ruins of a house. He was breathing hard and showed the signs of Magic Energy exhaustion. Although, he wasn¡¯t showing it, he had three broken ribs and a lot of bruises on his body. To get rid of them, he popped the cork of a small bottle and drank its contents to the last drop. With a sigh of relief, he sat down on an empty log and looked up at sky. ¡°To think there were other humans from Earth living on this continent¡­ Too bad for him¡­¡± he shook his head and got up. With a wobbly step, he headed towards Drakaria, the city where his master lived. Chapter 31: The impossible promise [Alkelios'' point of view] We returned to the surface without any trouble. Both Iolaus and Kleo were safe, although, I found out that the big paladin ended up fainting somewhere along the way. My guess was that he probably saw a spider, screamed like a little girl, then slammed into a wall and it was lights out for him! While I traveled through those dark and damp corridors, the monsters here allowed us to pass without any problems, while none of the traps activated. The dungeon was apparently keeping its word, but once we were out of this place, I was 100% sure we would return to being enemies. Dungeons in this world weren''t living beings, they were magic constructs designed to help adventurers grow in power or simply crush them without mercy. As such, they held only basic cognitive functions if any at all. What worried me wasn''t the dungeon, but the human who was able to teleport into this place. Whatever happened to him turned him into a monster even by my standards. The unreasonable hate towards the dragon kind was probably explained if he landed in a battlefield somewhere, but it didn''t explain why he was here, on the Dragon Continent. If he wanted to fight against dragons, then it would have been better for him to join other human crusaders and storm their fortresses and castles, taking their land piece by piece. The way he was doing things was akin to a child who wanted to annoy people. Unfortunately, he was a very powerful child with the ability to teleport instantly whenever and whereever he wished. As far as I could tell, he had no limits, or rather none I could identify as of yet. ¡°This is going to be troublesome...¡± I groaned as I stepped out of the dungeon. Outside, the sky was really cloudy, foretelling a storm. As for what time it was, I had no idea, maybe morning? Inside the dungeon, I lost track of how many hours I spent lurking through those dark, damp corridors. Alas, it was time for us to return to our friends and bring home the good news. ¡°We''re finally out... I thought I was going to die in there!¡± Kleo was relieved to see the sky one more time. ¡°If you did, your sister would have made me dug you out of there with a pickaxe. Considering the chances, I would have found you... eventually.¡± I showed her a wry smile, and she laughed. ¡°Yes, that would be quite true! Hahaha!¡± ¡°Well, let''s go back to them... They must be resting after the long battle.¡± I smiled. Carrying the unconscious Paladin on his shield, we made our way back to the village. The signs of a great battle were everywhere. The ground was charred, scarred, and turned over. It was like a rampaging monster was set loose here, or dragonesses for that matter. We didn''t see any undead on our way to the village. With the black-hooded fellow gone, the dungeon probably resumed normal activities and called back all of its forces. We did pass by quite a number of them on our way out, but none of them attacked us. Upon arriving at the village, we were greeted by a very worried redheaded dragoness. She rushed out the moment she spotted us. ¡°Alkelios! Kleo!¡± she called out. ¡°We''re back!¡± I replied waving my hand. Stopping in front of us, Seryanna smiled and said ¡°I''m glad to see both of you alright. What happened?¡± she looked behind us at the knocked out paladin and then back at me ¡°Is he alright?¡± ¡°Erm, a lot... As for this fellow, well... I don''t know.¡± I shrugged and looked back at Kleo ¡°Apparently he saved her...¡± I added, and the dragoness confirmed with a small nod. ¡°This guy?¡± Seryanna didn''t believe it. ¡°Well, it''s fine for now. Let''s get back to the village and grab something to eat... I''m starving!¡± I said placing a hand over my stomach to stop it from growling. ¡°We are a bit hungry and tired...¡± Kleo smiled weakly. ¡°I understand.¡± Seryanna nodded and then embraced me. ¡°I''m glad you are alright, both of you.¡± she said. After we dropped off the ''extra luggage'' with the nearest paladins, we were guided to one of the homes provided to us as a temporary shelter. Apparently, the locals were very happy by the fact that we saved their scaly behinds from the threat of an undead invasion. Once we ate a healthy meal, both me and Kleo told our individual parts of the story. I spared no details and explained in detail what I came to find out about the black-hooded fellow, including that he was human from my original world. ¡°If all humans that came from there are just as powerful, then... we might be faced with a crisis.¡± Kataryna said as she was rubbing her chin. Both her and Seryanna had been listening with a serious expression on their faces, but this was the first time either of them said anything. ¡°We don''t know for certain. I for one know I had an unusual growth both due to my extreme Luck and the [Dragon Tamer] skill.¡± I nodded. ¡°Why do you think so?¡± Seryanna furrowed her brow as she looked at me. ¡°These skills were said to be rather unique. Given how ridiculous their names are most of the times, someone with a cool and rational head on their shoulders would try to find a pattern or something in order to get the best skills possible. To be honest, most of my skills were attained only and only thanks to Luck!¡± I let out a long sigh as I remembered how confusing the first time was for me. ¡°Why do you think so?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°I have a skill called [Lightning Chicken!] which allows me to summon a Phoenix of level 999 or higher.¡± I replied while squinting my eyes at her. ¡°Point taken... I would have thought you could summon a delicacy or prank pet with it...¡± said Kataryna. ¡°Ah! Speaking of pets, I wonder what happened to your squirrel? I never got the chance to see it.¡± I accidentally changed the subject. ¡°It dropped by when you were experimenting in your laboratory. It stayed at the mansion a few days. Grandfather is taking care of it, but considering the season, it''s probably out there looking for a mate.¡± she shrugged. ¡°I see... too bad. I was curious to see how it looked like.¡± I said. ¡°When we get to the capital, we can drop by a pet shop, and I''ll show you one.¡± she smiled. ¡°Haaa... I never had a pet.¡± Kataryna shook her head. ¡°Not enough time for one?¡± I asked her. ¡°No... Never found one that I liked. I don''t want to get a pet that''s... well... doesn''t feel right for me.¡± she shrugged since she had a hard time explaining the reason. ¡°I see. What about Kleo?¡± I looked over at her. ¡°I made a contract with a denizen of the Underworld. Cute fellow, long scythes, lurks in the shadows, listens to my orders as long as I supply him with Magic Energy.¡± she described something very terrifying. ¡°That''s a minion not a pet.¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Well, if you are wondering if I have something ALIVE and of THIS world, then the answer is no... I don''t. Like Kataryna, I never found a... suitable one.¡± she showed me a wry smile. ¡°Did you want a pet?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°Yeah...¡± I shrugged. ¡°Well, if you can find a monster hatchling or egg, you could try and tame one as a pet. If it''s a combat pet, even better.¡± Seryanna nodded. ¡°Is your squirrel a combat pet?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°No. It''s a wild pet.¡± she shook her head. ¡°Huh?¡± I furrowed my brow in confusion. ¡°There are fluffy pets you keep for petting. They tend to spend a lot of time around you, enjoying cuddles and being cute. There are travel pets you can ride like a Khosinni. There are wild or adventurous pets, which you keep for a few weeks, then you release them in the wild. They drop by periodically to check up on you because they see you as part of their family or pack. Then there are the combat pets, which follow you everywhere and instead of petting, they are more used to fighting by your side.¡± Kleo explained. ¡°Oh, and the wild pets can also be used to establish hunting grounds to keep off poachers. As part of his family or pack, you are allowed to hunt in his territory, but he will attack or come and warn you the moment he sees a poacher or dangerous predator lurking around.¡± Seryanna added her bit to the explanation. ¡°I see... And here I was thought ALL of them were just for hugs and cuddles.¡± I scratched the back of my head. ¡°No, those are only the fluffy ones. Innocent fellows and very tasty as emergency food!¡± pointed out Kataryna. ¡°Erm...¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°What?¡± she blinked surprised. ¡°Nothing.¡± I shook my head. A moment of silence fell upon us, then both me and Kleo let out big yawns. Looking at each other, we began to laugh. ¡°We should head off to bed.¡± Seryanna said. ¡°Indeed. The past few days had been... tiring.¡± Kataryna sighed. With everyone agreeing, we took a quick bath. The dragonesses were first, then I was the last one. To be honest, I did try to peek, but I ended up stopping when I heard the following threat: ¡°I don''t mind if you peek at me, Alkelios, but if you peek at Kataryna or Kleo, you''re sleeping in the dungeon.¡± And before I got the chance to do so, I pulled back and tip-toed away. That night, Kleo and Kataryna slept in one room, while Seryanna and I in the other. Although we kissed and hugged as lovers would, we didn''t proceed to the next step. I was too tired, and I felt like it was too soon. My teenage instincts were still screaming at me to not be such an idiot, but there was time... It wasn''t like Seryanna was going anywhere. The following morning, I woke up around noon. I was the only one in bed. With barely opened eyes, I stretched my muscles a bit and walked out of the room. I was greeted by Kataryna. ¡°Good morning, sleepyhead.¡± she said with a smirk. ¡°Huh? Morning... What time is it?¡± I asked. ¡°One hour past noon. You slept for almost 48 hours.¡± she giggled. ¡°Huh? That much?! I didn''t feel a thing...¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Neither did Kleo. Fufufu!¡± she giggled again. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°The two of you were far more tired than you let on to be. Honestly, we were starting to get worried, until Kleo started snoring, and you mumbled something about Seryanna''s breasts in your sleep.¡± she laughed. ¡°What? I did what?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°You said they were so bouncy and good to grope... and that you wouldn''t mind having her as your woman for the rest of your life, to spoil, love, caress, and do all sort of things together with her.¡± she smirked. ¡°Huh?¡± I was getting confused and a bit scared at the same time. What sort of things did I say while I was asleep? I wondered.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°You should have seen her blushing! She even slapped you to wake up, but no reaction.¡± Kataryna laughed. ¡°Urk...¡± I was getting embarrassed myself. ¡°Well, anyway, get changed and meet us in kitchen. We''re going to have a light breakfast and then leave.¡± she told me. ¡°Is everything safe?¡± I asked. She nodded and then replied ¡°Yes. After you returned, no more undead came out, and the dungeon returned to normal. The sky also cleared up, so we can travel at ease.¡± ¡°I see... Well, I''ll be right there.¡± I said and returned to my room. Did I really say all of those things in my sleep? Or is she pulling my leg? I wondered as I got changed. Once I entered the kitchen, Seryanna blushed like an innocent lady and looked away. ¡°G-Good morning, Alkelios.¡± she said. Oh boy... I thought as her overly honest reaction revealed the truth about this matter. Kleo was enjoying her steak. I ate quietly. Not even a single word was spoken, but Kataryna was trying hard not to laugh at us. When it was over, Seryanna approached me. While the other two left the room, she gently pulled the sleeve of my shirt and looked down, blushing cutely. ¡°Y-You... d-do you really love my chest that m-much?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm... I love all of you... chest included...¡± I smiled. Except for the fact that she''s a dragon. a wild thought appeared. Ignore was used. Ignore was highly effective. Wild thought vanished. ¡°I love you, Seryanna.¡± I said, and my arms were wrapped around her, embracing her lovingly. Our lips touched, and I offered her a soft kiss. She replied with a cute moan and moved closer to me. ¡°There you go, five silvers.¡± said Kataryna from the window. ¡°Ugh... Here. I was so sure she would keep quiet about it. Guess my sister is bolder than I thought.¡± Kleo said as she passed the coins over. Looking over, we saw the two very curious dragonesses grinning their tails off. ¡°You two...¡± I muttered. Meanwhile, Seryanna was trying hard to hide her embarrassed expression. Cute... I thought. ¡°W-we should go now...¡± I said with a forced smile while being very embarrassed about this myself. ¡°Mhm...¡± Seryanna nodded in approval. After that strange moment, we packed out things and made our way over to where we ''parked'' our Khosinni. My suggestion about using [Speedy Rooster] was once more met with a heavy opposition from the dragonesses. On our way there, the villagers thanked us and even some of the Paladins greeted us. Now, they were either neutral or admiring us. It was a rather strange turn of events, but what I didn''t know was that throughout most of the battle, Seryanna and Kataryna acted as the main battle force, keeping the undead at bay. They even helped the Paladins take a moment of rest when they exhausted their energy. In other words, we were the local heroes, even Kleo had her tiny bit of fame. Either way, with the village secured, we had no reason to stay, but just when we were about to get to our Khosinni, Iolaus stepped in front of us. ¡°I guess old grudges can''t be healed that easily...¡± said Kataryna. The nearby Paladins all watched him, while Seryanna threw a gaze at Great Paladin Baltros. The dragon shrugged, not even he knew what this was all about. ¡°What do you want, Iolaus?¡± asked Kleo in a harsh tone as she stepped forward and glared at him. This time, she didn''t wish to hide. The dragon looked down and clenched his fists for a moment. It was clear he was going to make a very difficult choice. Taking a few steps forward, he placed his hand on his sword and unsheathed it. Seryanna took a step forward and placed her hand on her hilt. Even the Paladins started to murmur among themselves. ¡°Oi! Oi! Is he serious?¡± one of them said. ¡°Just let it go, Iolaus...¡± another urged him, but the gaze in the man''s eyes was a firm one. Then, he dropped the sword next to him. He dropped his shield as well. Those represented both his pride and strength, yet he cast them away like they were nothing. ¡°W-What are you doing? W-What do you want from me? Haven''t you done enough already?!¡± Kleo shouted. This time, she was the one on the edge. ¡°Fufu! This is fun!¡± Kataryna was overjoyed for some reason. Then, in front of everyone, Iolaus dropped on his knees and bowed in front of her. ¡°Please forgive me, Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus!¡± he shouted as hard as he could. ¡°W-What?¡± she said surprised. ¡°Iolaus! No matter what, bowing down before a necromancer is unacceptable of a Paladin!¡± Great Paladin Baltros shouted. ¡°I don''t care! I''m not here neither as a Paladin or as a disciple of the Temple of Light! I''m here as Iolaus von Striggnyark! A dragon fool who fell in love with the charming dragoness Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus!¡± he shouted. ¡°Y-You... What are you saying?¡± Kleo asked as her cheeks turned pink. ¡°Your friend, Alkelios told me that to love means to accept one another entirely! That if I truly loved you, I didn''t care what your element was even if it was the complete opposite of mine! That if I love you, I should accept you entirely without exception!¡± he shouted the words I said to him. It appeared as though, they had a bit of impact on him, more so than I believed. ¡°You''re saying that you still love me... even though I''m... even though I''m a necromancer?¡± Kleo asked as a few tears ran down her cheeks. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Even if we are the complete opposite elements to each other?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Even if we worship different gods?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes! Neither our gods, our elements, or even our social statuses can have a saying in true love! I am a follower of the Light, of the gods Lumenya and Lumenos, and that in itself gives me the right to love you more than ever!¡± he declared with an unwavering voice. ¡°What are you saying, you fool! The temple of Light forbids such a thing!¡± shouted the bucket head Baltros. ¡°Tch, annoying bastard.¡± I grumbled. ¡°Yes! The temple! The priest! But not the gods themselves! In all legends, in all stories, we learn that Lumenos is not only Lumenya''s husband, but also Nocturnia''s! My god can love both Light and Darkness, therefore, so can I, his follower! That''s why I pledge here that I truly love Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus!¡± he declared at the top of his lungs. ¡°WOW!¡± I said surprised. ¡°I will not permit it! You will lose both your rank and status, Iolaus!¡± shouted Baltros. ¡°I don''t care! It''s not the temple who dictates my fate, it''s my god!¡± he declared, and it was clear that he was struggling terribly with his decision. To put it simply, he was stepping on absolutely everything he had worked on until then just to be with Kleo. He could literally even lose his life if that was so. ¡°You fool... why? After so many years... why?¡± Kleo asked crying. ¡°Because I love you, my sweet Kleo... And I was a fool to believe that something like Elements could stand in our way.¡± he told her with a soft smile and tears in his eyes. Up until then, he held his head bowed, but now, we could all see that this proud draconian was crying. ¡°I never stopped loving you... you idiot.¡± Kleo replied, and taking advantage of the moment, I gave her a light push on the back. Iolaus caught her in his arms, and the two shared their first kiss for the first time since they split up. ¡°This traitor!¡± shouted the bucket head outraged. ¡°Oh shut it!¡± The one to scorn him was Kataryna. She shot a blast of cold ice and froze the dragon instantly. ¡°He''s still alive, but if anyone wants the same treatment, I have enough Magic Energy for all of you fools!¡± she warned them. The Paladins all shook their heads vigorously and took a small step back. After the battle, they were all well too aware of our combat prowess. Above all, they were even confronting Seryanna and me. They had no chance of winning. ¡°Still, I cannot allow this.¡± said Seryanna as she stepped forward. ¡°What?¡± I said surprised and looked at her. ¡°Keep quiet for a moment, Alkelios.¡± she shot me a glare. I gulped. ¡°Sister, what are you talking about, isn''t it over?¡± Kleo asked surprised. ¡°No.¡± Seryanna shook her head. ¡°He hurt you. He caused you to be hunted down. He denied your right to be happy. I don''t have a problem with him apologizing, but I have one question. Do you think you are strong enough to protect her and yourself?¡± she pointed her sword at him. Iolaus had a complicated expression on his face, but with one gaze at me, he replied ¡°No.¡± ¡°I thought so...¡± Seryanna sheathed her sword and let out a sigh. ¡°Even so! I will protect him!¡± declared Kleo. ¡°It''s not about that.¡± she then looked into Iolaus'' eyes. ¡°Well, if that''s thee case, let me have a few words with him.¡± I suggested. Seryanna looked back at me and then at Iolaus. ¡°Very well...¡± she said. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± Kleo said confused. I smiled and walked over to him. ¡°Come on.¡± I offered him my hand. ¡°I will be right back, my love...¡± Iolaus told Kleo and gave her a kiss on the forehead. Taking my hand. I then made a powerful leap, which sent us flying to the edge of the village. ¡°Ah! Crud! I forgot about the LAAANDING!¡± I slipped, stumbled, and crashed like a suicidal lemming. Having a dragon in full-plate armor crash on top of me wasn''t fun either. ¡°Ugh... are you alright?¡± I asked him. ¡°Yes... What was that?¡± he asked rubbing his shoulders. ¡°A silly mistake... Anyway, do you understand what Seryanna was talking about?¡± I asked him. ¡°Yes... I''m not strong enough even to protect myself, but now, I have to protect her as well.¡± he clenched his fist. ¡°Good!¡± I smiled. ¡°Even so, it''s not the end.¡± I patted his shoulder. ¡°But, what can I do?¡± he asked me. ¡°I know! How about you go to Tomeron and asked Brekkar to be your master? I''m sure the old general will be more than thrilled to have someone to beat around!¡± I told him with a nod. I could sense fear in Iolaus'' eyes. ¡°After what you said there, I doubt the Paladins will let you off easily. Well, by the time they manage to get the idiot out of Kataryna''s ice prison, we''ll be long gone. During that time, you will head off to Tomeron.¡± I nodded. Iolaus squinted his eyes. ¡°That might work, but how strong should I become?¡± he asked. ¡°Hm...¡± I rubbed my chin. ¡°How about until you have a Breakthrough?¡± ¡°WHAT?!¡± he shouted. ¡°Relax! With Brekkar there and my help, it will be easy. Then, you will be able to protect Kleo from anything!¡± I nodded, satisfied with myself. ¡°True, but... Not even in a life time will I be able to reach such a power level.¡± he said a bit depressed. ¡°Well, this is what it means to fight against all odds. How much do you love Kleo?¡± I asked him. ¡°I practically gave up my entire future for her back there... I have nothing left... Is there anything else I can give?¡± he told me with a wry smile. ¡°Your life...¡± I replied. ¡°Y-You want me to die?¡± he asked surprised. ¡°No!¡± I gave him a chop on the head. ¡°OW!¡± he groaned. ¡°Give your life to her... and maybe she will give hers to you.¡± I winked at him. ¡°Huh?!¡± he blinked confused. ¡°Are you serious? Think again about what I just said.¡± I told him squinting my eyes at him. He can''t be that dense, can he? I wondered. Five minutes later. ¡°Erm... You want me to make a master-slave contract?¡± I gave up. ¡°No! MARRY HER!¡± I gave him another chop on the head. ¡°OW!¡± he groaned. Letting out a sigh, I couldn''t believe how dense he was about this... Then again, it was the shard laughing of the broken pot here. ¡°Just go out and declare this in front of them. Those idiotic Paladins will think you are nuts, won''t succeed in a billion years and leave you alone. Once things settle down, and you had your Breakthrough, you can rekindle your feelings for Kleo. This is probably the only way you can SAFELY be with Kleo! Problem solved, right?¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°True... that might work...¡± he nodded. ¡°You''ll still need to ask Brekkar for help though.¡± I told him. ¡°I understand.¡± he nodded. ¡°Well, let''s get back then... But we''ll walk this time. I don''t want to jump and accidentally land in a manure pile!¡± I shuddered at the thought of such an event. Needless to say, I could have just wished for it not to happen, but it sort of slipped my mind. ¡°Thank you, Alkelios.¡± he told me. ¡°Anytime!¡± I laughed. We both returned to the site, where Kataryna took a new sitting position on top of the ice sculpture''s head. There, once again, Kleo stood in front of Iolaus, but this time, we had more spectators. ¡°Did the crowd grow bigger?¡± I asked Seryanna. ¡°Yes.¡± she replied then asked me ¡°What did you tell him?¡± ¡°Oh, you''ll see!¡± I smirked. ¡°Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus...¡± he began. ¡°Y-Yes.¡± she blinked surprised. The dragon then dropped on one knee. ¡°What is that fool doing?¡± a Paladin asked, but Kataryna''s glare stopped him from commenting any further. ¡°Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus, I plan on reaching a Breakthrough. When I do, I will return to you and then... I want you to become my wife.¡± he declared. ¡°Oh, my!¡± Kataryna was giggling. ¡°He didn''t, did he?¡± the Paladins started to murmur among them. ¡°So young... to say he wishes to marry as such a young age. What a fool.¡± one of them commented, but I couldn''t find the fellow. ¡°I''ll pray for his soul.¡± ¡°There goes our drinking nights!¡± ¡°Damn, I missed my shot!¡± What was with that last one? I wanted to cry out. ¡°Yes... I''ll wait for you, but if I reach it first, I''m going to be the one to make you my husband!¡± she declared with a smile. ¡°Then it''s a race!¡± declared Iolaus. A what now? I thought. ¡°Yes...¡± she giggled. The two of them shared a tender moment, while the rest of us felt like we witnessed an incredible moment. As for the silver-scaled dragoness, she was all giddy about it. I was wondering what went on through her head? Maybe she just liked moments like this one? Either way, with this, the matter was settled. Kleo and Iolaus became once more a couple. ¡°I hope he won''t betray her again.¡± whispered Seryanna. ¡°If he does, I''m sure Kataryna will have a say in the matter, and we too.¡± I kissed her cheek and held her hand. With this over, we prepared our Khosinni and decided to part ways. Iolaus was going to head off to Tomeron, while the four of us would continue our journey towards Drakaria, the capital of Albeyater Kingdom. Before we parted ways, I shook Iolaus'' hand and asked him: ¡°Will you be my friend?¡± ¡°Huh? What a strange thing to ask... what''s this?¡± he was surprised by the sudden pop-up. ¡°Your choice.¡± I told him. ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded. ¡°With this, you should have an increased speed with your level up. Give my regards to old man Brekkar!¡± I told him. ¡°Will do, my friend! And please, keep Kleo safe for me.¡± he smiled. ¡°I will... the problem will be who will keep us safe from her pranks?¡± I sighed. ¡°Hahaha!¡± he left while laughing. ¡°Weird fellow...¡± I muttered as I returned to the group. ¡°You know, you could have stayed with him.¡± Seryanna told Kleo. ¡°No...¡± she shook her head ¡°I would have been more of a distraction to him than help.¡± she said. ¡°Indeed.¡± all of us said it at the same time. ¡°Hey! That was mean!¡± the black-scaled dragoness pouted. Chapter 32: The journey to Marook [Alkelios'' point of view] Once more we were traveling towards the capital of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Drakaria. To reach it, we had to pass through the city of Marook and then reach Toros town, where we would cross the Great Chasm or whatever it was called. To be fair, on the map, the city appeared to be at a stick throw away, but things could be deceiving. It was at more than a one day away. When I heard this, I was thinking in Earth days, but on this planet, a day had 32 hours, meaning that we would arrive in Marook after two Earth days. Confusing, I know... Well, that wasn''t the biggest problem. Right after we left Pertiko, during our first stop, Seryanna took out her sword and pointed its sharp tip at me. ¡°Spar with me.¡± she demanded. I agreed, and the result was me winning, but she didn''t seem very pleased about it. ¡°You rely too much on your luck to win. Your skill timing is dull. Although you won, it was only because you had more strength than I do. Still, even when you are more powerful than me, I could still pose a challenge. Such a thing shouldn''t have been possible, especially with your luck.¡± she scolded me. ¡°Does it really matter? I managed to win! I''m stronger even than those paladins, so why should I bother?¡± I asked with a shrug. Seryanna squinted her eyes at me. ¡°What if you were to meet someone equally strong?¡± she asked. ¡°I would win... eventually.¡± I nodded. ¡°That I do not believe.¡± Kataryna said as she raised an eyebrow. ¡°I defeated you, didn''t I?¡± I asked. ¡°I didn''t go at full strength against you.¡± she smirked. ¡°Ugh... true, but...¡± I tried to sneak my way out. ¡°You would have lost if I fought with everything I had, especially if I used certain spells.¡± she wasn''t letting me go. For a moment, I wanted to retort, but then I remembered what happened to typical movie and game characters who were too reliant on certain abilities. They ended up as cannon fodder for the enemy. If things are the same here, then I''m probably end up becoming a bit too cocky with my Luck. I thought and then let out a sigh. ¡°Very well, let''s do this. What''s the harm in sharpening my skills?¡± I shrugged. Seryanna showed me a beautiful smile that made me blush. ¡°Shall we begin then?¡± she asked. ¡°Yup!¡± I replied. What was that saying? Famous last words? My beautiful redhead dragoness was a jewel as a woman and a real Demon Queen as a trainer. I believe my bones broke several times, and my joints bent in ways not possible. I also became rather used to drinking healing potions and very skillful at making them too. Note to self... never make a dragoness angry. I thought as I drank a potion and healed my broken hand. ¡°Are you alright?¡± she asked me. ¡°Yes, I can still feel my pinkie finger!¡± I joked. ¡°Hm, then my training is lacking. During our next stop, we''ll do everything from the start and double the amount!¡± she nodded satisfied. I dropped the bottle. ¡°What?¡± I asked in shock. ¡°Don''t worry, we''ll be able to sharpen those dull skills of yours in no time at all!¡± she gave me a kiss on the cheek, while I was frozen in fear. ¡°Double?¡± I asked as my mind was already trying to pack things and get on the first train to Nopeville. ¡°Should I go for triple then?¡± she tilted her head to the left. ¡°What? No! I will die!¡± I complained. Normally, thanks to my insane stats, it should have literally been impossible to inflict so much damage on my body, but Kataryna was the one doing the punching and stabbing and hitting. I was left to use the least power possible to fight against her. It was like trying to stop a tank with a tricycle... And by tank, I mean a modern tank capable of going over 100km/h... Simply IMPOSSIBRU!!! All of this was meant to sharpen my skills, perception, reflexes, everything. Up until now, thanks to luck, I was able to get away unscathed, but someone of greater skill could inflict some serious damage on me. This meant that I was a tough opponent, but not unbeatable. Kleo pointed out that most humans were quite agile and intelligent when it came to combat techniques, so they skillfully used this to their advantage against the naturally powerful dragons. The latter weren''t complete dolts, so they eventually created techniques and skills of their own to combat the humans. That was the reason why they were able to push further into the dragon continent, and since dragons didn''t led a conquering war, they were mostly on defensive. So, while my strength, speed, and dexterity went up, my skills didn''t. To learn a skill, I had to end up feeling it develop naturally, or so they said. Then again it was possible that the ones I already gained through the God-like''s system were far better than those I could have learned from them, but I didn''t mention this. I didn''t want to sound like a bragger... or a complete idiot if proved wrong. When night time came, we prepared the camps as usual, but this time Kataryna handled the cooking, while I trained with Seryanna. Kleo went out to hunt something in the woods. That was the first time I ate a grilled giant centipede. It tasted like eating chicken-flavored french fries dipped in a week-old oil. That was my guess, but there was a high chance I was very wrong about it, since I never had the opportunity of tasting something like that back in Romania. After we ate, we slept in separate tents. Well, Kleo and Kataryna did, Seryanna slept with me. Despite the fact that we weren''t doing anything besides hugging and kissing, she seemed to be rather attached to me. If this was the normal behavior for most dragonesses, then I had a feeling it was more instinctual than habitual or personality wise. I didn''t mind this side of hers, though, but every time I embraced her, I still felt embarrassed, and while the lower part was at risk of going wild, I managed to hide it well. Even so, I was beginning to ask myself how long I was going to last before I jumped on her. Taking her into my embrace and spending a night of passion like in those... ahem... educational videos was a tempting, but fantasy was one thing, reality another. Even so, my mind was spinning in circles... Humans were horny monkeys after all... 24/7... all year long. There was a good reason why I didn''t just... do it. For once, I believed Seryanna wanted to take it slow, and this skinship we currently had was only a result of her possessive instincts towards a possible mate. Secondly, I didn''t want our first time to be in the middle of the woods with one horny silver-scaled dragoness and a prankster maniac five steps away from us. The implications with that one were terrible. Lastly, I was afraid I was going to mess up and not know what to do, thus, embarrassing myself and making her hate me... or worse... laughing at me. Although the last one was a bit far fetched, it was still there, poking at the back of my mind.Stolen novel; please report. Lack of experience in any field is frightening at first... I thought as I looked at the sleeping dragoness in my arms. She was beautiful, charming... incredibly attractive. More than once I kept asking myself if I really deserved her, but that was a silly question. The fear of going further with her was real though. Unfortunately, I wasn''t able to get to the bottom of it, to find out why it was. Thus, I had no idea how to get over it, but I knew it was there. If I wasn''t able to make it go away, I decided to ask Kataryna''s opinion about it, or Brekkar''s... definitely not Kleo''s. She would turn it into a prank. ¡°Why am I still afraid of you?¡± I wondered as I gave her a soft kiss on the forehead and closed my eyes. [Kataryna''s point of view] Thanks to a certain soon-to-be-dead black-scaled dragoness, I ended up awake for quite a bit of time. I never liked coffee. I was too sensitive to it, but she somehow managed to sneak it inside my food. No wonder it tasted funny. The others didn''t seem to have such a problem, however, while I was in this state, my senses were rather sharp, so I happened to hear what Alkelios said. He''s afraid of Seryanna? Why? I wondered, and to tire myself out and finally get a wink of sleep, I tried to get to the bottom of it. Remembering all the humans I encountered so far, I pieced together little by little the reasons as to why she would cause him to be afraid, but so far, there were more reasons to be afraid of me than her, but it didn''t seem that to be case. I wonder if it''s about her being a dragon and him a human? They would certainly not be viewed well by either species... and then there''s the matter of a child. While I have no problems with it, she''s... not at this point yet. I doubt Alkelios even thought about it so far. Also, in their case, if they don''t want it, the chances will be even lower. His Luck may be good, but it''s not up to the point where it can break the laws of the gods. Hm, the child won''t be viewed kindly either... since it would be a half. Is this what''s bothering him? as I continued to think about this, my thought pattern was going towards the extremes. For now it wasn''t like the two were married yet. There was a chance that this was going to be a temporary relationship. I''ve seen plenty of those in my lifetime. Even I had one... Nevertheless, when you are part of it, you believe she or he was the one. Reality tends to rain down upon us rather painfully when we realize that was never the case. In the end... I slept only for a couple of hours, and I didn''t manage to get to the bottom of why Alkelios would say something like that. Only time would tell where their relationship was headed and how much drama was ahead of them. [Alkelios'' point of view] With the light of day washing over us, we slowly woke up from our deep sleep and prepared the breakfast. I was in charge of managing the fire, while Kleo and Seryanna gathered the water. Kataryna prepared the leftover meat from yesterday. We ate our full and then waited for another half an hour for the food to settle down before departing. With nothing else to do, I asked Seryanna to tell what she knew about the kingdom, how it worked and what I had to watch out for. ¡°With your strength, you don''t have to watch out for much. Bandits and robbers are former Beginner or Intermediary Rank Adventurers who had their guild cards revoked. As you are now, you can easily fight with ease among those of Godlike and Supreme Rank.¡± she began her explanation. ¡°Oh, I heard about this before! The current ranks are: Beginner, Intermediary, Master, Emperor, Godlike, and Supreme! Although, wouldn''t an ABCD form have been better?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°ABCD?¡± she looked at me a bit confused. ¡°Why would the adventurers be ordered in a chaotic alphabetic order?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°Huh? Doesn''t the alphabet go like A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and so on?¡± I asked. ¡°No.¡± Seryanna shook her head. ¡°Each species and language have their own alphabetic order. For Dragons, it''s usually D, G, T, Er, Na, L, V, and so on.¡± Kleo explained with a smile. ¡°Humans use T, N, G, F, D, and so on.¡± Seryanna said. ¡°Haaah... For some reason I thought the alphabet would be similar to mine.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I highly doubt it. We''re talking about different cultures and species here. There''s no reason for the alphabet to be similar.¡± Seryanna explained. Indeed, if I thought about it a little better, Japan, China, Russia, and Romania all had different characters and alphabets. Although similar in some way or manner, they were only developed later in our history, after the widespread of public school and the rise of literacy levels. ¡°Using names that are easily understood by all species is the best. Everyone knows what a Supreme or a Beginner means. If all of a sudden they had to use letters, it wouldn''t make much sense for most species and cultures.¡± explained Seryanna. ¡°Are the cultures separated in species or are there multiple kingdoms for each species?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Every species have multiple kingdoms and empires. While an entire species can view another as an enemy, there are groups within both which fight for coexistence or neutrality. Thus, there are even some human kingdoms who see no reason as to why they should battle us. Those are the ones located on the opposite side of the Human Continent. Even among dragons, Albeyater is only one of our many kingdoms.¡± she then pointed to our left. ¡°Over there, after Drakaria, you will reach Dragon Empire Embryger. Then to our south is Dragon Kingdom Solustia. After that you will find Dragon Kingdom Merganus. Past them, you will find a couple more.¡± she explained. ¡°The humans have a lot more kingdoms and empires than we do, but they are weaker individually and smaller. If I remember right, there are the following: Human Kingdom Ten Swords, Human Kingdom Shiva, Human Kingdom Nocturn, Human Kingdom Opharya, Human Kingdom Majin, Human Empire Akutan, Human Empire Devaska, Human Empire Treigun, and that''s about it.¡± said Kataryna as she scratched her head. ¡°Well, if your information is from 300 years ago, then it should be accurate.¡± said Seryanna. ¡°It''s from one hundred years ago actually, but humans are very chaotic when it comes to how they organize themselves. Kingdoms rise and fall on their continent in the time it takes a dragon to yawn.¡± she shrugged. ¡°True...¡± I confirmed as I remembered how weird and constantly changing the history of Earth was starting the 18th century and into the 21st century. Even now we didn''t know just how accurate and true our own history was, seeing how the truth was always written by the winners of the wars. Chances were that in the past there may have been a lot more significant cultures, but historians at that time simply denied their existence. I remember my history teacher once telling us that if mankind were to know the true history of each country, then both the debts and war crimes compensations would simply rise to exponential levels. Not to mention the very fact that our borders would become incredibly unstable. It wasn''t unusual for lies to be fabricated regarding whose territory belonged to whom. With this, he pointed at Moldova, Transilvania, Crimea, the islands to the north of Japan, and many many others. ¡°Does trade exists between kingdoms of different species?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Yes. The Merchants Guild handles most transaction, but import and export towards another species is usually very costly unless the two have a peace or trade treaty. Weapon deals between kingdoms at war or species at war such as dragons and humans are forbidden completely.¡± Seryanna explained. ¡°Are there beastmen?¡± I asked. ¡°Beastmen?¡± she looked at me with a furrowed brow. ¡°Erm, they look like animals, but they walk on two legs, talk and use weapons like us?¡± I tried to explain. ¡°Ah! He must be talking about the beastkin! Well, they are also called relliars.¡± said Kataryna. ¡°Yeah, those... so they exist here as well?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. They enjoy trading and hunting more than they do war. Some human kingdoms, however, see them as inferior and enslave them. If I were to say, the humans have the worst relationships with all other species, especially some of their kingdoms. From what I know, there isn''t even one of them striving for coexistence.¡± Seryanna explained. ¡°That''s sad... Makes me a feel a bit worried about how I will be treated once we reach the capital.¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°As long as you don''t undress, you can pass on as an Unawakened Dragon, however, once we enter the palace, you will have to identify yourself as a human and my companion.¡± ¡°What are the chances for dragons to hate me for absolutely nothing and try to assassinate me or trick me or something like that?¡± I asked her as I remembered the countless clich¨¦ situations from the stories I read and experienced in games. ¡°Very high. Dragons are not without fault, so there will be those who hold an undeserved grudge or hate towards you for simply being a human. But don''t worry, I''ll do everything I can to protect you.¡± she smiled and then kissed my cheek. ¡°We''ll be there as well. Being a dragoness with an Awakened Breakthrough, I have a bit of influence.¡± Kataryna said with a smirk. ¡°But indeed, don''t let your guard down... There are good dragons and then there are the trash... just ignore them, especially if they are some stuffed up noble.¡± Kleo remarked. ¡°I understand, I''ll be careful.¡± I nodded and then hugged Seryanna from behind. ¡°Awawa~! What are you doing?¡± she asked embarrassed. ¡°Hugging my girlfriend... it''s nice...¡± I told her with a smirk as I laid my chin on her shoulder and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling myself closer to her. ¡°I will permit it...¡± she said while blushing. ¡°When you two get a room, let me know! I want to watch!¡± Kleo announced. ¡°NO!¡± both me and Seryanna replied at the same time. Thus, we leisurely made our way to Marook, the city before the town before the capital. We still had a long way to go... Chapter 33: Marook [Alkelios'' point of view] Thanks to the hellish training with my beautiful redhead dragoness, I began to wonder if I was heads over heels in love with her or I was slowly starting to turn into a masochist. The latter possibility frightened me... Still, I wasn''t visibly improving. Without the help of my Luck and constantly wishing in my mind so I wouldn''t get hit by Kataryna''s dangerous attacks, it was incredibly hard to control my enormous strength and speed. Fine tuned control actions were out of the question. From one point of view I was nothing more than a rampaging monster unable to stop himself, but if I were to be able to use martial arts at my full speed and strength, then the results could end up terrifying. Nevertheless, one thing was saying it and the other was experiencing it. ¡°Ugh... my aching back.¡± I groaned while leaning on Seryanna''s back. Being so close to a beautiful woman like her felt like I was one of the luckiest humans alive. Technically speaking... that wasn''t so far off from the truth. ¡°Does it hurt that badly?¡± she asked a bit concerned. ¡°YES!¡± I complained. ¡°I apologize, I didn''t think human bodies were so... fragile.¡± she replied. To this remark, I could only stare blankly at her. The Khosinni we were riding on nodded as though he could understand her words. ¡°Cheer up, Alkelios! Even if you break an arm or two, it will grow back!¡± Kataryna tried to console me. ¡°I''m not a salamander!¡± I retorted. ¡°Well neither are dragons, but there are potions that can help regrow a lost limb.¡± she shrugged as if it was nothing. ¡°Really?! Even so... please don''t rip my limbs off! I''m quite fond of them, thank you!¡± I glared at her. ¡°Not even one?¡± she looked at me with a pair of puppy dog eyes. I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°No.¡± I replied like a grumpy cat. ¡°Don''t worry, Alkelios. I won''t let her rip off your arms.¡± Seryanna patted my head. ¡°Thank you...¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°I''ll just have her beat you senseless until you learned to master your strength and speed.¡± she continued nonchalantly. ¡°Are you my girlfriend or torturer?!¡± I asked. ¡°I''m just a cute dragoness who constantly worries for your safety.¡± she winked at me and then gave me a kiss on the tip of my nose. I was literally at a loss of words. There was no safe comeback from that. It made me wonder if this was what father was talking about when he said that women are sometimes demons in disguise. As we talked, we got closer to the outer wall of the Marook city. Standing at almost ten meters tall, the thing was huge and countless dragons were patrolling it. Armed to the teeth and some of them even had anthropomorphic appearances, they actually had teeth and claws that could be used in combat if there ever was a time to come to that. Because of the height, I wasn''t able to see past it and take a peek at what this imposing wall was protecting, but I could see ahead of us a small line of about four carriages waiting to get past the gate. They were each being pulled by two Khosinni, and the carriages were about two, maybe three times bigger than those I saw back on Earth. While two had shabby looking drivers, only the biggest one of the three had an elegant looking dragon pulling the reins. He was perhaps a merchants or a noble of sorts. Either way, we were dead last in the line. ¡°Funny... when did a carriage went past us?¡± I asked as I struggled to remember. ¡°This is a road that''s tied to various other villages and cities, including the port city Tunberdraken.¡± explained Seryanna. ¡°Is that so?¡± I said as I looked back at the road. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°Oh, that fancy shmancy looking fellow past by us last night while we were training. They camped a bit farther ahead and left earlier than us.¡± Kataryna pointed out. ¡°So that guy''s coming from Pertiko?¡± I asked. ¡°Probably.¡± she shrugged. There was no way she would know something like that. Thus, we waited patiently at the end of the line until our turn finally came. A big, brown-scald dragon with a pair of rather small wings approached us. He was one of the guards placed at this gate. ¡°State your name and business in Marook!¡± he demanded from us. ¡°I am Sir Seryanna Draketerus. These fellow dragons are my companions. We will be staying in Marook for a few days before continuing on with our journey.¡± she declared calmly. The dragon looked at her, at the shield, her chest, and then at me. I glared at him for looking at an inappropriate place at my girlfriend. ¡°Keh, unawakened youngling. Very well, you may enter.¡± he nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± Seryanna moved the Khosinni past him and Kataryna with Kleo followed us. We all simply ignored his rude remark. The moment we stepped inside, I was surprised to see so many dragons walking about, both awakened and unawakened. It looked exactly like a town from one of those Fantasy-themed games, but the architecture was huge, similar to that in Andromeda city. The population, however, far surpassed it. To top it off, the women here were beautiful too, but Seryanna and Kataryna were by far priceless gems in a sea of pebbles. Due to her personality, Kleo didn''t count. ¡°So many people...¡± I said. ¡°There are many dragons here. This is an adventurer city where many train and prepare themselves for various quests or incursions into the Seculiar Forest.¡± my redhead dragoness explained. ¡°Is that so?¡± I blinked surprised. Taking another look at the masses, I noticed that many of them were wearing equipment suitable to be called ''starter gear''. Most weapons and armor I saw were made out of copper, while some of iron, and very few of steel or other, more expensive, materials. Even so, a quick check with my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill revealed that despite what they were made out of, they could easily be classified in games as either Rare or Epic items. While humans might use simple one, these things were buffed and enchanted to extreme values. One such copper sword had an affix of Elemental Fire, while another could summon Merions. Looking at them with dead eyes, I began to wonder just what sort of ridiculous power did these dragons usually wield. Well, one look at my girlfriend''s stats, and I could easily tell that she was very powerful. After all, when I was dropped into this world by that no-good God-like, I had what many would call ''junk values''. ¡°Something the matter?¡± Kleo asked when she noticed the way I was looking at their gear. ¡°No... it''s just that those are some rather ridiculous enchants on them.¡± I replied. ¡°Those weak things? Any beginner enchanter can do them!¡± she laughed it off. ¡°Is it the same on the human continent?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°I have no idea. Kataryna?¡± she looked back at the silver-scaled dragoness. ¡°Don''t look at me, I never went there myself.¡± she shrugged. ¡°Me neither, but grandfather said that most humans are weak. It''s their sheer numbers and cunning strategies that are frightening.¡± Seryanna said. ¡°Really?¡± I was doubtful. Well, technically speaking, the humans were able to defend their borders and even advance into the Dragon Continent a bit, but that was mostly because the dragons, as far as I heard, never showed any interest towards conquering and subjugating other species. In order to find our way faster in this town, we decided to pick a inn closer to the inner walls which separated the noble area from the common one. This way, if we ever got lost, and by we, they all meant me, all ''we'' would need to do was to find the big inner wall and follow it. Sooner or later, we would arrive at the inn. It was simple and efficient. After we settled in, me and Seryanna in a room, while the other two in another, we grabbed something quick to eat and then headed off to the Guild Hall. It was finally time for me to register as an Adventurer! ¡°I was waiting for this day ever since I came into this world!¡± I said excited. ¡°Hehe! Relax, we''re almost there. Besides, it''s not that big of a deal. Adventurers are sort of like professionals for hire.¡± Seryanna shrugged. ¡°Even so, back where I came from there were no such things as Guild Halls... except in stories.¡± ¡°Hm, maybe I should register as well. I sort of lost mine several decades ago.¡± Kataryna let us know as she scratched the back of her head. ¡°Reissuing a card shouldn''t be that expensive.¡± Seryanna pointed out. ¡°True.¡± the dragoness nodded. ¡°Are these cards usable on other continents as well?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°The guilds are all affiliated with the species that built the dungeons, so the whole system is identical everywhere you go. It''s very convenient like this because Adventurers have no political affiliation. Once you become a knight or accept a noble title in a country, you become eligible only to quests inside that continent or which aren''t politically affiliated in any way or manner.¡± Seryanna explained with a rather serious tone of voice. ¡°Sister wanted to got to the Relliar Continent when she was younger, but after she became a knight, she wasn''t able to anymore.¡± Kleo pointed out with a shrug. ¡°Is that so?¡± I said rubbing my chin. So my dragoness wanted to visit the Relliar Continent. Hm... I thought to myself. Leaving that little fact aside, we stepped inside the Guild Hall and were greeted with the curious gazes of the many dragons in there. I gulped and looked around nervously, while the dragonesses around me were mildly impressed. Some of the more tough-looking fellows made me doubt my own strength, and their piercing glares were certainly not of the friendly type. Kataryna was showered by several lusting gazes, while me and Seryanna by mocking ones because we looked like unawakened dragons. As for Kleo, she received questioning or disapproving gazes from those who didn''t took a liking to her black scales. ¡°Well, shall we?¡± asked Kataryna with a smile as she stepped forward.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. We walked over to the receptionist''s desk and patiently waited for our turn. An adventurer was keeping the green-scaled dragoness busy with the loot he recovered from his latest quest. I curiously looked in his direction and saw a pile of curved teeth and broken horns on the table. There was a stack of green pointy ears as well, which immediately led me to think of goblins. After finishing with the adventurer, the receptionist walked over to us. She had long, straight chestnut hair tied up in a ponytail, freckles on her cheeks, and blue slit eyes. Her anthropomorphic characteristics were a long tail, clawed hands covered in green V-shaped scales, and a pair of curved horns on top of her head. She was wearing a simple maid-type outfit, apron and all. ¡°How may I help you?¡± she asked with a lovely smile. ¡°Yes. I would like to reissue my guild card, and this lad wished to join the guild!¡± Kataryna declared with a smile as she patted my back. ¡°Check it out! The mommy brought her kid to register. Pah! This place will turn into a nursery before you know it!¡± one of the adventurers commented. We ignored him. ¡°Of course, but may I ask how long ago did you... misplace your guild card?¡± she asked as she pulled out a couple of papers from under the desk. ¡°Erm, several decades ago?¡± Kataryna replied while showing her a wry smile. The receptionist squinted her eyes at her, then offered us two identical forms. ¡°If that''s the case, then both of you will need to register as new adventurers.¡± she told us. ¡°Why?¡± Kataryna questioned. With a sigh escaping her lips, the green-scaled dragoness answered ¡°If more than 10 years have passed since you ''misplaced'' the guild card, your status and rank as an adventurer with the guild is reverted back to Beginner.¡± ¡°Oh, is that so? Then I will register as a new adventurer.¡± Kataryna gave up on the issue with her former card. ¡°And what about you, miss?¡± the receptionist looked at Seryanna. ¡°I am already registered.¡± she took out her guild card. Looking at it for the first time, I noticed that she was Master Rank already. We had a lot of work ahead of us if we wanted to catch up with her. ¡°Is that so? Then, after the two of you complete those forms, we will do a simple strength test. After the test, all you have to do is wait for us to issue your guild cards. If you don''t know how to read and write, I can fill them out for you, but you can always hire someone willing to do it for a few coppers.¡± she explained politely. ¡°We know how to read and write, so it won''t be a problem.¡± Kataryna pointed out. ¡°I see. Well then, call me once you have finished. The registering fee by the way is two silver coins.¡± she said. We handed in four coins and completed the forms. Besides the name, age, political affiliation, and other basic details, there was also a box where we had to fill in the value of our Power Level if we knew it. On the dotted line for species, I filled in ''human''. ¡°What''s my Power Level, Alkelios?¡± asked Kataryna at one point. ¡°Let me check.¡± I told her, and with this occasion I looked at Seryanna''s and Kleo''s as well. [Name]: Kataryna Greorg [Species]: Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark [Awakened Status]: 6 out of 6 conditions met [Level]: 1301 [Strength]: 6526+362.9 [Speed]: 8470+398.5 [Dexterity]: 7140+357.95 [Magic]: 2438+268.72 [Luck]: 41 [Magic Excellence]: 30%+4.48% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Wisdom of the Old One] [Name]: Seryanna Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Flame [Awakened Status]: 2 of 4 Conditions met. [Level]: 341 [Strength]: 1720+362.9 [Speed]: 1213+398.5 [Dexterity]: 1105+357.95 [Magic]: 946+268.72 [Luck]: 12 [Magic Excellence]: 30%+4.48% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Current Debuffs]: [Unawakened One] < -60% All Stats; -1000 Magic Energy; Elemental Attacks deal 20% more damage; Dragon Form Sealed; Half-Dragon form Sealed; 40% Less appealing to the opposite sex;> [Unlucky One] < -50% Luck> [Name]: Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of Darkness [Awakened Status]: 3 of 3 Conditions met. [Level]: 232 [Strength]: 720+362.9 [Speed]: 812+398.5 [Dexterity]: 401+357.95 [Magic]: 3620+268.72 [Luck]: 34 [Magic Excellence]: 46%+4.48% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> As for mine, they around as follows: [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 180 [Strength]: 16+516+803+216+1957.8+120.2 [Speed]: 14+363.9+576.5+243.6+2541+246 [Dexterity]: 20+331.5+ 745+120.3+2142+220.7 [Magic]: 16+283.8+410+1086+731.4+160 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+9%+9%+13.8%+9%+3% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 40 [Stat Points]: 1790 In the end, my values were 3629 points in [Strength], 3985 points in [Speed], 3579.5 points in [Dexterity], 2687.2 points in [Magic], and 44.8% [Magic Excellence]. I was off on the road towards overpowered potential. As for the 10% buff I offered them, it easily increased all of their stats with over 300 points each category except for those in regard to magic. Looking at my stats, I could tell that the last batch belonged to a certain dragon Paladin. According to them... he was WEAK! Seriously though, if he was among the best or even average, then Seryanna was more than enough to beat all of them into the ground. As for Kataryna, she could do it with only 30% of her full power. Letting out a sigh, I closed the windows. ¡°Well?¡± the silver-scaled asked. ¡°You are Power Level 1301. I am 180. Seryanna is 341, and Kleo is 232.¡± The three of them blinked surprised when they heard the numbers. ¡°Sister, you''ve grown...¡± said Kleo. ¡°You too... but why?¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°My skill, I suppose?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I am surprised by my growth as well. In such a short time, I went up a few levels. Normally, such a feat shouldn''t have been possible.¡± said the dragoness surprised. ¡°Well, it doesn''t really matter, does it? I''m still the weakest... although if I were to go by points alone, second strongest in our group.¡± I squinted my eyes at the silver-scaled dragoness. Her stats were two times bigger than mine, buffs and all. I would require at least several friends who reached Breakthrough Awakening to reach that sort of performance. For some reason, being overpowered still looked like a far away dream for me. ¡°Even so, that is quite a feat... When I met you, you couldn''t even be compared to a Dayuk cub, but now you could fight one on one with several sheep.¡± Seryanna nodded. ¡°Huh?¡± I frowned my brow for a moment, then I remembered ¡°Oh yeah! Over here, the sheep hunt the wolves, not the other way around.¡± ¡°Shall we turn in these forms?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°Yup!¡± I nodded and smiled. We called over the receptionist and then handed in the two pieces of paper. She looked at them once, then she gazed at me. She looked back at the paper, then she gazed at Kataryna. This process was repeated several times before she showed us a wry smile and dashed into the room behind counter. ¡°What just happened?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°I don''t know.¡± Seryanna furrowed her brow. Several moments later, the receptionist came back and asked us with a timid smile ¡°Is the information you wrote down true?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± both me and Kataryna replied with a nod at the same time. The receptionist gulped. ¡°Then, please follow me... The Guild Master would like to have a word with the two of you.¡± For some reason both me and Kataryna looked back Kleo as if she was to blame for this if something went wrong. ¡°What?¡± the necromancer asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Nothing...¡± I said. We followed the receptionist in the back room, where we were introduced to the Guild Master, Valkos. He was a brawny brown-scaled dragon with lots of scars on his arms and sturdy-looking plate armor. A big axe with a moving red mist around its blade was sitting next to his chair. In front of him were our two forms. Not knowing why we were called back here, me and Kataryna took it as thought it was normal and sat down in the chairs in front of him. Seryanna and Kleo waited at the door, next to the receptionist. ¡°It says here you are a human, correct?¡± Valkos asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°But you didn''t write the kingdom where you come from or the name of your village.¡± he pointed out. ¡°Erm... I don''t think I can write one. I have no idea.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Memory loss heh? Well, you need to write down at least the name of an acquaintance who has a home somewhere in this kingdom.¡± Valkos offered the form back. ¡°Ah... alright. I thought me being a human was the problem.¡± I shrugged and took the piece of paper. I wrote down Tomeron and as for acquaintance, I wrote old Brekkar''s name. ¡°As for you... you wrote that you have a Power Level of 1301. That''s a bit... high. I never heard of you before.¡± he asked and raised an eyebrow at Kataryna. ¡°Hm, I could level this city if that would be proof enough.¡± she replied with a smile. A moment of silence fell in the room. ¡°Oi! Don''t joke like that!¡± I scolded her. ¡°Eh? But how am I to prove something like that without showing off my power?¡± the dragoness was at a bit of a loss. ¡°Ahem! Well... you could use a tool?¡± Valkos asked, then added in a barely audiable voice ¡°Destroying the city is a bit... extreme.¡± ¡°Very well! What sort of tool? If it''s a perverted one, I''ll break you in half!¡± she smiled. The man stared at her as if he would a weirdo. I felt sorry for Kataryna, but Kleo seemed to have been a bad influence on her. ¡°It''s a Magic Tool with the only purpose of increasing its weight. Infuse it with Magic Energy and if you make the number go past 1000, I''ll believe you.¡± the Guild Master nodded and looked at the receptionist. The woman bowed once and left the room. ¡°That''s it?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Yes.¡± the dragon nodded. A moment later, the receptionist returned with a black box. Inside was a metal hexagonal bar with counter at one end. It was a curious tool, but I wondered how exactly it worked. The individuals of this world seemed to be familiar with the concept of enchanting items. I wonder if I can learn that skill? Hm... I''ll just wish for it. God-like, I wish to gain the best enchanting skill from your system. I thought. ¡°Hm. It''s light. I just need to infuse it with my Magic Energy, right?¡± she asked. ¡°Indeed.¡± the Guild Master nodded. ¡°Here I go!¡± she announced and poured her energy into it. Suddenly the numbers went from 1 to 100, then 500, went past 1000 and stopped around 1500. ¡°I can go further, but I don''t see the use. This thing did gain a bit of weight.¡± Kataryna pointed out. ¡°Really?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Yes. Here.¡± she gave it to me. ¡°Indeed, it is heavy.¡± ¡°See! See! I told you!¡± she showed me a smile. Meanwhile the receptionist and the Guild Master were both looking at us with big eyes, while Seryanna let out a sigh. ¡°Hm? Is something wrong?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°No... erm... right now, you two might be considered some of our most powerful adventurers. The average dragon can only reach around 700 points. To get over 1500 and consider it as light... well...¡± he was scratching his cheek. ¡°It can''t be help, can it? We both are terrible powerful! Hihi!¡± the silver-scaled dragoness giggled. ¡°Yes... sort of...¡± I was reluctant about my own answer because I was aware of the fact that most of my strength was actually a buff from my [Dragon Tamer] skill. If there was a chance where my friends stopped being friends with me, all of that strength would vanish almost immediately. To be honest, I was a bit horrified of the situation where we would end up either as enemies or just simple acquaintances. Well, there was no point in worrying about that for now. It was a waste of energy. ¡°There''s nothing else I would like to ask you a this point, but if anything will come up, I will let you know... or the Guild Master in the respective town or city you are in.¡± the dragon nodded. ¡°Thank you. Does this mean we can take quests right away?¡± I asked a bit excited. ¡°Despite your incredible strength, you will still need to grow in ranks. They represent both the trust of the guild and your competence in successfully completing the offered requests. It matters not if you can raze the country the ground if you can''t even walk a noble''s pet down the street.¡± Valkos explained. ¡°So we''re starting from Beginner Rank?¡± I asked. ¡°Indeed. As a matter of fact, I do believe we have a couple of them you can use to try it out. Given your current strength, they shouldn''t be a problem.¡± he smiled. ¡°I understand. We''ll go and have a look at them, then we''ll think whether we will take one or not.¡± Kataryna declared while trying not to appear too bored. ¡°Of course! Once you will receive your Guild Cards tomorrow, you''ll be able to accept any request available for your current rank.¡± the Guild Master nodded. ¡°What do we need to advance in rank?¡± I asked. ¡°Completing quests of your current rank, earning the trust of high ranked guild members, and participating in group events organized by the Adventurers Guild.¡± he explained. ¡°I understand...¡± I replied. ¡°If there''s nothing else that we need to be informed about, we will take our leave now.¡± Kataryna declared. ¡°That would be all.¡± he nodded. ¡°May you prosper in your endeavors and bring great fame and fortune to our guild as well!¡± he said with big smile. ¡°Likewise. Have a good day, Guild Master Valkos.¡± said Kataryna. After we all gave our farewells, we departed from the Adventurers Guild and went back to our inn. We relaxed for a bit and then went outside of the city to train vigorously. In other words, I was pummeled into the ground by a silver-scaled dragoness while running away from curses cast by the black-scaled one... At least, at the end of the day, I was still alive... sort of... Chapter 34: The first quest Today, we decided to accept a request from the Adventurers Guild. It was a simple one of gathering some type of flowers in the nearby woods. If by chance we encountered some monsters along the way, we were free to subjugate them and collect any of the parts that could be sold at the guild or which we believed we could use. Disposing of the remains was usually done by either our party''s mage or by piling up the bodies and then submitting a report to the guild on their location. Afterwards, a new request would appear on the board available to all adventurers with the required skill. Being on the Dragon Continent didn''t automatically mean that everyone here could breath fire. It all depended on their respective element, although, when it came to spells, everyone could cast Beginner Rank ones. ¡°Are we there yet?¡± I asked while following behind Seryanna. ¡°We''re not that far now. I believe the clearing mentioned in the request should be somewhere up ahead.¡± she replied as she checked a small hand drawn map of the area. Among the many things the one who put up a request had to do was to offer a simple map the adventurers could copy with ease or use with their existing ones. In case the exact location wasn''t know, they had to place the area in which they might find their assigned target. Just as Seryanna mentioned, we were looking for a small clearing located to the west of Marook. The plants we were told to gather were called Sunflower Lili and were used as food spices. To be specific, the petals were dried and then ground into a fine powder. It offered a spicy flavor similar to chili, but not as hot. It was somewhere between pepper and chilly. At least, this was what my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill told me, but according to Seryanna, we did eat food that used this spice back at her grandfather''s place. Initially, I thought it was pepper or chilly, so I couldn''t tell the difference. ¡°Still, if this flower is so important, why don''t they grow it closer to the city?¡± I asked as I jumped over a large tree trunk. I was doing far better with controlling my body than I did back when I received my first ever stats bonus from my [Dragon Tamer] skill, but the trees on the Dragon Continent were certainly of the giant category even if they only made up a small patch of woods in the middle of the plains. In this world, I had yet to see a Norway Maple tree or Ar?ar as it was called in Romania. It was one of the most widespread species in Europe, while its cousins were widespread around the whole Earth. Canada actually had the leaf shape on its flag. Good ol'' maple syrup, I knew thee well... It appeared as though I had very low chances of stumbling upon it in this world. ¡°It''s a spice of the nobles. Only certain merchants from the common bloodlines are allowed to cultivate it.¡± Seryanna explained. ¡°Come again?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°What''s wrong?¡± she stopped and furrowing her brow, she looked back at me. ¡°What do you mean ''spice of the nobles''?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Hm... You know how in your country certain people aren''t allowed to cultivate or breed certain animals and plants? It''s similar to that. There are plants and beasts that only the nobles are allowed to breed.¡± she explained, but we had a little problem there... ¡°Erm, in my country there''s no such thing. As long as you have the funds, land, and knowledge to cultivate or breed any livestock or plants, you are free to do so. The only laws are against certain plants that can be used as drugs or poisons and their owners are intent on doing just that.¡± I explained. ¡°There''s no ban on spices?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Then how do you know which are for nobles and which for commoners?¡± she asked another weird thing. ¡°Because we don''t really care about the noble or commoner bloodline to begin with?¡± I told her. ¡°It must be anarchy over there.¡± commented Kataryna. ¡°Only when there''s an important soccer match on. But leaving jokes aside, we simply have a different governing system than the one used here. As such, there are not that many bans on wares and products as long as they aren''t harmful or could be used in a harmful way against the general populace. I honestly find it weird that you do... Wouldn''t a kingdom without such ridiculous bans prosper through commerce?¡± I asked her. ¡°Hm, now that you mention it...¡± Kataryna was the one who said this. ¡°Even if that was true, there''s nothing WE can do about it. Only the King and the High Nobles can request a change.¡± Kleo shrugged. ¡°Indeed, so let us not waste any more of our precious time on politics and find those flowers quickly.¡± said Seryanna. To this, we all agreed and continued to cross the small patch of woods. When we arrived at the clearing, it wasn''t the flowers which we encountered but two nasty looking dragons. They were wearing bandit clothing, had bandit faces, smelled so bad the flowers turned away from them, and they were definitely there with a clich¨¦ thought in mind. ¡°Oi! Are you the group who accepted the request in regard to the Sunflower Lilies?¡± the one on the left with a club in his hands asked. I am technically in a high level area, so why am I meeting a thug with a club? I wondered. ¡°Indeed we are. Who may you be?¡± asked Seryanna as she placed her hand on the hilt of her sword. ¡°The name is Tennant Patraku. I''m an adventurer who accepted a subjugation for the local Dayuks. We two, we''ve been trying to lure them away from the flower field, but no such luck. They took down a Stone Horned Deer and are feasting on it as we speak.¡± he said and then let out a sigh. ¡°It''s as me brother said... Since we knew somebody accepted the quest for the flowers, we thought messing up the field with a battle would be a bad idea.¡± said the other. Brother? You two are? WHAT?! I was a bit surprised seeing that the only thing in common between them appeared to be their armor and stench. ¡°I understand, so what do you require of us?¡± Seryanna questioned. ¡°Well... we''re stuck with this problem, you see... Me and me brother here aren''t very smart in the head, but we be good fellas, so we were pondering if maybe you bunch have an idea on how to lure the Dayuks out of there?¡± he asked rubbing the back of his head... with his club. As he said this, I took a look at the field and used [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on the monsters that gathered there.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. [Name]: Black Dayuk [Species]: Elemental Elite (Fire) [Level]: 84 [Special Attacks]: Fire-breath; Fire Spike; Paralyzing Roar; Venomous Bite; Dash; Wait a second! What''s with this ridiculous monster?! Are you telling me these guys were planning on taking on that thing with their armor and clubs?! I shouted in my mind after I read the details displayed to me. Without hesitation, I used [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on the first guy''s club. (Great Sturdy Club): Made out of leyas bark, this sturdy club was enchanted to resist elemental attacks and increase its user''s strength. Special Stats: Resistance to all elemental attacks 40%. Increases Strength by 100 points. What is this? A rare item? No, is it a legendary? Seriously... what? 40% resistance to all elements? Are you kidding me? It''s stronger than my sword! I felt like the gears in my head were coming to a halt. Leaving aside Seryanna''s Great Knight Draconian Armor, this thing here was quite a ridiculous item for a character that looked no different than the typical trash mobs you kill off at every corner of a low level area in an RPG and usually drop such cheap and broken items, you can''t help but wonder why you even bother looting them in the first place? I let out a sigh and rubbed my temples, trying to get rid of the sudden spike of stress resulted by the nonsense I just witnessed. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Yes... Just a bit of a headache.¡± I replied. ¡°How do you propose we get rid of the monsters?¡± asked Seryanna. ¡°Can we snipe them?¡± I asked. ¡°Snipe?¡± she furrowed her brow and looked at me with a confused face. ¡°Erm... Kill them with a headshot from afar?¡± I kindly explained the term. ¡°Oh! I can do that!¡± Kataryna said with a smile. ¡°Very well, then we''ll leave it to you. As for these guys...¡± I looked at the two ''mob'' characters. ¡°We are fine to take just what we need to complete our quest.¡± Tennant said. ¡°It''s fine to take the whole corpse. We''re here just for the flowers.¡± I told him. ¡°Thank you!¡± the two made a quick bow and showed us a big smile. The silver-scaled dragoness stepped forward and took aim at the pack of horned wolves munching on a corpse in the middle of the flower field. The beauty of the scenery was completely ruined by the blood-drenched muzzles of the canine monsters. With armor plates sticking out from under their black fur and a sharp horn on top of their heads, they were not to be taken lightly. As such, Kataryna put a bit of power in her spell. What she used was a targeted version of an [Ice Spike] spell, but had yet to obtain it, so I had no idea just how much Magic Energy it required or what were the specific details of it. I never asked her about it either, but from what I could tell, it was a frightening attack that was no weaker than a remote controlled bullet. When she launched them, the Dayuks took notice of the attack a bit too late. Yelps of pain could be heard spreading in all direction as the monsters announced their unsuspected demise. The spears were impaled through their thick hides and pierced vital points, killing them swiftly and striking fear in the remaining ones, but alas, it was highly unlikely for there to be any survivors left. ¡°A-amazing...¡± Tennant said as he and his brother were staring at Kataryna with their jaws dropped to the ground. ¡°Hmph! This is nothing!¡± she declared proudly. True, this cunning dragoness knew a thing or two about powerful ice attacks, she was a Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark after all. ¡°Let''s proceed, shall we?¡± I said and calmly approached the massacre zone. To be honest, I found myself having obtained a certain resistance towards seeing gore of any kind. With the recent events of monster attacks, dungeon crawling, and what not, my instinct to cringe upon seeing a dead body had numbed down considerably. I had no idea if this was a good thing or a bad thing though, but for now it helped me get through without showing my pathetic side to my friends. ¡°I''ll start gathering the flowers.¡± Kleo announced and took out a bag. With a skillful hand, she began to gather the gentle flowers. Ten of these were worth 10 copper coins. It wasn''t that much, but when thinking about the amount that could be seen here, we could easily bring back enough to gain several gold coins. Still, the rule imposed on gathering specified that if we happened to acquire more than it was requested, we wouldn''t get paid for them. This was placed in order to keep adventurers from hogging the good requests. It was easy to guess why the two brothers didn''t bother to gather flowers with us and instead focused on the Dayuks. Even if they did gather them, once they returned to the guild, they wouldn''t have paid them a single copper for the whole batch. As for us, we had to pick only 100 flowers, just enough to earn us one whole silver coin! Considering our battle potential and individual skills, it was a complete waste of time, but we were neither interested in the money or the challenge. What we were looking for was the experience and rise in our Adventurer Rank at the guild. At the moment, both me and Kataryna were at the Beginner level. As for Kleo... I didn''t get the chance to ask if she was registered as an Adventurer or not. Speaking of which, I feel like she was completely ignored back at the guild. ¡°It''s a bit weird to ask now, but is Kleo part of the Adventurers Guild?¡± I secretly whispered to Seryanna. ¡°My sister? No, she has yet to join because she believes the other dragons will look at her with strange eyes. I can''t say it isn''t true.¡± she showed me a wry smile ¡°You did see how they looked at her back there, didn''t you? They didn''t even ask if she was an Adventurer or not.¡± she shook her head. Indeed it was so. Back then, the receptionist and also the Guild Master didn''t mention anything about Kleo. Looking at it from another point of view, it was similar to seeing a group of strangers walking with their pet or something like that. ¡°This discrimination is wrong...¡± I shook my head. ¡°It is, but officially, if she were to go to the guild and request to register, they would have no reason as to why they should reject her application, especially if she proved to be powerful enough. Even so, before anything else, Kleo herself has to come out and ask for it in the first place. Even if most dragons don''t look at necromancers with kind eyes, as long as she doesn''t use her magic to break the kingdom''s laws, they have no reason to throw her in jail. Even if they tried to accuse her of anything, as long as I am here and Kataryna too, she should be safe. ¡°I see... It sounds like every species and kingdom have their own internal problems, right?¡± I said as I looked down at the flowers in my hands. ¡°Indeed.¡± she confirmed. Humans appeared to hate all the other species, but they were tolerant of the human-like ones such as elves. The dragons had a thing for their elements. Some they feared while others worshiped, but they saw no reason in hating other sapient species. Then there were the heroes like me who came from another world where discrimination of gender and race was illegal and even seen as the acts of a low person. Although I had little to no information on how it really was back on Earth, the one thing that was certain was that I simply couldn''t understand why they would hate others for something as little as that? It was the same as hating your neighbor for having their hair 1 cm shorter than yours. I let my head cool off from the complicated things and continued to gather the pretty flowers. Once we had 100 of them, we waited for the two brothers to finish gathering the materials from the Dayuks and then we all returned to Marook. ¡°Again, me and me brother thank all thee for helping me and me brother!¡± he said and bowed to us at the waist. His brother did the same, but remained quiet. ¡°Don''t worry about it.¡± I replied with a polite smile. After they left, we all let out a sigh. ¡°I honestly thought they were some thugs or bandits, but they are actually good fellows.¡± said Kataryna. ¡°True... although they need to work more on their conversational skills.¡± I nodded. ¡°Indeed, the ''me and me'' part was a tad bit annoying.¡± confessed Kleo. ¡°Lets leave them be, as Kataryna said, they are good fellows.¡± I remarked. With all of us in agreement, we made our way to a nearby skewered meat stall and had a bit of a snack before returning to the Guild. It was going to be the first ever quest I did in this Fantasy-themed world. It took me a while to reach this point, and I couldn''t help but wonder if maybe the other earthlings who came to this world were actually quite far ahead of me in both level and ranks. My mind immediately went to those people who loved playing computer games more than anything. Then again, this was real life, not a novel, a computer game, or a made up fiction of some crazy author... I could be heavily mistaken about who truly held the advantage in this world. Chapter 35: Can I sacrifice...? Marook was an interesting city filled with all sorts of people and even a small lake within its walls. When we first arrived here, I had no idea something like this even existed. I got to find out about it the other day when we were out shopping for supplies. My brain thought it would be a good idea to slap Seryanna''s behind. Her punch to my face begged to differ... The view from the sky was quite nice though, and I learned that I can withstand superhuman level damage. I landed right in the middle of the lake, scaring a couple of birds and a couple that was kissing in a boat. Later that evening, I was being glared at by the redhead dragoness, but by the end of the day, she calmed down and allowed me to embrace her again. That was a lesson I would soon not forget. The following day, I woke up early in the morning and received a sword fighting lesson from Kataryna. She was also quite eager to poke me around with the tip of her sword, which I had decided to call: Tickling Inferno. Least to be said, that I was unable to land even a single blow on the silver-scaled dragoness. She was far too agile and strong, but most importantly, I lacked the skill in properly controlling my enhanced body. Without relying on any of my abilities, skills, or boosts, I felt sluggish and very clumsy, but I was improving. So that was a good thing. Then, after we had lunch, we gathered our stuff and left the inn. It was about time we left Marook and headed towards the next town. The Khosinni were already prepared by Seryanna beforehand, so all we had to do was mount them and be on our way. As usual, I used the same one as my girlfriend. About five minutes after we left Marook, I asked them: ¡°So we''re headed to Toros, right? Anything I should know about this place?¡± ¡°Hm, not really, it''s just your average town at the edge of the Great Chasm or Dark Scar as many others call it.¡± she replied. ¡°Dark Scar? Don''t tell me demons pop out of there or monsters or other scary stuff like that?¡± I asked. ¡°Nothing of sorts, although flying and shadow monsters do tend to make their nests over there. Even so, the region around Toros is used by adventurers to hunt monsters and increase in strength. They are about half as strong as those in the Seculiar Forest.¡± ¡°Isn''t that plenty of strong? Also, shouldn''t the danger from monsters decrease as we get close to the capital?¡± I asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Why should it?¡± she asked tilting her head as if I said something weird. ¡°Well, the capital is supposed to be the most defended of all dragon cities in the kingdom, so it would be natural for the monster nests around it to be wiped, right?¡± I explained my point of view. ¡°That is definitely not the case.¡± she shook her head. ¡°Then?¡± I furrowed my brow. ¡°The monsters will make their nests in the areas filled with magic and hold the best conditions for their young. Since some of them can grow from a baby to an adult in a matter of days, they can take hold of the surrounding region in a short period of time. We have also noticed that even if we don''t hunt them down, their numbers don''t grow to incredible values. At most, they will separate into two packs and have one search for another nest. However, if we hunt them excessively, they might end up appearing more frequently and showing signs of significantly more violent behaviors than their previous generations.¡± she explained. ¡°Erm, so in other words, the ecosystem around here is balanced to take into account the hunting habits of the dragons?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. It did make sense though. The dragons and all the other sapient species in this world weren''t born yesterday, they had histories spanning thousands of years. In such a long period of time, it was highly unlikely for no overzealous hunters or crusades against monsters to appear. As a result, their numbers would have dropped drastically and eventually went extinct, but that didn''t seem to be the case. I had the feeling the high birth rate developed over time as well, maybe as a result of increased hunting from the sapient species. Then there were the other monsters who were charged up with Magic Energy and corrupted in some form or another. If both dragons and corrupted monsters began to hunt the normal monsters, their extinction would have been a guaranteed fact in a matter of years. Ugh, I feel like I''m getting a headache from thinking too much about this... I thought and rubbed my temples. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Seryanna asked me when she saw my troubled expression. ¡°Yes, I think my brain just had a small short circuit.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°A what?¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°It means I got a headache... Ugh... Anyway, the bottom line is that monsters make their nests in the areas that are the most appropriate for their own species and use Magic Energy in order to grow, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°Good...¡± I nodded. Letting out a sigh, I leaned on her back and buried my face in her nape. ¡°A-Alkelios?¡± she was a bit flustered. ¡°This is nice... Your scent is nice too... I like you, Seryanna...¡± I mumbled. ¡°The feeling is mutual...¡± she let out a sigh and kept her eyes on the road. We camped that night in the wilderness, and as usual, I trained with Kataryna until I was dead tired. One shower later with the help of a water spell, several bites of cooked meat, and I was ready to hit the sack, but just as I was about to enter my tent, Seryanna called out to me. ¡°Alkelios, do you have a moment?¡± Looking back at her and seeing that charming smile of hers, even if my body was crumbling apart like a castle of cards, I still found the energy to smile back and say ¡°Sure!¡± ¡°Very well, follow me...¡± she got up and started walking away from the camp and the two nosy dragonesses. ¡°You two, sit!¡± she ordered them the moment she felt them trying to sneak behind us. ¡°Tch!¡± Kataryna clicked her tongue and returned by the camp side, dragging Kleo by the tail with her. ¡°But I don''t wanna!¡± the black-scaled dragoness complained. With those two troublemakers kept at bay, we walked through the thick plains, looking up at the stars. Seryanna was right next to me, and I could feel my heart beating quite fast, going up in beats the more the silence between us was prolonged. Even if the sky wasn''t perfectly clear, it made good for a beautiful night. ¡°Awooo!¡± a wolf howled somewhere far away. ¡°Erm...¡± I flinched when I heard it. ¡°Relax, that'' probably just a sheep...¡± Seryanna giggled. A what now? I thought confused. ¡°Aren''t wolves and Dayuks supposed to howl?!¡± I asked. ¡°They do, but the sheep''s howl is a bit different. If you listen carefully, it''s not as fierce.¡± she placed her palms behind her ears and closed her eyes. ¡°Awooo!¡± the ''sheep'' howled again. ¡°This world has some strange critters...¡± I grumbled to myself while wondering how come sheep ended up being more vicious and dangerous than wolves or Dayuks. ¡°Don''t worry, if any of them mean sheep try to bite you, I''ll protect you!¡± she smiled and held my hand. Her cheeks were bright red, and I was quite certain I was also red as a tomato. My pulse was quite high to begin with, and now that I was holding her hand, I could feel it gaining a few more beats per minute. Being together with her like this, just the two of us, felt... nice. I didn''t get the chance to be with anyone back on Earth, but so far, I believed I did a splendid job as a boyfriend. That or I was embarrassing myself to the point where not even Seryanna could find it in her to tell me the truth. On another note, despite me being a young adult freshly plucked out of the arms of teenage life, I had a remarkable self-control. I wasn''t constantly thinking of ways to get into her panties and recently I began to think more before I acted. Maybe this was the result of my training, or maybe the sudden change of lifestyle gave my brain a kick in the right direction. Either way, I was glad I wasn''t acting foolishly with Seryanna. The last thing I wanted was for her to hate me for moving things too fast or for being too horny.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Of course, there was a big part of me that wanted to take all of this nonsense, throw it in the garbage bin and just pull the lovely redhead dragoness to my room for some intimate time just between the two of us. ¡°You know, I was thinking...¡± she said and looked up at the sky, with her back turned to me. My eyes went straight to her ass. Meh, I''m a man. I''ll excuse my no-good instincts. I thought calmly. ¡°About what?¡± I asked. ¡°About us...¡± she told me. Oh god, please don''t tell me this is one of those talks before breaking up! I panicked. ¡°Is it good or bad?¡± I asked timidly. ¡°I don''t know...¡± she tilted her head to the left, but didn''t turn around to look at me. ¡°Well, just say it...¡± I let out a sigh and prayed I wasn''t being dumped. ¡°When I saw Kleo and Iolaus, it made me think about the future...¡± she looked back at me, but avoided my eyes. ¡°The future?¡± I asked raised an eyebrow. ¡°Yes... You are a human and not even one from this world, while I''m a dragon and a knight. Things could get complicated for both of us. Your lifespan, your species, your pedigree... while they don''t matter much to me, for others... it could be seen in various unfavorable ways.¡± she explained. I think she said a word there that didn''t translate properly... I thought and then shook my head ¡°It''s bound to happen... Even if I was a dragon, there would still be people who would be against us. You hold a good political position, so from a noble''s point of view, you are their quick ticket to more power. This means many would want to court you or engage you to their children in order to grab hold of this influence of yours.¡± I said and sighed. ¡°I do not think I have that much influence and power though.¡± she furrowed her brow in disapproval. ¡°You maybe, but those idiots, who knows?¡± I shrugged. ¡°Sigh... true. Such things did happen in the past, after all.¡± she turned around again. ¡°So, is this what''s been bothering you?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes...¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°Don''t tell me you have a fiancee!¡± I said in shock. ¡°NO!¡± she retorted with her cheeks turned red. ¡°Sigh... That''s good!¡± I let out a sigh of relief. ¡°But with grandfather regaining his strength and I being the knight of a princess... It''s not entirely improbably that I won''t have one soon enough, especially once I awaken.¡± she said and held a tight fist to her chest. ¡°I see... What would happen then?¡± I asked. ¡°If...¡± she took a deep breath and looked into my eyes ¡°If the King is the one who orders it, I am powerless to reject it. But if a Duke or Marquess decided upon it, I may still have a chance if the Princess annuls it.¡± she explained. ¡°I don''t understand, shouldn''t YOU be the one who decides whom to marry?¡± I asked furrowing my brow. It did sound ridiculous, after all. ¡°If I am to already have a fiancee, then they can''t selfishly decide to push one onto me. My marriage would also be seen as a way to keep me in the kingdom or a way to restrain me. Canceling an existing engagement can only be done if the King himself approves it. But all of this mess could happen only because I''m a knight and the granddaughter of a powerful general. That''s why, I''m sorry...¡± she shook her head. ¡°Hey, there''s no need to apologize.¡± I smiled and wrapped my arms around her waist. ¡°It''s not written in stone that it will happen like that, and besides, all I have to do is to prove my worth in front of the King, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Indeed.¡± she nodded. ¡°Then there''s nothing to worry about!¡± I smiled. ¡°Does this mean that you are willing to take my hand in marriage when we arrived at the capital?¡± she asked. My mind stopped for a couple of second as it tried to process the logic behind whatever just happened. Did I just? What the... I don''t get it... How? HUH?! I thought while the pieces of puzzles were blown to smithereens. So, the conversation started like this: Seryanna said she had something to talk to me about, then we somehow ended up talking about how I wouldn''t be approved by the King because of a presumed marriage, but then... how did this conversation end up with me proposing to her? When?! ¡°Erm...¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°I''m sorry... This...¡± she looked down when she saw me hesitating and turned around. Ah crap! I''ve done it now! I cringed. The chances of her starting to cry right now were quite high... The one thing that wasn''t getting into my thick skull was the fact that this was a different society, a different civilization, and a different species all-together. The idea of marriage, relationships, and other similar stuff was quite different from what I knew back on Earth. Our society allowed us to be relaxed when it came to this stuff. The first girlfriend didn''t always mean putting a ring on her finger as well. But here maybe things were different? ¡°Seryanna... I...¡± I stopped myself from what I was about to say and gulped. I have to think this trough... What does marriage mean for her in this life? What does it mean for me? Man, I''m just eighteen! I''m too young to die! Erm... I mean get married... Am I being plagued by Earth''s misconceptions about marriage? I thought and struggled to think of an answer, but while I was getting a headache, Seryanna''s back looked ever so lonely. With a gulp and deep breath, I embraced the redhead dragoness from behind. Now what? I thought while listened to her fast beating heart. ¡°Alkelios?¡± she asked after a moment, seeing as how I wasn''t opening my mouth. ¡°This is too hard for me to answer now... I can''t... Back on Earth things aren''t as... strict as they are here. I''m sorry...¡± I said. ¡°No, I should be the one who should apologize... Not even once did I think that maybe you didn''t know the way things worked here. Even on the human continent these things are quite similar. Here, the royals and nobles often act as matchmakers for those underneath them.¡± she replied as she touched my hand. In that moment, I saw a tear flow down on her cheek. I made her cry... great! I thought. ¡°Where I come from things certainly don''t work like that... Is it too much of me to ask of you to wait for my answer until we reach the capital?¡± I asked her and gave her kiss on the cheek. ¡°No, that is perfectly fine... Unless an order comes from the king or the nobles pester me about it, there should still be some time for us to decide.¡± she replied with a soft tone of voice. ¡°I understand, thank you.¡± I released her from my embrace, and she turned to face me. ¡°I do love you, Alkelios... That''s why for me, there''s no sign of doubt or hesitation in my heart.¡± she said with a soft smile as tears kept flowing down her cheeks. ¡°I also love you... And I know that normally, I shouldn''t even think twice about this.¡± I shook my head ¡°But I''m a foolish human... Our minds work in foolish ways and unless I clear the fog of doubt between my ears, I won''t have peace. I love you, but the idea of marrying you feels strange. I love you, but when I think of you as my wife, the gears stop turning...¡± I shook my head and showed that I wasn''t the least bit comfortable with these thoughts. ¡°Indeed, you are a foolish human. If you love me, if you would give anything to have me and be with me, then why hesitate?¡± she asked. ¡°I don''t know...¡± I looked down. ¡°I see... Maybe you don''t...¡± I didn''t let her finish those words and stole her lips in a kiss. ¡°Don''t say that! This doubt of mine is only because I''m still young and insecure when it comes to adult things like this. On Earth, people married when they were way past the age of twenty, some even after thirty years old. You are already an adult in my eyes, but I''m too much like a child. That''s why... just give me some time to straighten my thoughts. If anything, here... I wish I will have all the time I need to make the right decision about whether or not we should marry!¡± I declared. This way, even if I was a fool, I would be able to reach the best decision for us. Even If I waited until the last second, thanks to my Luck, it should still be alright. I was hoping and betting on this. ¡°Very well, but you know... I''m not going to let you off for making me cry.¡± she smiled softly and then pulled me into another kiss. ¡°I''m sorry... How can I repay you for this?¡± I asked. ¡°You''ll have a training session with me now, and you won''t use your Luck! Plus, you''ll let me hit you for a few times.¡± Her sweet smile sent shivers down my spine. ¡°Erm... Can''t we talk about this?¡± I asked. ¡°You made a poor maiden cry tonight, so no!¡± she giggled as she wiped her last tear. I let out a groan, but she then pulled me into a kiss. This one was very long and had a lot of tongue in it. When we parted lips, she had flushed look on her face. ¡°Don''t run away from me... Whatever adversities we may face, we''ll get through them, together...¡± she told me and then kissed me again. I wasn''t allowed to fight back, and her words were sort of an encouragement in the battle with my own doubt and fears. They were very much welcomed. That night, after she literally beat the snot out of me and made me wonder if I wasn''t actually turning into a masochist because of her, we went to bed in the same tent. Seryanna fell asleep in my arms with a content smile on her lips, while I was thinking back at everything I said today, minus the whining and begging during the training sessions. I also remembered what I told Iolaus and what happened during that night when I kissed Seryanna for the first time. Indeed, for me, this entire experience was extremely rushed. It was like someone jumped in a sports car pressed the pedal to metal and drove like a maniac through rush hour. They didn''t stop for the granny crossing the street or for the lights turning red. They didn''t even stop when the ''No bridge ahead!'' sign popped up. Despite all of this, I had to take notes and absorb all the information around me. It was just too fast for a normal human, but... I had the [Hero] passive. No matter how much I complained, I was aware of my fast level increase, not to mention the fact that there were moments when I saw this whole experience more as a Virtual Reality game than anything else. Even so, these feelings I held for Seryanna were the true deal. I really did love her from the bottom of my heart. Maybe it was because she saved me? Maybe it was because I hanged around her all this time? Maybe it was because she was a beautiful, strong willed, redheaded woman? There were a lot of maybes that could have been the spark that ignited this love, but in the end... what mattered was the result. I love this woman... I love Seryanna, but... I thought as I looked down at her sleeping face. But you are a dragon... In the end... the reason why I was so afraid of this marriage wasn''t because the customs were different... It was just me who was different, who was looking at her with different eyes just because she was not of the same species. It was a biological and instinctual fear that told me I couldn''t be together with her as a human, but giving up my humanity was something I feared even more. I wonder... Can I sacrifice my connection to Earth, the blood of my parents that flows in my veins, my species and everything that I am or could be as a human? Can I sacrifice all of this for the woman I love? I asked myself as I gently brushed off her cheek a strand of red hair. For some, this was a question they would have answered without batting an eye, but for me it was one I held no answer to. In the end, was it me who was wrong to think like this or was it something normal as part of being human? Chapter 36: Dragon Flu Reaching Toros would take us almost an entire day from dusk till dawn, with training time included during camps. We encountered a few monsters such as a walking tree and a small pack of Dayuks, but we made quick work of them. There were no serious threats because I also wished for it. I mean, the training was killing me enough, I didn''t want to face a dangerous monster while I could barely hold a sword with both hands. Once the big town was in sight, my first reaction to it was one of amazement. Forty or so dragons were patrolling the skies in their full dragon form. The outer walls were made out of a black stone and double the size of those in Andromeda, with countless soldiers patrolling them. Even from afar, we couldn''t see what laid hidden behind those walls, but maybe they were made specifically with that intent. In other words, rather than a town, this place was a fortress prepared for any assault. It was impressive. Looking behind Toros, I saw the Great Chasm: dark, uneven, with jagged ridges on both sides, and spreading far and wide all the way the eye could see. It was as if some sort of great force ripped the surface in half, separating Drakaria from the rest of the kingdom. It gave off the feeling that it was ready to swallow you up at any moment now, or that countless monsters were about to burst out to conquer the surface. ¡°That''s some place to put a town... I think it''s a town. Is it a town?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°Toros is the only town in Albeyater Kingdom that serves the double role of a military fortress. It''s also one of our best lines of defense against humans.¡± Seryanna explained. ¡°Wait, humans reached all the way out here?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°As of yet, no, but military strategists foretold and advised time and time again that in the event we lost Tunberdraken, the port city, Toros would become a very important strategic location. On another note, it can also be used as a military capital in case Drakaria is invaded from the other side.¡± she explained while we approached the big walls of the town. The gates themselves were ordinary in size, but instead of just two, there were eight guards placed here, and some of them appeared to have different armors on. Either way, thanks to them, the huge line of dragons that wanted to go through Toros and reach the capital was flowing smoothly. It didn''t seem we would have to wait for a long time for our turn to come. ¡°Hm, I would have thought that those strategists would most likely boost about the humans never being able to reach all the way here than say there was a chance to do so.¡± I said as I scratched my head. In many of the stories I read and experienced through playing games, there was always some douche in the top who constantly bragged about how impenetrable the kingdom''s defenses were rather than admit that they had flaws. ¡°What use does a strategist have if he cannot come up with defensive strategies in the worst case scenarios?¡± she asked a fairly good question. ¡°True...¡± I nodded. Now that I think about it, back on Earth, the Pentagon had strategies for all sort of situations, including the very unlikely zombie apocalypse, alien invasion, or even a complete takeover of the USA. Considering what Seryanna said, I find it now very unlikely that none of the other countries did the same. I thought while looking out at the big fortress town. As we arrived at the back of the line to enter the town, I saw there two more roads intersecting here. One that came from the North, in the middle of the plains, and the other from the South, following the Great Chasm. When I followed them with my eyes, I could see there were several more travelers heading our way. They were probably trying to reach Toros before nightfall. In front of us were a lot of dragons who traveled by foot and two big carriages pulled by strong-looking Khosinni. Many of them were probably adventurers of some sort, or actually escorts for the carriages. With nothing else to do, we waited patiently in line until our turn was up. We presented our Guild Cards as identification and paid the toll fee to enter, but right before the guard gave Seryanna her card back, he sneezed in her face. ¡°Ah! My apologies! Something tickled my nose.¡± he immediately said, but the redhead was doing her best to keep her sword sheathed. ¡°You''re going to need a bath.¡± I joked. ¡°Ugh...¡± she groaned as she wiped her face with her hand. Well, no more kisses until she washed her face. ¡°Here! I''ll help you!¡± Kataryna said as she pointed her hand at her and then let loose a water spell. Instead of a small sprinkle coming out, the pressure was akin to that of a fire hose. If she wasn''t a dragoness with superhuman strength and endurance, she would have been blown away. ¡°Ah... Oops!¡± Kataryna said and awkwardly laughed. Seryanna had no words to retort to the silver-scaled dragoness, who wasn''t hiding her apology very well, seeing as how she was wagging her tail in amusement. We needed not another proof as this one was more than enough. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked from the sidelines. ¡°Never better...¡± the dragoness grumbled. After this small incident, we entered Toros and were welcomed by a crowd of... soldiers. The whole town was filled to the brim with them, which came as a surprise even for the three who''ve been here before. Many of them were camping outside because there was no more rooms where they could stay. This in itself gave us a frightening premonition. ¡°I apologize, but we''re out of rooms.¡± said the dragoness who was the innkeeper for the last inn we could find in this town. We went to the other three, but none had a room to spare. Each and every one of them was filled to the brim with soldiers, commanders, and other military personnel. We were currently in a pinch. ¡°Ungh... I wanted to sleep in a cozy bed!¡± complained Kleo. ¡°Me too, but there''s nothing we can do about it.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°We could always kick the commanders out by force?¡± Kataryna suggested with a smile. ¡°Wouldn''t we get in trouble with the army?¡± I asked. ¡°You think any of these weakling are a match for us? Hahaha!¡± she laughed. Well, truthfully speaking, most of them were around level 100 and 200, but stat wise, I doubted any of them were able to go head to head with any of us. I was a bit of a cheat because of my Luck and skills, especially if I summoned Jophiel Thunderash, the phoenix. She alone was at the 999 level. Indeed, we can easily wipe out this whole town off the face of the planet if we want to, but then we would need to live as wanted criminals. And for what? A room at an inn? No, thank you. I thought while looking at the soldiers around us. ¡°We can go to the pub and spend the night there. Afterwards, we''ll be on our way to the capital.¡± Seryanna suggested. ¡°That''s not a bad idea.¡± Kataryna agreed. Thus, we headed for the nearest pub, we found it was full, then we headed for the second nearest pub. This time, I wished in my mind that we would find an empty table. ¡°This place is packed...¡± I pointed out. ¡°It appears so. We are simply out of luck.¡± Seryanna then looked at me.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°Hey, if I knew there were going to be so many soldiers here, I would have made wish way back in Tomeron.¡± I told her. ¡°True. I just wish you actually did, but not even I thought there would be so many dragons here.¡± she said. ¡°Maybe some general gave the order to rally up? I can go ask the soldiers at that table if you want?¡± Kataryna suggested. ¡°Yes, but first, let''s order. The waitress is here.¡± I pointed out. ¡°What will it be, ya''all?¡± she asked. The woman was a bit older than Seryanna in terms of looks, but was quite fat as well. I refrained from making any rude comments and peacefully ordered something to eat and drink. The others did the same, then while we were waiting for the order to come, Kataryna went to the soldiers. Several minutes later, she returned and sat down at our table. ¡°Well?¡± I asked. ¡°It appears there''s a new general who will be replacing Seryanna''s grandfather. The king decided there was a need of someone to take over his armies. So, this new general apparently gave the order for his whole troops to assemble outside of Drakaria. The inauguration ceremony will be in the autumn of next year, but he wishes to see who are the best of the best in his army and reorganize it by then.¡± she replied. ¡°Do we know anything about this dragon?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°Draejan Andrakaryus is his name, but they haven''t heard of him either.¡± she replied. ¡°I know that name.¡± ¡°You do?¡± Kleo asked as she looked at her sister. ¡°Yes, I heard form grandfather that he''s the son of the Duke of Doesya and the Sixth Princess of Albeyater.¡± she replied. ¡°Sixth? How big is the royal family?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°The Albeyater Royal Family consists of their Majesties the King and Queen, the heir to the throne Prince Charmeill, the current Prime Minister Prince Elovius, then there''s the First Princess, Natalia, the Second Princess, Josephine, the Third Princess, whom I also serve, Elleyzabelle, the Fourth Princess, Mayelle, the Fifth Princess, Decessere, the Sixth Princess Noyelle, the Seventh Princess Saluka, the Eight Princess...¡± before she continued, I raised a hand up ¡°Is something wrong?¡± she asked furrowing her brow. ¡°Yeah, that''s a lot of name. How may princesses and princes are there?¡± I asked with a wry smile. ¡°Eight princes, twelve princesses, and four adopted princes.¡± she replied. ¡°The king''s been busy.¡± I remarked. ¡°There are indeed a lot of possible heirs to the throne, but the current king is also nearing the end of his life. There''s also a difference between the siblings of at least 50 years. As for the adopted ones, they will become the hands and limbs of the next king. A... And... Achoo!¡± she explained calmly and then sneezed cutely. ¡°Bless you.¡± I said. Seryanna blinked surprised and rubbed her nose with her finger. ¡°That''s odd...¡± she said. ¡°Ah! The food is here!¡± Kataryna announced. It was finally time to grab some grub and fill our growling stomachs. We ate like wolves and then slowly enjoyed our drinks. The time would pass incredibly slow, with everyone around us coming and going, but there were a few tables that never changed. They were adventurers who had the same idea as we did, spending the night at the pub and hoping to leave the following day. On the other hand, the soldier could leave only when their commanders gave the order to go. Since we had no games we could play, and knowing that one day was actually 32 hours long was pure murder on a guy like me who once spent a lot of time immersed in video games. But I didn''t let all of this time just go to waste. With Seryanna and Kataryna''s help, I did a small recap on all the info I gained from this world. So, this kingdom''s name was Albeyater. It was one of the two medium sized kingdoms on this continent alongside Solustia, which was located on the other side of the continent. Merganus Kingdom was located somewhere to the far north, and there was an neutral nation to the south called the Free Nation. Unlike other kingdoms and empires, this one was spread across all continents, and it was created as a way for the merchants of all nations to do free trade, no matter their current state of war. The Dragon Empire Embryger was located in the middle and was known to be the most powerful dragon nation of them all. It was also the leading economical, military, and technological nation on the continent. Most Magic Tools were developed there. Its armies had in its employment over 20 Awakened Dragons with a Breakthrough achieved. The currency used in this kingdom was the Albeyater Coin. Although we called it simple copper, silver, and gold coins, they were specific for each individual nation. Thus, the Embryger Empire had another type of coin, with a different design on it. The exchange value was almost the same everywhere, meaning that an Albeyater copper coin had the same value as an Embryger copper coin. The only catch was that if you wanted the same exchange value, you had to go to the a Free Nation city, otherwise, it depended on the relationship between the two nations. If they were at war, the exchange was most of the times banned. The world, in general, was separated politically into kingdoms and empires as far as the dragons knew. Most of them were at war with each other, while at the same time battling the corrupted ones inside their territories. There was no trace of a Demon Lord or King yet, but there appeared to be a difference between the two. As far as Kataryna explained, the Demon Lords were powerful monsters within a kingdom or empire, who were at the center of a conglomerate of corrupted monsters. The Demon Kings were Demon Lords who were able to conquer an entire nation. They were Legendary monsters with the ability to think like all other sapient species and even had a humanoid shape to use. Besides this, none of them knew anything else, which made me wonder what the whole deal with these corrupted monsters was in the end. With all of this information being poured down my ears up to 3 AM in the morning, a headache was bound to hit me sometime sooner or later. Once that happened, I excused myself from the conversation and laid my head down on the table. A few more hours passed by with a graveyard silence falling over the pub. Kataryna and Kleo at one point began to give score numbers to all the men there based on looks. I got a glorious 7, to my surprise. I thought I was at least an 8, but maybe the difference was in the fact that I wasn''t a dragon? The other most interesting event that took place was Seryanna''s sneezing, which by sunrise turned into a small coughing fit. With teary eyes, she managed to control it in the end, but she couldn''t figure out the cause and neither could the others. I simply blamed it on the possibility of a light cold. Once the sun was up, we moved out of the pub and made our way to the gates of the town. ¡°Seryanna? Are you sure you are alright?¡± I asked as I looked into her eyes. ¡°I''m awright...¡± she replied with weak smile. ¡°You don''t look ''awright'' to me.¡± I replied. ¡°Achoo!¡± she sneezed again. ¡°I think you caught a cold.¡± I said. ¡°A what? Dragons don''t c-c-atchoo!¡± ¡°Bless you.¡± I said, then I saw Kleo and Kataryna keep their distance from us. With a raised eyebrow, I look at the two and asked ¡°What''s wrong?¡± ¡°I don''t know what she caught, but we don''t want any.¡± the silver-scaled dragoness said shaking her head. I rolled my eyes. ¡°Take a healing potion, maybe it will help you feel better.¡± I advise. ¡°Good idea.¡± Seryanna nodded. After gulping down on the small bottle, we made our way to the gate, but we were stopped before leaving. ¡°Hey! Let me pass!¡± shouted a merchant in front of us. ¡°No! Our orders are clear! No dragon with Dragon Flu symptoms may pass!¡± retorted the solider. ¡°But I have no flu! Achoo!¡± the merchant sneezed. ¡°I doubt it.¡± he shook his head. ¡°Tch!¡± clicking his tongue, the dragon walked away from the gate. Several other dragons were checked, and most of them were sent away, then it was our turn. ¡°You three can go, but she can''t.¡± he pointed at Seryanna, who was rubbing her nose. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. ¡°Didn''t you hear? She has the Dragon Flu!¡± he said. ¡°What the heck is the Dragon Flu?!¡± I retorted. ¡°Well, we dragons don''t often get sick, but when we do, it''s usually a magic disease.¡± said Kataryna. ¡°Exactly as the miss said. Dragon Flu is a magic disease that spreads in unknown ways. We confirmed the outbreak last night, and the commander decided to shut down the gates today.¡± the guard said. ¡°What''s the cause of this disease?¡± I asked. ¡°We don''t know, but it should pass in a few days. She just needs some good rest and lots of healthy food.¡± he told us. ¡°So it''s similar to the human common cold?¡± I asked. ¡°The what now? I don''t know lad.¡± he shook his head and shrugged. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°Hm... Let''s go find a room somewhere.¡± I declared. ¡°Good luck with that.¡± the guard scoffed. Indeed, finding a place to stay here would have been a bit tricky, but this time, I was prepared. ¡°Yes, I really do wish to find a room where Seryanna can rest and get better.¡± I nodded and smiled. The guard raised an eyebrow at me, but my companions already knew that the gears of fate had started to turn in our favor. ¡°Come on, let''s go.¡± I said and held Seryanna''s hand. ¡°What about us?¡± Kataryna and Kleo asked. ¡°You two wait for us outside. It''s better than to risk catching it yourself.¡± I replied. ¡°Very well. But if something happens, just shoot a fireball in the air or something.¡± the silver-scaled dragoness told me. ¡°I will.¡± I nodded. ¡°Take care, sis! Get better soon!¡± the black-scaled dragoness said, but she kept her fair distance. ¡°I will... Now go!¡± Seryanna replied with a smile. We went our separate ways here; the two of them passing through the gates, and we went to find a room... somewhere somehow. ¡°What about you?¡± the redhead asked me. ¡°Why would the Dragon Flu affect me? I''m a human, remember?¡± I replied. ¡°Ah, yes... I sometimes forget.¡± she smiled. Chapter 37: The cure to Dragon Flu The moment when I found myself walking around Toros with my sick girlfriend in search of a room to let her get some rest, my brain pressed ALL the panic buttons! It couldn''t have been one or two... it had to be all of them! Therefore, I was just walking like a robot with spinning eyes and trying my best to remain calm, but this in itself was nothing but a fleeting dream. Seryanna sneezed from time to time, but I could tell that many of the dragons here were afflicted with this condition. So far, no deaths occurred, or maybe it wasn''t something fatal to begin with. Whenever I thought about a so-called magic illness, my mind went back and forth between the definitions. To think that a virus or bacteria could be enhanced through magic wasn''t an absurd idea to begin with, after all, other living organisms could do the same. The problem was how exactly did the Magic Energy affect the individual? In Brekkar''s case, I could more or less figure it out, but even then I had no idea why or how in the world the cure worked on him. ¡°Are you alright?¡± Seryanna asked me. ¡°Me?! Of course! I''m totally fine! Of course!¡± I said nodding about ten times in two seconds. ¡°Alkelios... I''m over here. That''s a Khosinni you are talking to.¡± she patted me on the shoulder. ¡°Huh?¡± I adjusted my invisible glasses and squinted my eyes at the creature in front of me. ¡°Yes, that''s not definitely not you, Seryanna.¡± I spoke like I had just discovered something important. The Khosinni puffed in my face with a bored look on its face. ¡°No, seriously, are you alright?¡± she asked and then cutely sneezed again. ¡°Yes, I''m more worried about you... too worried maybe?¡± I said as I stepped away from the Khosinni and rubbed my nasal bone. ¡°I have a feeling I''m doing better than you.¡± she replied with a soft smile and took my hand. ¡°I''m just worried...¡± I showed her weak smile. ¡°I know...¡± she smiled back and gently touched my cheek. Her hand was warm, but I couldn''t tell if she had a fever or not. Either way, I had to hurry with my search for a free room in a town packed to the brim with soldiers. Seryanna was depending on me. Even so, despite my humongous amount of Luck, I still felt like a chicken running around without a head. ¡°You blasted kids!¡± a dragon yelled. Curious, I turned my head to look at him and saw this well-dressed old man waving his stick at a group of children who were running away from him. On a closer look, I noticed that his cart''s wheel was broken, and several crates inside were flipped over. ¡°I wonder if... Hm. Seryanna, I''m going to go talk to that old dragon. I''ll be right back.¡± I said. She also noticed the old man and gave me an approving nod, so I approached him. ¡°Hello. Are you alright?¡± I asked him with a smile. ¡°Hm? What do you want? I have no coins to spare! Shoo! Shoo!¡± he waved me off. ¡°No, I''m not a beggar. I''m a passing by adventurer, and I noticed you were in trouble. Do you need a helping hand?¡± I asked him. ¡°Do I look that old to you?¡± he glared at me and puffed a flare from his nostrils. So dragons can do that as well, huh? I thought when I saw this, then I replied to his question, while showing him a calm smile ¡°I don''t think age matters when you need a helping hand.¡± ¡°Hmph! Wise kid. Very well, help me fix my cart then!¡± he told me. ¡°Sure!¡± I smiled. Thanks to my strength, I was able to easily help the old dragon repair the wheel and fix the boxes in his cart. To his surprise, it didn''t take more than half an hour. ¡°Well! I''m mighty thankful of you, kid! You helped me out quite a lot! You are strong too!¡± he laughed as he patted my back. ¡°Thank you.¡± I smiled. ¡°So, how much should I pay ya for this?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°I don''t remember asking anything in return?¡± I told him and tilted my head to the left. ¡°You''re telling me you did this out of the kindness of your heart?!¡± he looked at me with big eyes as if I said something amazing. ¡°I shouldn''t have?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°No! No! It''s just that... well... Most people who wish to ''help'' me, usually want something in return.¡± he declared and shrugged. ¡°No, sir. Well... if there''s anything you could help me with, there is only one thing.¡± I told him. ¡°Hm?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Do you happen to know anyone who could rent me and my girlfriend a room for the night?¡± I asked. ¡°Girlfriend?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Yes, the dragoness over there...¡± I said and when I turned my head to look at Seryanna, I saw her leaning against the wall and heaving. ¡°She doesn''t look too good...¡± he muttered. ¡°She came down with a cold...¡± I told him. ¡°Hence my predicament. But if you don''t know anyone, there''s no problem. Have a nice day, mister...¡± I told him and then went over to the dragoness. ¡°Ah! Wait!¡± the old man said. ¡°Hm?¡± I turned and looked at him. ¡°I may actually know someone who so happens to have a spare room. Follow me.¡± he said and then jumped in his cart. ¡°We''ll be right behind you.¡± I told him and went over to Seryanna. ¡°How are you feeling? Sorry for leaving you like this.¡± ¡°No problem... You wished for something?¡± she asked as she entrusted herself to me. Thanks to my strength, I could barely feel her weight, but she was clearly in a weakened state. ¡°Status.¡± I said. [Name]: Seryanna Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Flame [Awakened Status]: 2 of 4 Conditions met. [Level]: 341 [Strength]: 1720+362.9 (-1390) [Speed]: 1213+398.5 (-890) [Dexterity]: 1105+357.95 (-759) [Magic]: 946+268.72 (-610) [Luck]: 12 [Magic Excellence]: 30%+4.48% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Current Debuffs]: [Unawakened One] < -60% All Stats; -1000 Magic Energy; Elemental Attacks deal 20% more damage; Dragon Form Sealed; Half-Dragon form Sealed; 40% Less appealing to the opposite sex;> [Unlucky One] < -50% Luck> [Weakened] [Illness]: [Dragon Flu]: It didn''t look that bad. It even said it was a form of the Common Cold, so there was no reason to freak out about it, although, if one didn''t get enough rest and eat properly, there was a high chance for this thing to get a lot worse. I selected the Rotiqus Potion to see if I could make it. Rotiqus Potion: Requires Grand Apprentice Alchemist to brew. Ingredients: Dragon Grass, Adeline Root, Salt, Water.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. It was quite simple to make and the ingredients could be found everywhere... Literally everywhere because the so-called Dragon Grass was actually the grass growing on the ground and the Adeline Root was the root of every single tree around here... With a sigh of relief, I closed the windows. ¡°What''s wrong?¡± Seryanna asked and then coughed once. ¡°I found out how to cure this affliction of yours. As I guessed, it''s nothing but a magically enhanced common cold...¡± I let out another sigh. ¡°Is this disease common on Earth?¡± she asked. ¡°Everyone gets it from time to time...¡± I shrugged. ¡°I see...¡± she then looked ahead and smiled softly. She must have been relieved to hear that it wasn''t that bad, but for me to actually help her get through this, I had to give her lots of fluids to drink, that Rotiqus Potion, some vitamins, and finally make sure she got plenty of rest. ¡°Kid, we''re here.¡± the old dragon stopped the cart after a while in front of what looked like one of the biggest stores around here. ¡°Fancy place...¡± I said. ¡°Thank you!¡± the old dragon smirked and rubbed the tip his nose with his finger. ¡°It''s yours?!¡± I looked at him with big eyes. ¡°Of course! I''m Rodrique Vanazalez, the great dragon who owns this store here! My goods are known to be the best in town!¡± he laughed as he held his hands on his hips. This must be why he acted like that before... I thought, then I introduced myself as well ¡°A pleasure to meet you, mister Vanazalez. My name is Alkelios.¡± I forgot to add my family name, but in this world, it wasn''t mandatory to have one. ¡°My name is Seryanna.¡± the dragoness introduced herself as well. ¡°A pleasure to meet the two of you, now follow me inside!¡± he said. ¡°The pleasure is ours, mister Vanazalez...¡± I followed him inside together with Seryanna. There, several clerk owners bowed to him as soon as they saw him. I was surprised by this, but if this dragon was going to help us, then finding a spare room would be a cinch! My Luck had struck again! ¡°There''s a room upstairs.¡± he said as he offered me a key. ¡°Huh? Here?¡± I asked surprised, again. ¡°Of course!¡± he laughed. ¡°But... Well...¡± I took the key a bit dumbfounded. ¡°What''s wrong kid?¡± he asked. ¡°I believe he thought you were just going to introduce us to someone...¡± Seryanna spoke on my behalf. ¡°Yeah... that. I don''t mean to impose on you, but if you are offering us this room, thank you very much!¡± I said with a smile. ¡°You helped me with my cart, and I can see you are an honest kid! Don''t worry about it! Oh, and I have some Rotiqus Potions here if you want to buy some. I heard they are good for this Dragon Flu of hers.¡± he smirked. ¡°That and plenty of rest, healthy food, and lots of fluids.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Hm, I never heard of the others... Why are those things important?¡± he asked. ¡°I believe it allows the body to heal itself properly. This disease practically makes a dragon''s regeneration as slow as a human''s, so... if they heal at the same rate, then plenty of rest, healthy food to restore one''s energy, and lots of fluids to replace those lost through sweat are recommended.¡± I explained. ¡°Hm, I see... Never thought about that. I''ll keep it in mind.¡± he said as he rubbed his chin. ¡°How much for the Rotiqus Potions? Well, if you have some Dragon Grass, Adeline Root, and salt, I can make it myself.¡± I said. ¡°Oh? Are you an alchemist by any chance?¡± he asked curiously. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°What rank?¡± ¡°Grand Master.¡± I replied. Technically, I was a [Bartender], but the level 3 equivalent was the Grand Master Alchemist. ¡°Oh! And so young too!¡± he said surprised. ¡°Do you know how to make Virlullian Potions?¡± he asked. ¡°Erm... If you show me one, I think I can.¡± I nodded. ¡°If you can make one, I''ll give you as many Rotiqus Potions, free food, and whatever else you need for as long as you stay here!¡± he said with as smile. ¡°Sure... Why not?¡± I smiled back. ¡°Then it''s a deal, kid! I''ll bring you one, and you can tell me what you need to make it. Meanwhile, go and take the young lady to your room. It''s on the first floor to the right.¡± he said and then walked to the back of the store. ¡°Again, thank you.¡± I told him. The room itself was a simple one with one bed, a writing desk on the opposite side, a table with two chair near it, and a window with a view to the street in front of us. That being said, the furniture itself was a few levels above what I would normally find in an inn. It looked more similar to a noble''s room than anything. Looking at it, I wondered if normally someone would rent out such a gorgeous room to someone they had just met on the street. Maybe this was a one time occasion, so he didn''t really mind it that much. Although, to be fair, I was more surprised to find out that he let us inside his store even after he saw that Seryanna was sick. Weird dragon... I thought, but I thanked him in my heart. This room was just what we needed. ¡°Alkelios... can you help me with my armor?¡± the weakly dragoness asked. ¡°Sure.¡± I replied as I led her to a chair. After she sat down, I helped her take off her armor piece by piece. It took me a while because it was tied tightly, but once I was done, she showed me a sweet smile. Placing the back of my hand on her forehead, I checked her temperature, which was pretty high. ¡°You need to get some rest and some food to restore your energy.¡± I told her. ¡°I''m going to need to take a bath if I am going to get into that bed...¡± she said. ¡°Yeah, me too...¡± I spoke in a low voice as I looked at the fancy furniture. We haven''t bathed in almost three days, so the stench on us was noticeable, especially Seryanna, who was sweating constantly because of her condition. ¡°I''m going to go downstairs and ask them for a tub or something, if not, I''ll just bring a barrel.¡± I said as I looked back at her. ¡°Thank you.¡± I left the room and went downstairs to ask one of the clerks about a bathtub. While doing so, I also met with mister Vanazalez, who showed me one of those Virlullian Potions. It was a hair rejuvenation potion that also worked as a health tonic. It required a Trusted Journeyman Alchemist to make, so it was completely within my ability. I told him the ingredients I required for it and that I will set up the lab in the room he offered us, afterwards, I was offered a metal bathtub, two towels, and two bathrobes from the spare stock he had. I thanked him for it and brought it up to the room. Filling it with water and heating it up was going to be a bit trickier than initially anticipated, but after a lot of splashing and switching between spells, I managed to do it. Seryanna guided me through as well. ¡°I''m going to go down and prepare something good to eat for you. I''ll be back in twenty minutes or so...¡± I told her. ¡°Very well...¡± she replied in a weak tone of voice. Judging from what I knew, twenty minutes was enough time for her to get cleaned up. I also made sure to close the windows so no perverts could sneak a peek at MY dragoness. Once I was downstairs, I headed to the kitchen and with the help of the cook there, I prepared a quick meal. My Luck came to the rescue once more because there was some soup left. Besides this, I also made sure to take two bottles of Rotiqus Potion. It was dark-brown in color and smelled like dirt, but I confirmed with my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] skill that it was the real deal. Once I was done, I returned to the room. I knocked on the door, and Seryanna replied. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°It''s me.¡± ¡°Alkelios? Um, you can come in...¡± she said. I opened the door and carefully entered while pushing the door with my back. In my hands I was holding the tray with the plates of food, so I had to be careful not to drop or spill them. ¡°I brought you some soup.¡± I told her. ¡°T-Thank you.¡± she replied. When I turned around and closed the door with my foot, I found myself looking at the naked redhead dragoness who was still in the bathtub. ¡°Erm...¡± I was stumped, my eyes glued to her body. ¡°S-Stop starring... it''s embarrassing.¡± she looked away. ¡°I wish I could, but... damn, you look hot!¡± I said and then walked over to the desk. I placed the tray on the desk and sat down in the chair. ¡°You are still starring.¡± she glared at me. ¡°I can''t?¡± I asked. ¡°Erm...¡± she refused to answer. ¡°Do you need help?¡± I asked again. She was silent for a moment, but then, with a shy look in her eyes, she nodded once. I got up from the chair and walked over to her. The dragoness did well to hide all of her important parts, but since she gave the OK, I was going to scrub her clean! Ten minutes later, I was on my knees with a shocked look on my face. I actually did this in the most serious way possible! I didn''t try to peek! I didn''t try to grope her! Men all over the world, I apologize... I failed! I thought, albeit a bit exaggerated. ¡°This soup is good.¡± she said as she ate her food while being covered only with a white bathrobe. ¡°Good to hear...¡± I said while trying to hold my tears in. That was the lousiest time ever to go into my serious mode, but if she stayed for too long in there, she could have ended up getting worse. My needless worry made me miss a good ''massage'' session with her. Oh well, there''s going to be another chance in the future. I''m sure of it! I thought and then let out a sigh. ¡°I''m going to change the water...¡± I said as I lifted the bathtub and walked out. If I still had a human''s strength, I wouldn''t have been able to easily lift that thing. Thank God for Magic and status points! Or was it ''Thank the god-like?''. Once I returned, Seryanna was still eating. By the time I had finished filling it with water, she was already done with her meal, and she tucked herself into bed. Before I got into the bath, I gave her the Rotiqus Potion to drink. I allowed myself a few minutes to soak into the warm water. It did wonders for my joints and feet. Afterwards, I cleaned myself up and got out. I emptied the tub, washed it, and ate some veggies and dried meat for dinner. Without anything else to do, I slipped into bed with Seryanna. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± I asked her. ¡°Better...¡± she replied with her eyes closed. We were both sitting on our each of our side of the bed, but for some reason, I was nerve wreck. This is not good... I thought. I was in a room with a beautiful woman who was also my girlfriend, and I was sitting there like a piece of furniture next to her. My brain was squirming around in my noggin, wondering what I should do. It took me another ten minute to get the hint. Luck didn''t save me this time... I just thought about what wouldn''t be polite to do. Obviously, suddenly embracing her wouldn''t be alright in my head for some reason, so I did just that. When I pulled myself close to her and then wrapped my arms around her, she didn''t pull away, instead she simply opened her eyes and looked at me with a weak gaze. ¡°What are you doing?¡± she asked me. ¡°Acting as a pillow.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°Good... I need one...¡± she said. Closing her eyes, she tucked in closer to me. It was then when her bathrobe was partially undone and skin touched skin. I gulped and froze for a moment. It was too good to be true, but I didn''t back away. This could have been a chance to lead me to Nirvana and finally cross the river to manhood. With a beauty like her in my arms, how could I refuse? So I pulled her closer to me. ¡°Mm...¡± she let out a soft moan when one of my hands rested on her buttock. The other was around her waist. She snuggled close and didn''t care about the fact that there were no piece of cloth between us. However, despite how hot it was under that blanket, she was still shivering... What am I thinking? She''s sick now... Sigh... At least, I didn''t get an unexpected raise of the flag. I thought to myself and moved my hands up. ¡°Sleep well, Seryanna.¡± I whispered to her. ¡°Mhm...¡± she replied. Chapter 38: Heat [Seryanna''s point of view] Thanks to Alkelios, I was already feeling a lot better. My fever went down and my coughing stopped. After just one night, I felt like I wasn''t sick anymore. I don''t know if he wished for me to be cured this fast or if he knew exactly what to do to help me, but I was already feeling in top shape and ready to head out. Yet, the man refused to let me leave the bed. ¡°I said I''m feeling fine.¡± I glared at him. ¡°Yes! Yes! We''ll leave tomorrow. After I am 100% sure you are!¡± he retorted while carefully working with some vials at the alchemy lab in the corner. The dragon merchant going by the name of Vanazalez had it installed for him there while I was still asleep earlier this morning. ¡°Ugh...¡± I let out a dissatisfied groan and turned my back at him. He turned around and showed me a smile. ¡°Just relax, Seryanna. This time of rest and relaxation will do you good.¡± he said. I didn''t answer back. After we had breakfast, he gave me another Rotiqus Potion to drink and some fruit juice. The potion tasted like dirt, but he was saying it would do me good, I saw no reason not to believe him. ¡°What are you making anyway?¡± I asked sometime around noon, after I was so bored, I couldn''t stand it anymore. ¡°Virulullian Potions for mister Vanazalez. It was the condition for letting us stay here. He''s expecting only one potion per day, but I''m going to make him 10 because of the kindness he showed us.¡± he replied. ¡°Isn''t he being awfully kind to you, a stranger?¡± I asked him a bit surprised. Usually, we dragons were careful about whom we welcomed in our homes, especially when those said dragons were merchants. Even grandfather was extremely suspicious of Alkelios until he interviewed him, but his already friendly relationship with me and my sister was probably the decisive factor in his acceptance. When I remembered that scene, I could not help feel that the main reason he acted as such with Alkelios was because he, although a human, didn''t show to be afraid of him, a renowned human slaughterer on the battlefield. He also didn''t appear to try and take advantage of me because I was unawakened, but another important factor was also the way he treated my sister, Kleo. While other dragons kept their distance from her or even regarded her as something dirty, he saw past the color of her scales and treated her like he would a true friend. After all the time I spent with him during our travels and adventures, I couldn''t help but feel amazed by his kind and gentle nature, completely different from how I heard other humans behaved around dragons. Even if he was a dragon, this side of him was also something quite rare and hard to come upon in a world where the strong ruled over the weak, and at times the family you were born into could decide everything for you and your future. In a way, I also hoped he would never get to see that ugly side of our world... And with this tournament the princess called me for as well as the possibility that someone might be scheming something behind our backs, the chances of Alkelios not gazing upon the dark side of the world were slim... at best. Maybe this was one of the things I feared about us... The fact that one day he would see the dark side of this world and being surrounded only by dragons, he would come to see it in me... and eventually hate me. In the evening, after Alkelios was done with his potions, he took them to the old man Vanazalez. The moment he saw them, he was overjoyed. So much, that I heard him from inside my room. Apparently, he wasn''t expecting to receive so many and of such a high quality. When Alkelios returned, he had a cute dumbfounded look on his face. ¡°I think he was pleased.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Yeah...¡± he said with a strange look on his face. ¡°Something happened?¡± I asked him. ¡°He hugged me so hard I thought my bones would break... And that was the first time a male dragon kissed me on my cheeks... and an old man at that.¡± he blinked and then walked up to my bed. I tilted a little my head to the left.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Hya!¡± I let out a startled sound when he suddenly fell on the bed, face first. ¡°I need healing...¡± he said in a half-muffled voice. ¡°H-healing?¡± I asked confused. ¡°Yes.¡± he then looked up and embraced me. ¡°I need my cute redhead dragoness to hug me. To erase the feeling of the old man''s hug.¡± he said almost in tears. I couldn''t help it and let out a small giggle. ¡°Please, don''t laugh... This is serious...¡± he complained. ¡°There. There...¡± I said and hugged him back, gently patting him on the head. ¡°You are exaggerating this a lot, aren''t you?¡± I told him after a moment. ¡°Yes, I am...¡± ¡°It''s alright...¡± I told him. He was my lover, I didn''t mind. Later that night, after he came to bed, I found my heart beating very fast again. It was the first time in my life I was self-conscious of a man next to me, and the day before when I could barely stand didn''t count. And neither did the many other times we found ourselves in the same bed in the past. This was also the first time I was certain Kleo or Kataryna weren''t going to come peeking inside our room with eyes that showed they were expecting ''something'' to happen. Up until now, I never thought myself to be a woman whose beauty could outshine even that of the most plain-looking dragonesses. Compared to an awakened one, I was but a child with no tail or wings... I was ugly. Yet, Alkelios... he... ¡°Do you really think I''m cute?¡± I asked him in a whisper, but then hid my embarrassed face under the blanket. What am I doing asking him this?! I thought. ¡°Hm?¡± he moved closer to me and pulled the blanket down. ¡°Not just cute, but beautiful, strong, kind, valiant, open minded, charming, incredible too.¡± he said with a smile. My heart was beating like crazy, and I knew my cheeks were as red as a dragon''s breath. ¡°How can you say something like that with such a straight face?¡± I asked him and for some reason glared at him. ¡°Hey, it''s not easy for me either... It''s hard to confess these things...¡± he lowered his head. ¡°But it''s the truth... that''s how I see you...¡± he told me. ¡°You love me?¡± I asked him. ¡°Yes... I love you...¡± he showed me a smile. I gulped. Looking into his dark-brown eyes, I strangely found myself pulled in like magic. I was embarrassed, my heart was jogging in my chest, and if I had a tail, it would have swayed and waved restlessly under the covers, yet I still looked at him. Alkelios was like a drug that stirred all sort of emotions inside of me, and I like a reckless fool... I wanted more. How would it be like if he... if he embraced me? If he was my first... I thought in a daze, but by the time this sentence in my head was over, I had already moved my hand over his head and pulled him closer. Now we were sharing the same breath. His scent, his warmth, his touch... they riled up the flames inside me. IT stirred a strange energy which told me it was alright... No, it pushed me towards it and demanded of me to CLAIM this human as mine. Yes... human, not dragon... this energy, this desire... demanded the human Alkelios. I kissed him, and he kissed me back. I cared not anymore... Nobility... class... rank... status... to Abyss with them all! I wanted Alkelios... and I wanted him NOW! My kisses turned rougher and before I knew it, I found myself on top of him. I was feverish and hot, my cheeks flushed and my breath was in heaves. I gulped and kissed him again and again... What happened and how, I didn''t know. But I was dragoness, and like all those of my kind, we demanded to give claim over our mates. We desired to dominate them or be dominated by them... I wanted the same. The heat in my body, in my core... it burned me like the lava in a rumbling volcano. Yet, I desired this scorching heat, and I wanted it to grow... to set me free. I took off my blouse, and I continued to kiss him... to want him... His hands moved over my body as well. He too wanted me. The heat inside him was also great, it demanded my own. A merger of flames was what our nature called for. Through kisses and embraces... I slowly lost myself to my draconic side, even my sight turned strange. Yet, when it was time to move on... It was limp. ¡°Huh?¡± I snapped out of it. ¡°I''m sorry...¡± Alkelios looked away with a complicated look on his face. Inside me, the flames... were simmering down. He said he loved me... that he found me beautiful and attractive, yet why was he limp? How? I couldn''t understand, but because of this... tears rolled down my cheeks. A few drops fell on his face. Surprised, he looked up at me. ¡°Seryanna?¡± he asked with big eyes. ¡°No... I''m sorry I''m not... I''m not...¡± I tried to finish the words, to say: I''m not good enough for you. His body was honest to the words in his heart. He loved me. He cared for me. Maybe, but he didn''t find me THAT attractive. After all, I was a dragon, and he was a human... what was I expecting? Even so, he apologized and kept apologizing while embracing me and holding me in his arms. I didn''t even know why I was crying so hard, why I felt so rejected, but he kept apologizing and trying to calm me down, to wipe off the tears I shed... yet the pain in my heart wasn''t going anywhere. I accepted him and wanted him to the very core of my being, yet... these were only one sided feelings in the end? How could I not feel so devastated, so sad... so broken? So I cried... I cried myself to sleep in his arms because no matter how much I struggled, he didn''t let me go. But inside, I was happy he did so. If he had released me from his embrace, if he let me cry on my own... that would have been it, the end of us. But like this, I knew... somehow, someway, that he was trying his best to overcome this because maybe... just maybe, he wanted me as much as I did him? Chapter 39: On our way to Drakaria [Alkelios'' point of view] I messed up... No, I didn''t just mess up... I failed completely! And I had no idea why in the first place. Looking back, there shouldn''t have been ANY reason why I couldn''t get it up? It was like my body simply rejected the very thought and idea of being together with Seryanna... or was this an excuse as well? I couldn''t figure it out, I couldn''t understand why that happened... and no matter how hard I tried to think about it, there were less and less reasons on account of which I could have ended up in that situation. The more I tried to, the more I saw myself as nothing but a pathetic loser. To put it in simple words, I began to harbor a certain disgust for myself... for my human side. After Seryanna fell asleep, I couldn''t close my eyes. Being unable to understand why something like this happened, eaten up by guilt and remorse, I couldn''t fall asleep. I stood by her side and cuddled her in my arms. She didn''t try to move away from me, on the contrary... throughout the night, she was unwilling to move away no matter how hot it got. Looking at her like this, I knew she didn''t want to let me go, but there was also something inside me that refused to release her. Just like when she started crying... At first, I wanted to run away in shame, but my arms refused to let her leave my embrace. It was like my body had a mind of its own... No matter what, letting go of her was a big NO. Thus, the night passed by without me catching a single wink of sleep. The following day, she woke up but didn''t say a word. We remained in each other arms like that for almost an entire hour before she moved and gave me a kiss. I welcomed it like a hungry beast and squeezed her in my arms tightly. ¡°Do you love me?¡± she asked me after our lips separated. She wasn''t looking at me in the eyes. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied without a single moment of hesitation. With a small smile on her lips, she lowered her head on my chest and then whispered to me ¡°I''ll wait then...¡± Hearing her, the guilt went up by several levels. It strangled me from inside, but the worst part was that I had no idea what I thought myself to be guilty of. I was a fool or maybe an idiot not to be able to realize this much, but such was human nature. Sometimes the easiest of answers are the hardest to spot even if they are sitting right under your nose... I thought, remembering what father once told me. At noon, we got dressed, ate a quick meal and then went to say our farewells to the generous merchant who let us stay in his home for two nights. ¡°Are you sure you don''t want to stay for another night?¡± he asked while most likely thinking of the potions I would make for him in exchange. ¡°Yes. We appreciate everything you did for us, mister Vanazalez, but it''s time for us to resume our journey, especially now that Seryanna''s all healed up.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°Is that so? Well, when you return to this town, if you''ll ever need someplace to stay, don''t hesitate to drop by my shop! I will gladly welcome you!¡± he said with a big smile. ¡°We will take your offer into consideration the next time we arrive here. Good bye, mister Vanazalez!¡± I said and then we parted ways The longer I stayed the more potions he received for free, each one probably costing more than a rent at a local inn. However, it was far more comfortable and secure here than there. I also didn''t mind making them as long as I wasn''t using my own ingredients. What I did notice, however, was that I was in a real need of some sort of [Purse] ring as well. Maybe something like an [Item Backpack]? If I ended up stumbling upon a situation where I needed to make something, I was helpless unless someone offered me both the materials and the lab. In games, there was always the convenient menu of Item Creation, through which with just one click, you could create the most complex and powerful of items. At most, you would need to be ''around'' a lab, not directly interact with it. Once me and Seryanna arrived at the gates, we saw an almost unending line. Countless dragons were trying to leave Toros, but only the healthy ones were allowed to do so. After all, the next settlement after this town was the capital of Albeyater Kingdom, Drakaria. They certainly didn''t want anyone bringing the Dragon Flu there. As such, all we had to do now was wait in line. When it was finally our turn, we were stopped by the guards. ¡°Wait, I remember you two! She was sick, go back!¡± he glared at us. ¡°That''s a bit rude. Does she look sick?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°I saw her with my own eyes. She was coughing and sneezing!¡± he rebuked. ¡°Is she sneezing and coughing now?¡± I asked him. ¡°She''s keeping it in!¡± he glared. ¡°Are you accusing me of lying?¡± Seryanna asked as she glared at him. ¡°Yeah! That''s what I''m doing! You''re lying! So what are you going to do about it?¡± he said with a big smirk on his face. Seryanna unsheathed her sword and then pointed it at him. ¡°How about I send you to jail for insulting a Royal Knight?¡± she suggested. ¡°What? You think your lies are going to work here? Huh?¡± he asked. ¡°Well, I''m pretty sure if you are going to keep this up, you are going to end up dead, so why don''t you call your supervisor here before that happens.¡± I advised him. ¡°You think I''m afraid of a wom...¡± BONK! His words were cut off as someone knocked him out from behind. ¡°For one of my men to act so rude in front of a knight. How shameful.¡± a tall dragon wearing a full-plate armor said as he grabbed the unconscious guard by the scruff of his neck. ¡°Are you the one in charge here?¡± Seryanna asked as she lowered her sword. ¡°Yes. My apologizes, Sir Draketerus.¡± he said and made a small bow in front of her. ¡°You know of me?¡± ¡°Of course. I was there when the king gave you the title of a Royal Knight under The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher. At that time, I was dressed as a noble who was merely lucky enough to attend the ceremony.¡± he said with a smile. ¡°May I ask your name as well?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°Of course! I am Baron Theryan Overdaken! The head of the guards in Toros.¡± he replied with a smile. ¡°I will remember that name.¡± she said as she sheathed her sword. ¡°Thank you, it will be an honor.¡± ¡°Then, I will presume there is no reason to hold us here at the gates, is there?¡± Seryanna asked, squinting her eyes at him. ¡°Of course not! You show none of the symptoms, so you are free to pass through the gates. Have a safe journey, Sir Draketerus!¡± he said with a smile. While I was staring at them dumbfounded, the guards moved aside to let us pass. I quickly followed in the redhead''s steps until we were both outside and walking towards the bridge crossing over the Great Chasm. Seeing it for the first time, it was a rather impressive sight to behold. The long, white bridge stretched from one side to the other of the Great Chasm. Strong, enchanted white stones were assembled perfectly to form this incredible construction, although, without magic, it would have certainly crumbled to pieces by now. The crest of the kingdom found on its flags was engraved at every 10 meters on the sides, while a magic crystal constantly shun light over it. The fire-engulfed sword was imposing and menacing. It inspired strength, but also courage in my opinion. The first time I saw a flag of the kingdom was at Brekkar''s house. It was in one of his storerooms. If a passing by maid didn''t tell what it was, I wouldn''t have recognized it now as we crossed this bridge. Behind us, the tall walls of Toros stood as a final defense against anyone or anything who would dare cross the bridge illegally. Imposing and strong, they also separated one side of the kingdom from the other. It was as if saying that once you crossed this bridge, you were expected to encounter a whole new and far more dangerous world. ¡°It''s... deep.¡± I said as I looked over the edge at the abyss of the Great Chasm. It was like staring into the gates of Hell. I was expecting any moment now for a monster of some sort to jump out and drag me down there. I gulped. ¡°Watch your step.¡± Seryanna warned me. ¡°Don''t worry, I''m not going to fall.¡± I said as I stepped away and returned to her side. Looking into her eyes, I took her hand and then gave her a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Are you still upset with me?¡± I asked. She looked down and then back at me. ¡°I don''t know if I''m upset... I don''t know what happened...¡± she said and shook her head. ¡°Me either... Honestly, I don''t know...¡± I said as I looked down. ¡°Thank you...¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°For?¡± ¡°Not letting me go.¡± she showed me a smile. I embraced her. ¡°I didn''t because I love you...¡± ¡°I love you too...¡± she replied and returned my embrace. After we shared a kiss, we continued to cross the huge bridge until we reached the other side. Over there, we found a big inn, the stables for the Khosinni, and several campsites. ¡°So many dragons...¡± said Seryanna as she looked around. ¡°Yeah, they are probably waiting for someone they know in Toros. It''s better to wait them here than to risk getting sick as well.¡± I said. ¡°I do not deny this fact. I wonder where Kataryna and Kleo are though?¡± she said as she looked around.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. It was the same for me, I couldn''t see them. ¡°Let''s go inside. Maybe they are waiting for us in there?¡± Seryanna suggested. ¡°Sure.¡± I nodded. The two of us walked to the front door of the inn and stepped inside. It was a three story building with a stable connected to it and several rooms. It was more of a noble''s mansion than a traveler''s inn. Inside, the whole place was decorated with wood sculptures and lit up by several magic crystals. If my math wasn''t wrong there were at least 30 tables in here spread across the whole floor. Most of them were occupied with two or more dragons. Six waitresses were running back and forth from the kitchen, holding trays filled with food or tankards of mead. There were two bartenders managing the drinks, but of the two of them, one was a dwarf. For the first time ever since I was dropped in this world, I saw someone who wasn''t a dragon. On the inside, I was almost squealing with excitement, but at the same time, my curiosity skyrocketed. I couldn''t help but wonder how and why they were here. Just to be safe, I asked Seryanna ¡°Is that a dwarf?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°How? Why is he here?¡± I asked surprised. She giggled ¡°I think someone like you is more of an unbelievable sight then him.¡± ¡°How come?¡± I asked. ¡°Humans are at war with the dragons, while the dwarfs have a neutral standing with us. They are mostly merchants and craftsmen, so it''s natural that you will find many of them scattered throughout many kingdoms. Human parties and elfin parties especially seem to employ them for their toughness and ability to fight with ease in otherwise tight corridors for the others. Dragons do the same with tricky dungeons. Or at least, that''s what he told me.¡± she pointed at the dwarf who was filling up a tankard. With a smile on her lips, she approached the bar, and I followed right behind her. ¡°George, how are you doing?¡± she greeted him. ¡°Hm? Ah! Seryanna! Good to see ya, girl!¡± he replied with a bright smile. To specify, this dwarf didn''t have a big stuffy beard or incredibly thick limbs and fingers. He looked just like a shrunk human, but with a slightly bigger head. His muscles were thick and firm, and his forehead filled with wrinkles. A long ponytail tied his long gray hair on his back, and he wore simple linen clothes. After he filled the tankard, he placed it on a tray alongside seven others. ¡°Table six, Lili!¡± A cute dragoness waitress with chestnut twin tails and freckles came up to the counter and picked up the tray. She gave me a wink and then left. ¡°Ahem!¡± the redhead caught my attention with a cough. Huh? Why is she looking at me like that? I wondered, but I wasn''t on the same wavelength. ¡°So, why are you here, Seryanna?¡± asked George the dwarf. ¡°We are headed for the capital. Have you by any chance seen a black-scaled dragoness in black clothing with a silver-scaled companion?¡± she asked. ¡°Oh those two were with you?¡± he asked surprised. ¡°You know them... or rather, what did they do?¡± she squinted her eyes. ¡°They rented the last room here at the inn, a real luck if you ask me, then last night they were having a drink and a bunch of big brawny dragons started a fight with them.¡± ¡°A fight?¡± Seryanna raised an eyebrow. ¡°Yeah, a fight. They were just a bunch of horny bastards who thought the silver-scaled was an easy pick. The girl told them she''s taken already...¡± This time, I was the one who asked ¡°Taken already?¡± ¡°Yeah, and then they got a bit rough with her, which ended up in them getting beaten up like a bunch of beginner adventurers. I''d say, but that dragoness is one powerful woman!¡± he nodded to himself. ¡°Of course she is. So, where are they now?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°I think they are still up in their room. Are they your companions?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°Well, then I can tell you the room they are staying in. It''s on the second floor at the very end of the corridor on the right. You can''t miss it.¡± he smirked. ¡°Thank you.¡± We left the bar and headed upstairs. Just as the dwarf instructed, we found the room with ease because on the opposite side was the bath. We knocked two times, and Kleo was the one to open the door. ¡°Sister!¡± the happy dragoness jumped in Seryanna''s arms. ¡°Good to see you too, little sister.¡± she replied. ¡°Oh? You two are finally out! Well, with Alkelios there, I was certain you wouldn''t stay sick for too long!¡± Kataryna said as she walked up to the door. ¡°Good to see the two of you. How was your stay here? And yes, it didn''t take that long. It was just a simple cold.¡± I shrugged. Hearing me, Kataryna began to laugh. ¡°As expected of you!¡± she said. ¡°We were fine, nothing to worry about! Shall we go now?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Yes, although, how are the meals here?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°Pretty good. Shall we go downstairs and order something?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°I''m game with it!¡± I said with a smile. ¡°G-game with it?¡± Kleo looked at me a bit confused. ¡°It''s an expression... it''s the same as saying: I agree with your suggestion.¡± I explained. ¡°I see... weird.¡± she tilted her head and then unhooked her arms from around her sister''s neck. ¡°Let''s go, then!¡± Kataryna said and walked out, locking the door behind her. Thus, we all headed downstairs to grabbed a bite to eat before heading off for the capital. The food was acceptable, but some extra spices wouldn''t have hurt. [Seryanna''s point of view] For me, it was a bit awkward to act like the night before never happened. I still felt at fault for what happened, but this raised another question: What would happen once I Awakened? Most dragons changed their appearance completely when they went through their awakening process, so it was highly likely for me to end up with a pair of horns, a tail, maybe a pair of wings, and a lot more scales on my body. Such an appearance would have been seen as undesirable by a human. If right now I wasn''t attractive enough for him, then would he come to hate me in the future? This made me wish for the first time in my life that I didn''t awaken and remained as human as possible. I grew to love and cherish Alkelios that much, yet... it made me feel awful that I couldn''t offer him everything he wanted... that I wasn''t perfect for him. With these feelings in my heart, I could barely enjoy my meal. The others were having fun, and Alkelios enjoyed it as well, but for me it felt like they were in a whole other world. After we ate, we had something to drink and waited half an hour for the food to settle in before we went to the stables to rent three Khosinni. I rode with Alkelios, while Kataryna and Kleo had their own separate beast. Several hours after we left the inn, we arrived at our first campsite. We cooked for ourselves a simple meal and then we trained together. I tried to put up a mask and show that there was noting wrong with me. Alkelios didn''t seem to have noticed, but once he went wash himself, I pulled Kleo and Kataryna to the side. With a heavy heart, I told them what happened during the time we were separated. ¡°This is... unexpected.¡± said Kleo. After hearing me out, she wasn''t in the mood to pull a joke on me. ¡°Yes... For something like that to happen.¡± Kataryna shook her head. ¡°I know... Since then, my chest keeps hurting and I keep wondering if maybe he simply doesn''t see me as good enough for him...¡± I said as I looked down at the crackling fire. ¡°I don''t think that''s it.¡± Kataryna said shaking her head. ¡°But... even I know something like THAT wasn''t supposed to happen!¡± I retorted and looked into her eyes. ¡°It depends. When I was still young, I had one or two males who ended up in a similar position, but unlike Alkelios, they all blamed me for not being pretty enough or some other nonsense like that.¡± she shrugged. ¡°I don''t understand. What do you mean?¡± ¡°Ah! That reminds me, Iolaus one time also went limp. It was the day after he awakened, I think... Since then, we haven''t done it.¡± Kleo said scratching the back of her head and then added ¡°He has a lot of nights to catch up. Hehehe.¡± ¡°Kleo, wipe your drool off.¡± Kataryna said. ¡°Ah! Sorry!¡± my little sister then laughed. [Somewhere far away from them. Iolaus'' point of view] I suddenly felt the glare of a hungry predator and quickly turned around. There was nothing there... not even a rabbit. ¡°What was that?¡± I thought out loud. It was like I suddenly stepped into a den of wild predators who were just waiting for the right moment to rip me to shreds. It was so scary, I unwillingly gulped. Afterwards, I continued to move carefully, keeping my eyes open for any danger and my ears out for any suspicious sounds. [Back to Alkelios''s group. Seryanna''s point of view] ¡°So you are saying... stuff like this happens?¡± I asked them. ¡°Yes. It''s not that... out of the ordinary.¡± Kataryna shrugged. ¡°He also didn''t blame you for his little accident, like saying you aren''t pretty enough or that you aren''t a human like him.¡± Kleo pointed out. It was true, he simply apologized and hugged me until I stopped crying. Maybe I overreacted? ¡°Now that I think about it, this whole thing could be due to stress?¡± Kataryna said as she scratched her head. ¡°Stress?¡± I asked with a frown. ¡°Yes. I mean, he''s a human surrounded by dragons all the time. The last member of his species he found tried to kill him AND his friends. From what I came to understand was also the fact that up until now, he never had to worry about his own life or that of others. It''s quite possible that he lived an extremely sheltered life, to the point where he didn''t even get into a real fight until he met you, Seryanna.¡± Kataryna explained. ¡°Isn''t that a bit absurd? Although... He did tell me that the place he came from didn''t even have something like magic.¡± I said and looked down at the fire. The frown never left my face because I kept thinking hard about this, trying to understand what was wrong with me or him. ¡°We also need to take into consideration his age. Compared to us, he''s like a whelp who barely hatched out from his egg. No matter how you look at things, everything is going at an abnormal speed even for us... That being said, we dragons have a very long lifespan in comparison to the humans, who mostly die off before their fifth decade. I mean, I''m already 759 years old. You are not even two centuries old, and Kleo here has yet to reach her first.¡± Kataryna said. ¡°This year I turned 127 and Kleo 78...¡± I said. ¡°You are literally children when compared to me! Hahaha!¡± she laughed. ¡°No, you are just an expired fossil.¡± Kleo rebuked in a calm tone of voice. ¡°Watch it!¡± she flicked her forehead. ¡°Unu~!¡± Kleo groaned and rubbed the struck spot. Their joke made me giggle, which was a first since we got back together. ¡°But yes, Seryanna... just relax. It was probably just due to stress. Give him some time, some space to breath. Don''t pull him into any dangerous situation, otherwise, he might snap...¡± she recommended. ¡°Snap?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Yes. That boy probably isn''t even aware of it himself, but he''s clearly on the edge...¡± there was a sad look in her eyes as she said this ¡°I can feel this every time I spar with him. He never puts ALL of his strength into the blow, and there were many times when he flinched or closed his eyes as I was about to strike. That''s clearly a sign of him not being used with dangerous situations... or battles at all. These things take time...¡± she said and then let out a sigh. ¡°There''s also the ''male pride'' you have to consider.¡± Kleo told us with a smirk. ¡°Indeed. As I said before, most men, be them dragon or otherwise, hold on tightly to their male pride. They apparently can''t afford to show a sign of weakness in front of women, especially those they fancy. I have seen many idiots fight in front of me just to prove their... worth. Bleah! Like that would ever catch my interest.¡± she rolled her eyes. ¡°I don''t think I understand...¡± I said. Most of the times, men just ignored me. Besides Alkelios, none truly showed to fancy me. As such, I never had the experience of having men flaunting over me or trying to impress me in any way or manner. ¡°You are just a bit dense, sister.¡± Kleo patted me on the head with a pitying look in her eyes. I tossed her a glare, and she pulled back. ¡°So, Alkelios never acted like the typical dragon or human males?¡± I asked. ¡°Yup! That''s why I can say that there''s nothing wrong with you, and he himself doesn''t think so either. Not being beautiful enough or whatnot is all just a foolish thought of yours. He might not be perfect, but keep in mind, Alkelios is neither a dragon nor a regular human. He barely learned how to fight and is still struggling to adapt. I wouldn''t be surprised if he will make some stupid mistake sooner or later.¡± Kataryna said and let out a sigh. ¡°I see... but what if he makes a mistake?¡± I asked. Looking into my eyes and using a serious tone of voice, she said ¡°You will undoubtedly feel hurt. It''s not going to be pretty either. He''ll probably show you the worst side of himself.¡± I gulped. ¡°Then... what should I do then?¡± I asked. ¡°You? Nothing.¡± she shook her head ¡°You just need to bite hard and keep yourself together. No matter what he says, does, or how he looks at you, just remember that it''s probably his lowest moment ever. It will also be a test for you as well... If you can still love him after that, then... I doubt even the king will be able to separate you.¡± she showed me a soft smile. ¡°So I just need to hold on, but what about him?¡± I asked her. ¡°What if he doesn''t change back to his usual self?¡± ¡°That''s where we come in!¡± she showed me a smile. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I furrowed my brow. ¡°No matter what side of himself he''ll show you, he''ll probably have a hard time afterwards. When I see it as the right time, I''ll make sure to straighten him up one way or another. After all, we are his friends, and he''s lucky enough to have me who has achieved a Breakthrough and already witnessed plenty of similar situations throughout my long life. I''ll be able to get through to him, don''t worry! You just need to be strong during that moment of crisis!¡± she patted my shoulder. ¡°And what if... even after all that, he doesn''t change or... worse... stops loving me?¡± I asked her, a bit fearfully. ¡°Then... I will kill him.¡± she replied coldly. ¡°What?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°If he will become so broken that not even I can do anything about it, instead of letting him turn into a madman, I will do him a favor and kill him with my own hands. This way neither us, the kingdom, or anyone else will have to fear him or suffer because of his power going haywire.¡± she declared coldly. I gulped as I looked into her eyes. There was no lie in her words. That was her plan and desired course of action. Since she achieved a Breakthrough, I couldn''t even say that I could do anything to stop her. Then again, if Alkelios ever ended up like that, I didn''t believe I would have wanted to either way. ¡°Still, it isn''t like this is what I truly wish for... That''s the worst-case scenario. Given his Luck, I do not think the gods will let him reach it, especially since neither of us wish for it.¡± she showed a weak smile. ¡°Yes... He did wish to have all the time he needs in order to reach the best decision of whether he should marry me or not. Maybe all of this drama is a direct result of that?¡± I asked as I remembered his words from back then. ¡°Could be. After all, he wishes to have not even one spec of doubt in his heart when he comes to this conclusion, right?¡± Kataryna asked, to which I nodded ¡°Then, this whole thing is undoubtedly a test... A very crazy luck-based test of will and hope... of love.¡± Chapter 40: Drakaria [Alkelios'' point of view] Two days after we left the inn at the edge of the Great Chasm, we finally saw the giant walls of Drakaria. This moment strongly reminded me of a Fantasy movie where the hero arrived at the top of the hill and in the far reaches saw the dazzling city which marked the end of his long journey. A few streaks of sunlight passed through the clouded sky, offering a beautiful touch, while the cold wind rustled our clothes. A single neigh escaped the tired Khosinni, and Kataryna stretched her back. ¡°WOW!¡± I said as I looked at the breathtaking scene. ¡°To see Drakaria like this for the first time, you are indeed lucky Alkelios.¡± pointed out Kleo and then let out a sigh. I blinked surprised and looked back at her. ¡°Don''t mind her. The first time she arrived here, it was scorching hot and she was gasping for water.¡± Seryanna said with a giggle. ¡°What about you?¡± I asked her. ¡°Hm, it was during winter, right before a big storm, so... it was the same as when looking at it during a normal day of autumn?¡± she tilted her head to the left. On the Dragon Continent, the weather around Dragon Kingdom Albeyater was mostly temperate, but temperatures were lower to the North and higher to the south, but you would have to travel a really long distance to notice the change. As for the duration of each season, it appeared as though Spring, Summer, and Autumn were all of about two to three months long each, with the Winter season being the only one spanning over three months. They didn''t mark a certain day when one season began and the other ended, they used the change of the climate itself. Thus, when the first snow fell, Winter began, and when Spring flowers showed their heads, it ended. Summer was marked by the apparition of the Dios fruit, which were similar to cherries, but grew in shrubs. Autumn began with the fall of the first leaf. Overall, they had about 10 months. At least by how the Dragons counted them. The humans apparently had 12 months, while the Dwarfs had 6 months, one for each time the two moons in the sky were aligned, with the biggest one standing behind the smallest one. To be fair, I only recently noticed that this world had two moons... Up until now, I honestly believed it had only one. For some reason, I simply felt that it SHOULD resemble Earth in this aspect, so I never actually bothered to... check. Similar to the Dwarfs, the Elves didn''t measure the months in days but seasons. Thus, their years only had 4 months, while the Relliar had two months: mating and non-mating. As for how I came across this information, I just thought I should ask... After all, so many weeks had already passed by. The end of the current year and the beginning of the new one was something all sapient species agreed on because it was something given to them by the Gods apparently. That day coincided with the end of the 6th month of the Dwarfs, so the alignment of the two moons was always a good marker for this. Well, leaving this complicated thing aside, we were now approaching the city''s gate at a moderate pace. The main road we were on was connected with others that came from the north, from this side of the Great Chasm. Drakaria was a city surrounded by tall white walls, reaching up to almost 30 meters in height if not more. It looked heavily fortified and more centered towards repelling aerial assaults rather than ground ones. Considering the ability of the dragon kind to shift between one form to another, it was natural to think about building the capital this way. The palace was located on a higher ground than the first wall, with another one separating it from the rest of the city. From outside, or rather atop the hill we were on, I noticed that despite showing off an exquisite craftsmanship and beauty of design, the palace was heavily protected by four large towers placed on all four corners. From the North, a river flowed towards the city, splitting into two as soon as it reached the outer walls. One arm flowed around the outside wall, acting like a moat and ending with a small lake, while the other arm went south, following a parallel line to the Great Chasm. Unfortunately, I couldn''t see any more details than that, but I had a feeling it was separated into parts similar to how the ancient cities of Europe were, meaning into a Noble Area, Merchant Area, and a Commoners Area. At least, that was what I presumed. Once inside, I was going to ask Seryanna more details about it, for now, we just had to get past the gates. ¡°Eijeer Nayus Nerver Il.¡± the redhead dragoness said and a glowing yellow light formed around her body, emanating from her armor. This took me by surprise, especially since I was riding behind her. A little warning would have been nice, but once it was over, something changed. ¡°What just happened?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°I released the Illusion Spell that hid the emblems on my armor. They represent my rank, status, as well as affiliation to the Third Princess, whom I serve.¡± she replied. Pulling back a bit, I was able to see it more clearly. It was a gray shield with a white lily flower on top of it. Four green leafs were at its base, and a single sword pointing upwards was hidden behind the shield, leaving only the tip and hilt to be seen. A rather interesting designs, but very hard to draw in my opinion. ¡°Why is the sword hidden?¡± I asked. ¡°To represent what the Princess stands for, which is Defense over Offense.¡± the dragoness explained. I asked nothing more of it as of now, but I was guessing that by revealing this emblem, she was now declaring to the world that she was back in active duty. The guards at the gate would probably not give us trouble in regard to letting us pass. With a bit of Luck, they wouldn''t even question my species. To my surprise, as soon as they saw us, they saluted and let us pass without even asking a single question. Thus, we passed through the huge gates meant to keep away all the nasty and unwanted folk. The moment we entered the city, a sea of dragons appeared before us. Normal people who went about their daily lives, many wearing armor, while others casual clothes. There was no tension in the air as there was back in Toros. People didn''t shoot a nasty glare at us or more like... they avoided us. The guards saluted as we passed by and the children raised their heads up in curiosity. The power of the emblem was certainly strong, but it made me wonder why she didn''t display it until now. It would have made passing through the previous cities much easier. ¡°Was that OK?¡± I asked after a few moments, raising an eyebrow. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Seryanna asked. ¡°What happened back there. Weren''t they supposed to ask us for some sort of identification or demand an entry fee?¡± I pointed with my thumb over my shoulder. ¡°No. As soon as I made my emblem visible, it was clear that I was of a higher rank than those guards. As a knight in the service of royalty, I am exempt from state taxes and can even order City Guards as I desire, but only to a certain extent. However, I have no authority over the Palace Guards, only the Royals do.¡± she explained. ¡°Plus many other things, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Indeed.¡± she nodded. ¡°Usually, the entrance fee in Drakaria is of 5 copper coins for one night, one silver coin for an annual pass, and one gold coin for a permanent residency. Unless you are a noble, then it''s half. If you are working in the Palace, then it''s free.¡± Kleo explained. ¡°But why did we all pass for free?¡± I asked. ¡°Because you are with me. The knight and their company may pass for free.¡± Seryanna said and then pulled the reins of the Khosinni, leading us to a street on the right. ¡°Where are we going, by the way?¡± I asked. ¡°To a good inn I know off in the Adventurer District.¡± she told me. ¡°Adventurer District?¡± I asked. Today I was full of questions and almost no answers. ¡°The city of Drakaria is separated to the North in the Adventurer District and the Merchant District. If we went on the other road that led to the left, we would have arrived in the Workshop Area. From there, we could have arrived in the Market Area and then entered the Merchant Living Area. The Workshop Area, Market Area, and Merchant Living Area all form the Merchant District. To the South of here, we can reach a gate that will lead us to the outer Workshop Area, the Slums, and Worker Living Area.¡± she explained calmly. ¡°The Royal Palace is surrounded by the Noble Area, where most of the upper classes of nobility live, such as Dukes and Viscounts.¡± Kleo added to that explanation. ¡°I think I get the picture.¡± I nodded. ¡°The inn were are going to is located in the Adventurer District, and it''s right next to the Guild Hall. They have good management.¡± Seryanna nodded. ¡°Why are we going here and not the Palace?¡± I asked. It was a normal question from my point of view. I honestly, didn''t see a reason why we couldn''t. ¡°Because while I can get you past the city''s gates, you can''t enter the Palace without a summon from one of the nobles or royals working there. Unless the Princess will specifically call out for you, you are not allowed to enter.¡± Seryanna explained calmly.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Oh...¡± I guess I spoke out of term here? I wondered. For me there wasn''t any big difference between nobles and commoners, but those around me certainly didn''t see it that way. ¡°Do not worry. Just stay out of trouble and await my return after my meeting with the Princess is over.¡± she told me with a small smile. I nodded in reply. ¡°By the way, you always need to stay at an inn when you are summoned by the Princess?¡± I asked. ¡°No.¡± she shook her head ¡°Because I am her Knight, I have a proper chamber in the Palace.¡± she replied. ¡°Bummer... Guess we won''t sleep together tonight?¡± I asked resting my chin on her shoulder. ¡°I apologize.¡± she looked down. ¡°Don''t worry about it! Go and do your job without a care!¡± I gave her a kiss on the cheek and showed her a smile. She nodded in reply. Not that long after our little chat, we finally arrived at the inn. It was filled with adventurers by the looks of it, and they even had a stable too. Speaking of which, these rental Khosinni weren''t needed to be returned to their previous place in Toros. Apparently, it didn''t matter where we stopped, as long as we specified from where we got the Khosinni and signed the return form, we were good to go to rent another one. Since being attacked by bandits and encountering dangerous monsters was a foreseen thing, we would pay a fine of several silver coins in the case of the loss or death of the Khosinni. In exchange for all of these fees, we could rent and return the beast to any official stable in the kingdom. But as a result, we couldn''t buy one unless it was from a licensed vendor, and we always had to carry the ownership certificate or the moment we stepped into a random stable, it would get confiscated. We first brought the Khosinni to the stable, and after we signed the return form, we entered the inn. The dragons inside, all Awakened from the looks of things, shot us a quick gaze and then returned to their conversations. They weren''t all adventurers. Among them, I spotted a group of four soldiers and even a few people who looked like traveling peddlers. The establishment itself was quite big, capable of holding more than 100 dragons at its tables. With two stories above the ground floor, the number of rooms was great as well. Then again, it was placed right next to the Guild Hall, so it was natural for them to have more customers than others. More dragons meant more money, and more money was the purpose of every thriving business out there. Regarding the architecture, it was made out of a dark-brown wood. It was sturdy and with a scent of food and booze already infused in it. Compared to the last inn we stepped into, the one outside Toros, this one was not so well decorated. Several carved wood statues could be seen around this place, but not all in top shape. One had a cut at the front, another had blood stain on it, while another had its head turned black from fire. The fact that the owner didn''t change them could only mean that there was some history behind them and maybe he was waiting to tell it to those interested. As usual, the bartender and innkeeper were all using the same counter. One dragon had a bunch of glasses and bottles to his left, while the other had an entire board filled with the keys for the available rooms. Having a reception office seemed like a waste of time to these dragons. Following behind Seryanna, we approached them. ¡°Good day, Bayuk, Collentra.¡± the redhead dragoness greeted them. ¡°Sir Seryanna! A pleasure as always!¡± the dragon named Bayuk replied with a big grin on his face. ¡°Oh my! Sir Seryanna, welcome back! How was your journey to Tomeron?¡± the innkeeper dragoness asked with a smile on her anthropomorphic head. Yup, that one was female. She had a tail too, but no wings. Her scale color was a pale green. ¡°It was pleasant.¡± Seryanna nodded. ¡°And these are?¡± Collentra asked as she looked past her shoulder, straight at us. ¡°Adventurers and friends I have made along my journey. This one, however, is my younger sister. Do you remember Kleo?¡± she asked them. ¡°Kleo? You mean that little mischievous girl?¡± Bayuk asked. ¡°Acha~¡± the dragoness in question hid behind Kataryna. ¡°Hahaha! You still owe me for the prank you pulled when you were five!¡± Bayuk told her. ¡°I''ll... pay up for it.¡± Kleo replied. ¡°No need to, honey. This old lizard tail may have had a harsh tone back then, but he didn''t mind it that much.¡± the innkeeper dragoness said as she shook her head. ¡°I understand...¡± Kleo nodded. They didn''t seem to be worried about her being a black scale, and the dragons weren''t glaring at us so far. ¡°I have a few rooms free, as you can see.¡± Collentra pointed at the wall next to her. ¡°The soldiers didn''t give you any trouble?¡± Seryanna asked as she furrowed her brow. ¡°No.¡± she replied shaking her head. ¡°Thanks to her highness, the Third Princess, they have no authority over this place. We made it clear that we will accept anyone willing to pay, but adventurers and those affiliated with her party are always first in line. That emblem you told us to hang on the wall over there sure came in handy several times.¡± Bayuk smirk and then pointed at something behind us. When I turned around, I saw a wood carving of the same emblem as the one now visible on Seryanna''s armor. ¡°These fellows seem to be close to you two.¡± Kataryna pointed out. ¡°They were good friends of our parents.¡± the redhead dragoness replied. ¡°That''s why we always keep a spare room just for her family in case they ever drop by.¡± Collentra pointed out. ¡°I appreciate your kindness, but it''s not needed to offer us special privileges of any kind.¡± Seryanna said as she shook her head. ¡°Nonsense! This is my business and if I say I will always keep a spare room for the children of my good friend, I will do so!¡± Collentra said pointing a clawed finger at the ceiling. The dragoness already made up her mind, and I highly doubted we could change her mind. ¡°Our business...¡± Bayuk corrected her. ¡°Yes, yes, dear.¡± she nodded and patted the dragon on the shoulder. ¡°Anyway... How many nights, Sir Seryanna?¡± Bayuk ignored his wife. ¡°For the time being, a week is fine. We will pay more if we need to stay more.¡± she explained. ¡°I understand. Will you be using your room?¡± Collentra asked. ¡°Kleo will. I need to report at the palace. So, that will be three rooms in total.¡± the redhead dragoness. Well, she had her chamber at the Palace, so she didn''t need one here. Not like she couldn''t sleep in my room or Kleo''s if ever was the case. ¡°Alright. Here you go. That will be three silver coins. Meals are not included.¡± Collentra said as she gave us the keys. ¡°That sounds cheap.¡± I said. ¡°Adventurers have a special discount. On top of that, you are together with Sir Seryanna. It''s only natural that I add another discount to it!¡± the dragoness replied happily. ¡°We basically get ZERO profit because of this, but not like we lack spare rooms.¡± Bayuk pointed out and then looked over at the wall where the keys were kept. ¡°Indeed. For us is just business as usual.¡± Collentra smiled. ¡°Speaking of which, why did you ask about the soldiers, Seryanna?¡± I asked the dragoness as I remembered the earlier talk. ¡°Judging from the situation back in Toros, I presumed that this new rumored general was going to overfill the city''s inns with his troops. Sometimes it happens.¡± she explained. ¡°You mean Sir Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya?¡± Bayuk asked. ¡°Yes, that''s him.¡± Seryanna nodded. ¡°True, one of his goons came over a few days ago and ordered us to empty the rooms for some of his commanders. I shrugged, pointed at the emblem at the back and told him that I have orders from her highness, the Third Princess, not to listen to such requests. They went silent and left, but one of them said something...¡± Bayuk looked down, and I could see a sign of worry in his eyes. ¡°What did he say?¡± asked Seryanna. ¡°He said... ''Not for long.''. I can''t help but wonder if something is going on back there at the palace.¡± Byauk replied as he scratched his beard. Seryanna looked back at the emblem hanging on the wall and squinted her eyes. I could tell something was wrong, and I wasn''t the only one. ¡°Is something the matter, sister?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°I don''t know... but something doesn''t feel right about this new general. I am quite certain that grandfather informed his Majesty about his current condition, so why is this general taking over?¡± she wondered. ¡°Maybe someone is plotting something behind the King''s back or forced him in some way to make this decision?¡± I expressed my opinion, although I had no idea how politics worked in this country. ¡°Hm...¡± Seryanna''s expression turned grave. ¡°Erm...¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°I apologize, but I will depart now for the Palace. Will you be alright?¡± she asked as she looked back at me and then at the other two dragonesses. ¡°Don''t worry, sister! We have a Breakthrough Awakened with us and Alkelios too!¡± Kleo smirked. ¡°A Breakthrough Awakened?¡± Collentra blinked surprised as she looked at Kataryna. The dragoness in question simply shrugged like it wasn''t such a big deal. ¡°Yup, we''ll be alright. You can go and take care of your business. When we want to meet just send a word.¡± I showed her a smile. She nodded and then we shared one quick kiss. ¡°Take care.¡± she told me with a caring smile. After she left, I turned around and saw both the innkeeper and bartender looking at me with gaping mouths. Actually, there were a few dragons in here who were also staring at us like that. ¡°What?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°You... Sir Seryanna... HOW?¡± Bayuk was the one to ask. ¡°It just happened.¡± I shrugged like it was nothing. ¡°Oh my, what interesting guests we have this time.¡± Collentra giggled. I titled my head to the left, but after a moment of thinking, I realized that being in a party with a Breakthrough Awakened as well as a knight like Seryanna wasn''t something very common. It was just that we got used to each other and didn''t really mind it that much. For regular dragons, we were all quite the combo. As for me... I probably looked like the most normal out of all of them. Besides, I was a human too, which in itself raised even more questions. [Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya'' point of view] I looked through the window of my private chambers at the Palace and saw Sir Seryanna passing through the gates. ¡°So the pawn has arrived at last.¡± I smirked. It was by no mere chance that she was here at such an important time. The so-called tournament was only a way for me to reorganize my troops, and a pleasant show for the audience. Dragons valued strength, and I intended to drill this fact into their skulls. Those who wished to climb up the ladder of society were required to have the strength to do so. Of course, unknown to the others, this was also a means to weaken the faction of my aunt, the Third Princess of Albeyater. I had no official quarrel with her, but the way she did things was unbecoming of a dragon. Even her emblem spat shame on our species. Nonetheless, she was of royal blood and my own aunt, but this in itself allowed me to take hold of one of her most prized assets... Brekkar''s army. Since the old man fell ill, I had constantly made sure to pull all the possible strings to acquire the seat of a General. If I failed now, then my next chance would be in several hundred years or when one of our generals fell into battle. I was unwilling to wait that long, but also not stupid enough to launch an attack on one of the kingdom''s prized assets. Weakening our army would be akin to weakening myself. ¡°Sir... I believe I have some news of interest...¡± The one who spoke was at the entrance. No, to be more precise, he had just teleported inside my chambers. There was only one individual who could do this. Turning around, I looked at my slave, the human hero with a teleportation ability. ¡°Speak, Kronius!¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± he bowed ¡°The one who is accompanying Sir Seryanna is a human hero like me. I believe he holds a strengthening-type skill. When we battled, I could cut him with my sword, but when I punched him, I nearly broke my fist.¡± ¡°So far, you said nothing of interest.¡± I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°This... human kissed Sir Seryanna.¡± he smirked. The grip around around my sword''s hilt tightened, and I let out a pressuring aura. ¡°A human did what?¡± I asked in anger. Chapter 41: The letter that sealed their fate [Seryanna''s point of view] As soon as Alkelios mentioned the possibility of a plot, I rushed out of the inn and headed back to the Palace. There was no more time to waste, and I had to meet with her highness, the Third Princess, now rather than later. Currently, grandfather''s army, the Brekkar Army was the ace in the sleeve of her highness, but with their general in a presumed critical state for more than thirty years, there was a high chance that his majesty, the King, would make a move to restore it. Back when we were in Tomeron, grandfather told Alkelios that he had been a General for 50 years. It wasn''t wrong, but it wasn''t right either. Having reached a Breakthrough Awakening when he was 234 years old, he quickly became one of the most prized fighters of the King. At the age of 300, he was already considered to be the Right Hand of his Majesty. For more than 100 years, my grandfather was our kingdom''s most powerful General, until the Third Princess was born. At that time, the Prime Minister suggested that grandfather should become a part of her party and declare his achievements in her name. From a military point of view, it changed nothing. This was all a political play to keep the Third Princess safe from the hands of possible corrupt nobles who would have done anything to enter the Royal Family or use their power for their own gain. Grandfather became the perfect tool for this, but then... that event took place... Grandfather crippled himself, and the power supporting the Third Princess grew weak with each passing year. Thirty years ago, she had over twenty knights... now she had only me. If she were to lose both the Brekkar Army and myself, then the Third Princess will end up playing the role of a political coin. Her free will will be shackled and her freedom taken. I can''t let that happen... I can''t allow her to end up like that. As her Royal Knight, it''s my sworn duty to protect her... no matter the cost. I thought to myself as I entered the Palace and rushed to her chambers. As soon as I reached the hallway, I noticed that there weren''t even any guards protecting her anymore. With a gulp, I knocked at the door. ¡°Princess Elleyzabelle? It is I, Sir Seryanna. I have returned as per your request.¡± I declared. ¡°Enter.¡± the calm voice I was familiar with replied from the other side of the wall. Standing up straight, I opened the door and entered her chamber. There, at the window, I saw the dragoness whom I decided to serve in this lifetime. Standing at a height with a head smaller than me, she wore a beautiful white dress of a simple, yet elegant design. Cloth flowers were sewed at the bottom of the hem, while golden leafs were embroidered on the upper part. The bodice was simple and pushed out her chest, but hid it behind the frills of her neckline. She had long sleeves that stretched out past her arm length, but didn''t touch the floor. As far as her Awakened draconian features went, her tail was completely white and lacking of any spikes, but it was long and easy to control. Her wings were big, more so than Kataryna''s, but although appearing as white, they held a line of golden scales on top of the bone, which I knew they continued underneath her clothes and flowed down on her back, ending at the point where her tail began. Her golden eyes were slit like those of a dragon in beast form, and a pair of straight white horns began right behind her pointy ears. On the left and right side of her bottom jaw, three scales could be seen lined up and pointing towards her chin. A single golden scale had formed on each of her cheek bones. ¡°I am glad to see you arrived safely. How was your journey?¡± she asked. Her gentle smile was as always, soothing for the heart and soul. ¡°I traveled well and met interesting people.¡± I replied after I knelt in front of her like any knight would in front of their master. ¡°Rise.¡± she said and then turned around to look through the window. ¡°Yes, your Highness.¡± I replied respectfully and then stood up straight. I waited patiently for the Princess to be the first to speak, so I would not be considered rude or disrespectful towards her. When speaking with a royal, it mattered not if you were on friendly terms or not, abiding by the code and rules declared since ancient times was common practice, otherwise, our gestures and words could have been easily misinterpreted as an act of treason towards the kingdom itself. As such, I felt a bit wary in regard to letting Alkelios meet her Highness. Teaching him court manners and etiquette was important, unfortunately, I was unable to do so throughout our journey. I also was of the belief that I was not the most suited to do so in the first place. ¡°Have you made any new friends? Lady Gorrashy asked about you last time we met.¡± she asked in a calm tone of voice. ¡°Thank you, your Highness, for letting me know. I will see to it that I will meet her as soon as I have the time. And yes, I have made two new friends. A dragoness who has reached her Breakthrough, who goes by the name of Kataryna Greorg, and a human hero who goes by the name of Alkelios Yatagai.¡± I replied honestly in a respectful and calm tone of voice. Lying or sneaking behind my master''s back was something akin to betrayal. Her orders for me were absolute just as were those of his Majesty, the King. As a knight, I was obliged to answer and follow the commands of only these two. The Prime Minister could at most only act as a mere messenger in case of simple instructions. ¡°A human and an Breakthrough Awakened I have not heard of until now?¡± she turned around and looked at me with a serious expression in her eyes. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied while bowing my head. I remained in this position because I understood that this matter was by far not a light one. ¡°This human... you said he was a human hero, correct? What does this imply?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes. Alkelios told me that several months ago, at the same time the two of us met, a God-like entity brought 10 million humans from his world to ours, him included, and gave them unique powers and abilities. From what I understood, they have been scattered throughout our world and mingled with all civilizations.¡± I replied. ¡°So they are allies of the human kingdoms?¡± she asked me, and I could feel a tinge of worry in her voice. ¡°No. I have confirmed through Alkelios'' behavior and words that at the time of their arrival, none of those 10 million can be considered the allies of the human kingdom.¡± ¡°Why is that so?¡± ¡°Alkelios is a human that cannot distinguish the difference between commoner and nobility. He behaves around all of them in a similar manner. I would even go so far as to say his behavior highly resembles that of someone who reached a Breakthrough. This is because in his world, they have changed their political system to one that has no such classes and everyone is seen as equal more or less.¡± ¡°That''s preposterous! How could something like this be true? Without an authority like the king, a country would fall into chaos! Worse even, it would slowly succumb to the corruption and greed of those who thrive in the world of politics! Without a king, such pest would run the country as they pleased and the commoners under them would suffer greatly!¡± the Princess spoke in a harsh tone of voice, showing her displease and disapproval of such a system. ¡°Yet this is what he claims, and I can ascertain that so far, he has spoken no lies. Even my grandfather approves of him.¡± I said. ¡°What? Even Sir Brekkar... This is... unexpected.¡± the Princess appeared to be shocked by this information. This much was a given, especially when one looked back at everything that has happened in the past 100 years, and more specifically during the war 38 years ago. Normally, I shouldn''t be looking at Alkelios with a love-struck gaze... but one of hate. Fortunately, my grandfather thought me better, and he was the one who declared that not all humans he met were bad. Some were forced by their society to act as they did, while others were threatened. In reality, there were many humans who disapproved of this war as much as the dragons did, but the difference between the opinions of the commoners and those of the royals was as different as the sun and moons. This was an absolute truth. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai is also the man I have chosen to love.¡± I declared then. ¡°What? But he''s a human? Especially after what his kind did to your family, you... Why?¡± she asked, but I understood from the tone of her voice that she was not only confused but also worried about my well being. ¡°I firmly believe that he is not like those who brought harm upon both our families... Neither do I think his words speak lies and his feelings are untrue.¡± I replied in a calm tone of voice. ¡°If this is what you believe, then I will put my faith in you.¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°Thank you, your Highness.¡± ¡°Unfortunately, I don''t believe my father or the other nobles in this palace will agree with this, especially Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya.¡± she let out another sigh. ¡°That may be so, but if you or the King order me to break all ties with him, then... with a heavy heart, I will do so.¡± I felt like those words struggled to leave my throat, and my heart throbbed in pain. Unknown to me, even my relaxed palms clenched into tight fist, showing my utmost desire for such a thing not to happen. After a moment of silence, the Princess spoke ¡°I will never order you such a thing, but my father... already has.¡± Those last words of hers struck me like the fist of the strongest monster in the Seculiar Forest. They stopped my train of thought and brought me in a state where I was looking with a confused expression at the Princess. ¡°Sigh... In what state do you believe our party currently is?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm... I apologize, but I have been away from the capital for a while now. If I remember right, there were at least a dozen guards left under your command, the Brekkar Army, myself, Dregarya Gorrashy, and about seven noble houses?¡± I replied. ¡°That was then. Now, only you and Dregarya Gorrashy were left on my side. I have no more guards to order and no backup from any noble family except yours.¡± she looked down.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°What? How can that be?¡± I asked bewildered. There was no way that the Third Princess'' party had succumbed to such a degree so quickly. Turning her gaze to the desk next to the wall, she then told me ¡°Please read the opened letter.¡± I nodded and then walked over to it. I picked it up and read the following lines: To the The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher, I officially wish to inform you that his Majesty, the King of Albeyater, Feryumstark Seyendraugher, has declared my engagement with Seryanna Draketerus to be official and of high importance to the Albeyater Kingdom. Their esteemed Highness, Prince Charmeill Seyendraugher and Prince Elovius Seyendraugher have both expressed their acceptance and positive remarks in regard to his Majesty''s wise decision. As the next General of the Brekkar Army, I believe this union will bring about a most flourishing future for both our parties. From Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya, the esteemed son of Duke of Doesya and the Sixth Princess of Albeyater. A single thought went through my mind as I read these words: What sort of mockery is this? Engagement? Since when? The same matter I spoke with Alkelios not too long ago turned out to be an unavoidable truth just like a sheep awaiting the opportune moment to pounce on a wolf. The one authority who could move everyone as they pleased, the King, was the one who agreed and... ordered this engagement. As a knight, no matter how much I was against this, denying this order was akin to betraying the entire country and more importantly, the Princess under whom I served. All that was left for me to do was to bow down and obey like the loyal subject I was... I could not even yelp and run away with the tail behind my legs. With my hands frozen on the letter, my emotions all stirred within my chest. Rage, anger, sorrow, and despair... they all piled up together and ripped apart my heart. There was no way out, no escape. But it was clear there was more to this letter, more to this mockery of my feelings. Then as if reading the mood that settled within my heart, the Princess let her voice be heard. ¡°Funny how things turned out like this... Like a castle of cards, everything fell apart from that moment 38 years ago.¡± the Princess let out a sigh. ¡°Your Highness...¡± I tried to speak up, but suddenly... my cheeks were wet. I''m crying? Why? I thought in shock, but then I quickly wiped my tears, yet they kept flowing. A gentle hand was placed on my shoulder and a pair of golden eyes filled with guilt looked back at me. The Princess bit her underlip and looked down. ¡°I''m sorry... I couldn''t protect even you, my last knight.¡± she said. My knees went weak, but I refused to subdue and fall down. I refused to do so, yet... there was nothing I could do. ¡°I... Why?¡± was all I could ask as whimpers escaped my lips. ¡°Draejan hit two birds with one stone as they say... The opportunity came, so he seized it.¡± the Princess shook her head. ¡°You know, as soon as I received this letter, I found out that the guards outside my chamber have been called away. Right now, I don''t even have the power to protect myself let alone another. Even so, I rushed over to my father, to plead for him to annul this engagement, but the guards would not let me see him. My brother, the Prime Minister Elovius, came to speak to me on behalf of my father. He told me that he was too busy to deal with my... ''tantrum'' right now.¡± she clenched her delicate fists and glared at the floor. Although she was like this, the tone of her voice was calm. Even now she was restraining herself to act as a diligent and elegant princess, as one befit of her royal status. But from her words, I understood quite well what this meant... The party of the Third Princess had collapsed. I was the last pedestal... It was a brilliant political move, but a devastating one for all of our futures. ¡°Thank you for your effort, your Highness... I appreciate it.¡± I spoke, but my voice barely came out. ¡°There''s nothing to thank me for, I failed.¡± she closed her eyes and turned her head to the left ¡°With Draejan being named as the General of the Brekkar Army, I thought that he wouldn''t last long because the soldiers wouldn''t listen to him as they did your grandfather. But then he came up with this tournament idea to promote the strong ones among them, gaining the favor of many within the commanding ranks. The final blow then came when he proposed to my father to let him take you as his wife... This way, the new General of the Brekkar Army would have by his side the daughter of the former general. The moral of the soldiers would rise instead of falling. And with the approval from my brothers, he practically took away both my army... and my last knight. He won...¡± ¡°There''s nothing we can do?¡± I asked hoping for something... anything. ¡°It''s a declaration from my father... not a suggestion.¡± she pointed out. Indeed, this was akin to an order. If it was the latter, I could have brought Alkelios over and maybe convince him not to do it. That could have been my last chance, my last resort, but unfortunately, that too was taken away. ¡°You said that you love this Alkelios fellow, correct?¡± she asked me. ¡°Yes, I do so very much.¡± I replied without the smallest sign of hesitation in my voice. ¡°Then... maybe... Hm, bring him to me. If my interview of him goes well, there may still be a chance to turn this around. At best cancel your engagement or postpone it long enough for father to be convinced that Alkelios is on our side not on that of the humans.¡± she looked back at me with a determined look in her eyes. ¡°But what about you, your Highness?¡± I asked. ¡°My fate is already sealed as a mere political coin to be traded off when it will be needed. This way, I can at least try to keep you, my last knight and also my friend, away from that dragon''s grasp.¡± she showed me a smile. ¡°I thank you from the bottom of my heart!¡± I replied and knelt before her. To think that even with this last drop of her strength, she was still trying to help me. Within my heart, I knew that I had chosen the right master to serve even if her political power was now almost non-existent. ¡°But you should first go and visit Dregarya Gorrashy. Have her fix your armor, it looks like you just returned from a fierce battle.¡± she told me. ¡°Yes, your Highness. To be more specific, I faced off Kataryna Greorg in battle and then an army of draconian undead spawned by the dungeon near Pertiko village. In both cases, I am highly thankful for Alkelios'' cooperation as he was the one who was able to bring both battles to a closure.¡± I expressed my honest opinion. ¡°Is that so? I will take it into consideration when we will meet for the first time.¡± she nodded. ¡°Then I will go and meet with Dregarya Gorrashy before issuing the official summon to Alkelios Yatagai, Kataryna Greorg, and my sister Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus.¡± I said and bowed respectfully in front of the Princess. I mentioned their names as well because I considered they too could be of use now, when her party lacked both the number and strength to keep her afloat at the Palace. With a bit of luck and maybe a wish from Alkelios, I could save the Princess as well. ¡°Please do so.¡± she nodded and then I left her chamber. [Princess Elleyzabelle''s point of view] When my last knight, Seryanna Draketerus left my room, I let out a sigh and laid down on my bed. Although I never mentioned it during our conversation, but that letter was received just the other day. It was written in such a way that it declared with absolute confidence that I had no way out. Without a knight by my side, I had literally no protection, which in itself would prompt the high nobles to request marrying me off into a foreign family. Most of my younger sisters have all been married off into prosperous noble families in order to maintain their safety and luxurious lifestyle, while at the same time maintaining their absolute loyalty to the crown. My younger sister Decessere Jenne Seyendraugher, the Fifth Princess of Albeyater, was married off to the Fourth Prince of the Dragon Empire Embryger. Meanwhile, the First and Second Princesses were to be married off to the most prominent ducal family at the time of the coronation of the First Prince, Charmeill. My second oldest brother was forced into the Prime Minister role and in case of the demise of the First Prince, he would ascend to the throne. Funny, from an outsider''s point of view, one could go so far as to consider that there was a lot of infighting among us siblings, but the truth was far from that. Our backing and political power declared our social status and ability to move within the Kingdom. This sort of strength was approved off by both nobility and royalty. Assassination and the like were detested. Only the lowest of nobles could think of such disgraceful things. In other words, since there were so many of us, trying to kill us off one after another would have been too much of an effort and fruitless in the end. However, by shifting their favor and backing to those with a good promise, the noble families would have a lot more to gain from this. This favor and backing was counted by the number of the knights who served under us, the strength of our individual armies, and the strength of the individuals we could directly command. Thus, having someone with a Breakthrough under one of us royal siblings was more than enough to guarantee our worth in the Kingdom. The reason for this was in itself simple. The Breakthrough ones all had a very peculiar way of thinking that deferred from ours, who were simply Awakened. They saw neither nobility nor common folk, only the worth of one''s strength. To put it simply, it was highly impossible to force one of them to think as the rotten nobles desired to. Thus, if I were to have one under my command as I did Brekkar, then my worth in both the political playing field and that of the military field would remain uncontested. 40 years ago, my army was leading the anti-human campaign. Because of this, my political power was as high as that of the Crown Prince. But now... I didn''t even have the confidence that I could order one of the Palace Guards to escort me outside and back safely. If they had nothing to do, maybe, but if one of my siblings gave them another command, they would disregard me and listen to them. Taking a deep breath, I let out a heavy a sigh and then looked up at the ceiling. ¡°If this goes well... If I can convince Kataryna Greorg to follow me, I could somehow regain my power even if I would lose the Brekkar Army. Actually, I could most likely build another one with her might. As for Alkelios, if he is a human who caught the eye of my knight, his worth is also priceless... If I can have a human military adviser in the upcoming wars, then the dragons wouldn''t have to fear another incursion like the one 38 years ago... But will he follow me as well? If I free Seryanna, he should... But will he betray us? This is what I need to find out... If he is a worthless human, then I will assume that Seryanna just made a childish mistake. She has yet to awaken yet, so it''s not impossible. All children make mistakes...¡± I said to myself and then let out another sigh. Maybe it was bad to think of my friends as pawns in my game, but... at this point, it was either this or suffer the life of a political coin. My chastity and freedom would be exchanged for some sort of agreement between kingdoms... Or simply to improve the overall relationships between Albeyater and Embryger. It wasn''t like they couldn''t use another one of my sisters, but I was the only one among them with the political and military ability to actually end up being of use to Albeyater, while at the same time have so little backing that no one would oppose marrying me off to a foreign prince. Each and every one of us siblings had their own individual political games to deal with, and mine just ended up being on the losing end. But when I thought about the Family Tree of the Albeyater Royal Family Seyendraugher and organized it by age, I got a splitting headache... First, we had father and mother: The King Feryumstark (age unknown/never told me) The Queen Elliessara (age unknown/scolded me for asking about a lady''s age). Then, the tree continued with their children: Crown Prince Charmeill (324 years old) Prime Minister Second Prince Elovius (318 years old) First Princess Natalia (302 years old) Third Prince Baluth (280 years old) Fourth Prince Navarius (261 years old) Second Princess Josephine (250 years old) Fifth Prince Dorrian (231 years old) Sixth Prince Zadangarok (201 years old) Seventh Prince Basphermus (188 years old) Adopted First Prince Coshun (180 years old) (Deceased) Adopted Second Prince Kryogan (162 years old) Adopted Third Prince Mostrack (160 years old) Adopted Fourth Prince Pluvius (140 years old) Third Princess Elleyzabelle Sojourn (110 years old) Fourth Princess Mayelle Kristoff (102 years old) Fifth Princess Decessere Jenne (94 years old) Sixth Princess Noyelle Praz (92 years old) Seventh Princess Saluka Fer (86 years old) Eight Princess Constance (80 years old) Ninth Princess Jaquelinne (62 years old) Tenth Princess Corsonna (58 years old) Eleventh Princess Neptuneya ( 34 years old) The twins: Twelfth Princess Shezelle Eska (12 years old) Eight Prince Ashernitz Kos (12 years old) But in this list, I did not count any of their spouses and thus extended families, children, etc. When I think about it, this is more like a political win-win situation for everyone except me and Seryanna. If I was in father''s place, I wouldn''t hesitate to marry me off to one of the bachelor princes of the Empire to further solidify the relationship between us. From here to an official alliance it wouldn''t take too long, and this would also solve the current problem of the aggressive human invasion campaigns. The Embryger Empire''s armies are nothing to joke about. I thought as I looked in my mind at the overall political map of our continent. Our main enemy was located on the Human Continent, the Human Empire Akutan... Chapter 42: A friends advice [Seryanna''s point of view] The news Princess Elleyzabelle brought me was devastating. When I closed the door behind me, I felt like I didn''t have the strength to even stand, but as a knight, I couldn''t allow myself to succumb to my current situation. I wasn''t allowed to show such a weakness... I tried to think in a positive way, that maybe somehow somewhere there was still a small light of hope. If right now I was fighting in a war campaign and found myself trapped in a fortress surrounded by enemy troops, giving up or succumbing to despair would only lower the morale of my troops. Thus, I had to stay strong and fight until the very end because I could never know when that ray of help would appear. Taking a deep breath and with a calm look on my face, I made my way through the Royal Palace until I reached the back exit. From here, it was a straight path to the big smithy next to the wall, where the best blacksmiths of the kingdom forged their armors and weapons. Three big furnaces were lined up one next to each other, puffing smoke through their tall chimneys. More than a dozen different anvils were lined up in front of them and several dragons were energetically hitting quenched pieces of metal held within their pliers. Among them, I saw my friend as well, Dregarya Gorrashy. With the typical leather apron that most blacksmiths wore, thick leather gloves, and a big hammer in her right hand, she kept tempering the blade of a sword. Her black eyes were focused on the piece of metal in front of her, ignoring everything and everyone around her. Thanks to her outstanding talent as a blacksmith, she became like this every time she started to work. She''s still at it as usual. I thought and let a small smile appear on my lips. I passed through the soundproof barrier in front of the smithy, which prevented all the noise of the forge from reaching the sensitive ears of the nobility living inside the Palace, and I made my way to her. The loud sounds of metal being worked on could be heard coming from everywhere inside the smithy. Almost none of the blacksmiths here paid any heed to me, and those who did merely nodded their heads as a greeting. Once I reached the dragoness'' location, I took a seat on a nearby chair and waited patiently for her to finish her work. Interrupting her would have been rude, and last time I did so, she scolded me for half an hour. As far as looks went, she was about average height for a white scale. The color denoted her Light element affinity. Although she didn''t have a pair of wings like most dragons with that scale color, she had a long, strong prehensile tail without any spikes on it. Her silver hair was unwashed as usual and kept in a pony tail, while a single strand of regal blue color flowed over her right cheek. As a woman, she was beautiful, and the pair of white diamond shaped scales on her cheeks accentuated that beauty. I was a bit envious of her looks, but I had still to Awaken, so I always put such matters aside. About one hours later, Dregarya finally finished her blade and cooled it off in a nearby barrel of water. ¡°Whew! That took long enough!¡± she wiped the sweat off her forehead then turned around. Our eyes met for a moment, but her gaze quickly fell on my armor. ¡°Ack! What did you do to my baby?!¡± she cried out. ¡°Greetings, Dregarya. I apologize, but my armor became like this after I had a fight with a Breakthrough Awakened and an army of Draconian Undead on the way back to the capital.¡± I replied and got off the chair. ¡°Ah! Take it off! Take it off! I need to fix it!¡± she said and immediately started to undo the straps on my armor. Her tail was a bit too good at removing this armor, but before she managed to do so, I stopped her with a chop on the head. ¡°Owie! Why did you hit me?¡± she asked with teary eyes as she rubbed the struck place. ¡°You are not going to undress me like this in front of all of these men.¡± I said and pointed at the blushing dragons behind me. The moment she started to undo my straps, the whole smithy turned quiet like a graveyard. ¡°Ah! What are you looking at you slobs! Get back to work!¡± she shouted at them. ¡°Yes, m''am!¡± they replied and the noise returned. ¡°Hard to imagine that you are the actual boss around here.¡± I shook my head while holding my chest armor with one hand so it didn''t fall off. ¡°What can I say, it just happened.¡± she shrugged like it was nothing. ¡°I hardly doubt it can be said so, after all, you are also known as Dreggor the Legendary Blacksmith.¡± I smiled. ¡°And thanks to that stupid nickname, everyone keeps assuming that I am a man.¡± she shook her head. ¡°Well, where can I change in some privacy?¡± I asked. ¡°Use the room over there.¡± she pointed at a door next to the forge. It was the kitchen used by the blacksmiths here. For being too lazy to go bother the cook to make them a meal and being too stubborn to move until they finished their work here, the King was forced to build them a kitchen here in order to stop them from fainting and looking like ghosts every time they started hammering. ¡°A change of clothes, please?¡± I asked her. ¡°Hm...¡± she rubbed her chin and then looked to the left at a pile of armors. Two moments later she returned with a set in my size. ¡°Use this.¡± she smiled. I nodded and took the set with me into the kitchen. Once inside, I began to change my armor. It wasn''t like I didn''t have anything underneath it, but ever since Alkelios saw me naked, I honestly didn''t wish for another man to see me even if by accident. It probably was wrong of me to feel like this while still a knight, but for now, I didn''t mind it that much. Once I was changed, I looked now just like any other Royal Guard in the Palace. I stepped out of the kitchen with the broken armor in my hands and handed it over to Dregarya. She started to cry when she checked the cracks. ¡°What hit you, Seryanna? A mountain?¡± she asked. ¡°It was close, but no, just a very powerful dragoness.¡± I replied. ¡°So, who is it?¡± she asked. ¡°Kataryna Greorg.¡± I replied calmly as I took a seat on the chair which I used earlier. ¡°Never heard of her. Is she strong? Has she any good armor or weapons?¡± she inquired. ¡°She is very strong, but I did not see any out of the ordinary weapons or armors. She was mostly wearing casual clothes made out of cotton or leather. No dresses, only pants, and from time to time, I did happen to see her wear normal steel armguards.¡± I replied. ¡°Are you serious?! How did she battle with only that?¡± she asked. ¡°Kataryna is a very powerful ice mage. She could easily freeze an entire battlefield or cast countless ice spears at the enemy. However, I suspect that her specialty might be in some other form of combat.¡± I replied. ¡°So, she''s using magic only against weaklings? ACK! It cracked more!¡± she said as a piece of my armor broke off in her hand. ¡°Your armor saved my life, Dregarya, thank you.¡± I told her. ¡°That''s the role of an armor. If it did that, then it worked!¡± she said. ¡°By the way, did anyone out of ordinary dropped by here?¡± I asked. ¡°Yup! You see, mister sunshine who wants to take over your grandpa''s army made me a visit the other day.¡± she said. ¡°Is that so?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Yes. He ordered me to make him some sort of armor with the materials he brought me. Do you know what materials those were?¡± she asked and looked back at me. ¡°No.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Draconitium and Dregaryum.¡± she said. I blinked surprised. I heard of both of those metals and they were considered to be rare and highly valuable. Not everyone could afford an armor or weapon made out of those, the reason being their endurance, unique properties as well as the ease with which they could be enchanted. Draconitium was a rare metal discovered by dragons a very long time ago. It had the property to quickly absorb magic energy. When doing so, it increased it''s endurance. Most of the armors and weapons of Royal Knights were made out of this stuff. As for Dregaryum, that was another rare metal which was discovered by Dregarya herself. It had the property to dampen the effects of any physical or magical attacks. Thanks to the special armor she made for my grandfather, Brekkar Draketerus, she was brought to the palace and granted the title of Legendary Blacksmith. As a result, she made another armor for the King, the First Prince and several of their most trusted knights. Afterwards, because other nobles and knights kept pestering her to make them armors, she asked the King to grant her permission to accept to work only for those she wished to. As such, the pestering stopped because nobody wanted to go against his Majesty. ¡°What did he say?¡± I asked as I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°That it''s going to be needed in the upcoming war, so I would do good not to betray the kingdom.¡± she showed me a smirk. ¡°I highly doubt something like that could happen, given your ''special'' circumstances, but what war was he talking about?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Hey! Keep that a secret! I still want to get laid next week!¡± she poked her tongue out at me. ¡°You should watch your language.¡± I smirked. ¡°Bah! Details!¡± she shrugged. ¡°Still, this news about a war... What could he mean? The humans have not shown any serious movements since their defeat 38 years ago. Besides the usual skirmishes on Ragold Island and the battlefield to the south of here, there were no signs of an upcoming war.¡± I said as I rubbed my chin. ¡°I know. Scar Battlefield is a mess. The whole plains there were turned to charcoal by Brekkar, and Ragold Island is where Prince Charmeill and Princess Natalia are stationed. With those two there, the humans would need at least two Breakthrough-ers of their own.¡± she pointed out as she skillfully took apart my armor. ¡°Strange indeed... Maybe he knows something we don''t?¡± I asked. ¡°I doubt it. That guy would have told me if there was any danger of something bigger.¡± she said with a smirk. ¡°That guy? Sigh...¡± I shook my head at how she addressed someone of his status.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡°Details.¡± she shrugged. ¡°Anyway, how long will it take for you to fix my armor?¡± I asked. ¡°I have no idea... Even the enchants received damage... Honestly though, the more I look at this armor, the more I can''t help but think that you were ridiculously lucky to have escaped unscratched from those battles.¡± she let out a sigh as another piece broke in her hand. Hearing the word ''lucky'' made my heart squeeze, and I furrowed my brow. ¡°W-What do you mean?¡± I asked in a wavering tone of voice. ¡°Just look at this.¡± she showed me my armguard. ¡°I don''t see anything wrong.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Look.¡± Dregarya said and placed the piece of metal on the anvil. Lifting the hammer up, she then let it fall pulled by gravity alone. Normally, a strike like that should have meant nothing, I had received worse, so I showed no sign of worry on my face, but when the hammer hit, the armguard shattered like it was made out of glass. I froze. ¡°My friend, your armor is nothing more than a piece of junk right now... It needs to be reforged and enchanted from scratch.¡± she grabbed the remains and then tossed it in a pile together with other damaged armors. ¡°There''s nothing you can do?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope. Damaged beyond repair. But as I said, you were seriously lucky... Too lucky... How did you survive again?¡± she asked tilting her head. I let out a sigh. ¡°My boyfriend helped me, I guess.¡± I said. ¡°Your what?¡± Dregarya looked at me with sparkling eyes. I think I made a mistake... I thought, but it was too late. The prehensile tail of the dragoness was swaying in the air just like that time when she figured out a way to combine Draconitium and Dregaryum to make a powerful armor for my grandfather. The gaze in her eyes was one of a predator who just found a juicy prey. With a gulp, I tried to look around and find a way out, but before I could act, she placed her hands on my shoulders and showed me a big grin. ¡°I want to hear EVERYTHING about it! Including how your first time with him went!¡± she snorted. ¡°I''m still... a virgin.¡± I whispered that last part. ¡°Even better! I''ll teach you how to capture him!¡± she snorted again. ¡°Why are you like this?¡± I asked with a whimper. ¡°Because it''s positively, absolutely FUN!¡± she laughed. I gulped. Without being able to say even a single word against her, I was dragged back into the kitchen, where we would have a bit more privacy. At the very least, I didn''t have to spill all of my secrets back there where the other blacksmiths could hear me. It was a bit of a sensitive information. Thus, after she calmed down a bit, I told her everything, about how I met with Alkelios, about how I encountered Kataryna, about how he healed Brekkar, about how he first kissed me, about that strange night when I felt all hot on the inside and then I told her about Draejan. ¡°That''s... unexpected.¡± she said as she furrowed her brow. Her tail wasn''t swaying anymore. ¡°If he brought you the Draconitium and Dregaryum ores, then he''s intent on taking everything to the end.¡± I said. ¡°True, but he''s also a known human-hater. I don''t think he will take it lightly when he hears that you have been purring around a human. More so if he finds out that he managed to embrace you like that, even if you two didn''t do anything... Hm, why in the name of all of the gods didn''t he jump on you already? From a human''s point of view, you are one fine booty!¡± Dregarya let out an exasperated sigh and then looked into my eyes ¡°You don''t swing that way, do you?¡± she asked me. ¡°NO!¡± I retorted. ¡°Good... although if I wasn''t already in a relationship, I wouldn''t have minded spending the night with you.¡± she winked. ¡°Please keep those jokes to yourself, Dregarya.¡± I pouted. ¡°I will!¡± she showed me a bright smile. I let out a sigh and then looked down at the floor. ¡°Honestly though, I don''t know what to do... I don''t want to marry Draejan, but if the King himself ordered it, I won''t be able to do a thing. He''s clearly taking the general role seriously and everyone will see it as normal for me to marry him because my grandfather was the one who made that army. Even the Crown Prince and Prime Minister agreed to this...¡± I let out another sigh. ¡°Don''t worry about those last two, they just went with the political flow. I''m more worried about what Draejan will do to your human... I don''t see this ending very well.¡± she shook her head. ¡°What do you think will happen?¡± I asked. ¡°First of all, from the looks of things, he doesn''t sound too be too sure of himself in regard to his relationship with you. Putting him up on in front of the King as your way to change his mind about the marriage might end up backfiring. Also, you''re not Awakened. Thus, you are still considered to think like a child by many of them. Then, we have Draejan, who will try to scheme something to turn your relationship into his favor.¡± she explained while using some vegetables at hand to explain better. ¡°How exactly would he do that?¡± I asked confused. ¡°Simple. Make him prove that he is not worthy of you by all draconian standards. Even if right now he''s just dealing with a lot of stress and stuff like that, who do you think will take his side? Embarrassing him in front of you and causing him to lose face in front of Royalty will undoubtedly force Alkelios to step aside.¡± ¡°Why not just kill him? Why go through all of this?¡± I asked. ¡°To make you submit to him. To prove to you how wrong you were in picking him. To stroke his ego and make him feel like he is on top of everyone.¡± she explained and shook her head. ¡°Do you think he will... win?¡± I asked. ¡°Alkelios? No... He will be... devastated if he encounters Draejan or falls into his trap.¡± she said. ¡°Can I do anything to stop this?¡± I asked. ¡°You? No... You said it yourself, the King ordered it. Unless you can make that stubborn dragon change his mind, you will have to marry Draejan and act like a good and loyal wife to him.¡± she looked down and let out a sigh. Neither of us liked the outcomes she foresaw, but she was right about one thing... The King held all the power in my current situation. Unless I changed his mind, I was bound to become Draejan''s wife even if I had yet to Awaken. ¡°What about for Alkelios? Can I do anything for him?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm...¡± she closed her eyes and thought about it for a long moment. ¡°Yes.¡± she said as she opened her eyes ¡°If you see him fall to Draejan''s trap... Maybe, you should think twice before deciding if the one before you was the real Alkelios or not.¡± ¡°The real one?¡± I asked confused. ¡°Dragons just like humans tend to hide behind intricate masks of lies, stress, and the idea of ''what is right to do''. Well, this is also something I learned recently after my last quarrel with ''that guy''.¡± she winked at me. ¡°You two argued? That''s... not surprising...¡± I said. ¡°Yup! The one who started it wasn''t me by the way. Well, long story short, he had a lot of things on his mind, and the stress from work had reached the boiling point. The last time I saw him wagging his tail was after I dragged him in bed... by force. So, we had a talk about it. One thing led to another, and I realized that the one I was speaking with was just the mask he was putting on in front of all those noble geezers. Do you know how I caught him?¡± she showed me a mischievous smirk. I shook my head. ¡°I undressed in front of him. No clothes or anything to cover me! I dropped everything and then he said: ''I believe madam Dregarya Gorrashy should put her clothes back on, or she might catch a cold. During a conversation of this degree such behavior might be a seen as rude!''.¡± she gesticulated and used the usual tone of voice that man did whenever out in public. I simply blinked surprised. Doing something like that was bold, and I definitely doubted I could do something like that with Alkelios. Actually... this implied already knowing the one who hid behind the mask. ¡°What do you think I did?¡± she asked. ¡°I don''t know.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I walked up to him. He backed up and kept spouting all that nonsense. I didn''t let him go and pushed him down on the bed. He kept talking like that, so I asked him where did he think we were and in front of whom did he think he was talking. When he realized the mask wasn''t working, he laughed until he cried. The stress was really getting to him and changing his personality.¡± she sighed and shook her head. ¡°You think it''s the same with everyone?¡± I asked. She nodded. ¡°Both him and I went through something similar... When I was younger, it was you who pulled me out of that trance, remember? I was hammering all day and all night until my hand bled. You stopped me and dragged me out into the fields. You even fought with me until I couldn''t fight back. If you weren''t such a good friend to me, right now I might have already been dead from overworking.¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°I did only what I saw as normal... But Alkelios, I don''t know what his real self is... or if I had fallen in love with this mask of his or the real one?¡± I said unsure of my own feelings right now as I clenched my hands into fists. ¡°Hey, relax.¡± Dregarya said as she placed her hands over mine. I looked up and saw her smiling softly at me ¡°Just don''t think of the one you see right now as the real one. You might be a bit inexperienced in men, but you have some damn good instincts. Just follow those. They will tell you. As for what will happen from now one, there''s a high chance this is also part of his trial. If he can''t get over this dilemma and stand by your side in the end, then... you might as well give up on him because the dragons here will eat him alive with their politics.¡± I nodded and looked down. Tears gathered in my eyes from the turmoil inside my heart. Feelings of anxiety, guilt, and insecurity were all turning and twisting inside. I couldn''t let them out, and I couldn''t calm them down either. They were pushing up, trying to break free. After all, I couldn''t accept or agree to the idea that I have fallen in love with a lie or that I had to give up on him just like that. This whole inner turmoil could be seen on my wincing face as tears rolled down my cheeks, and I tried hard not to cry. ¡°Let it all out, Seryanna. It''s just me here... I know it''s difficult, but you''ll get through this, I''m sure of it.¡± Dregarya said and hugged me. When she did this, I wept and cried like a child struck by pain and sadness. I clung to my friend and trembled. My own mask as a knight was shattered in that moment, letting out the woman behind it who didn''t want for things to be end up like this. Who didn''t want to be treated like some sort of political pawn. Who didn''t want to be married with a dragon for whom she felt absolutely nothing... To be honest, I felt that if I really did marry Draejan... inside, I would die. _ After I calmed down, we talked about the details of my new armor as well as a possible new sword. Dregarya had no intention to make Draejan a new armor from those materials unless the King ordered her to do so, but she did tell me that she planned on having a nice long chat with her lover once he returned from his campaign. The topic would be the contents of a certain letter and how to fix it. As for me, I was going to have to bare the desire to lash out at Draejan and remain calm until a solution was offered. I was dealing here with political powers far above my influence or that of the Third Princess. However, it was clear that this dragon knew a few things that maybe not even the King himself was aware of. I left Dregarya when the sky began to darken. At this hour, I was certain to find Alkelios back at the inn, and using this opportunity, I would extend him the invitation from the Third Princess. After this, I planned to return to the Palace and inform the guards of the official summon, as well as have someone let me know the moment he had arrived. If I didn''t let them know, it would end up causing a lot of trouble. However, just as I left the south wing of the Palace and entered the hallway leading to the exit, a dragon stepped in front of me. He had thin white wings on his back, smaller than Princess Elleyzabelle''s. A long tail with folded spikes on the spine towards the tip. Large, clawed feet similar to those of a dragon''s in beast form. A human-like head with slit black eyes and several scales running up the left and right sides of his chin. He wore a typical Royal Knight plate armor with the emblem of the Doesya Ducal House on his front. As a dragon, he didn''t look half bad, and his short cut black hair was typical among those working in the army, however, what caught my attention was the color of his scales. He had two types: white, which was the majority; and golden, which could be seen on the tip of is tail, his wings, and a single pair on his chin. ¡°Greetings, Sir Seryanna. It''s a pleasure to finally meet you. My name is Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya.¡± he made a polite bow in front of me. I froze and was unable to ever return the greeting. This dragon was none other than the one who riled me up into his political game, my future husband. ¡°Oh my, I guess it''s natural to be surprised when one meets their fiance in such a way.¡± he smirked. I snapped out of it when I heard the word ''fiance''. ¡°I do not know what games you are playing, but I have no intention on becoming your wife. I am not even Awakened, so our elemental compatibility is unknown.¡± I declared in a firm tone of voice. ¡°Such things are details. For an heir, I could always find a suitable woman with the right element. If you desire a child so badly, you could have one yourself, I don''t mind... as long as that individual is a dragon.¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Declaring your infidelity before you even put a ring on my finger. How disappointing.¡± I retorted, acting as though I had not heard that last remark of his. ¡°A dragon or dragoness, especially those of noble rank are not forbidden by the King to have one or more lovers. When matters of heirs are at stake, this is quite a wonderful solution.¡± he smirked. ¡°I apologize, but I am not of such a belief.¡± I rebuked. ¡°It matters not what you believe, but what the truth of this world is. As such, I need not tell you that your future is already sealed, unless you wish to be declared a traitor.¡± he smirked. My fingers tightened around the hilt of my sword. ¡°I will never go against his Majesty''s order.¡± I glared at him. ¡°Good. Neither would I. As such, it was purely though his Majesty''s will which took into consideration the greater good of our kingdom that he agreed to this marriage. With you by my side, the granddaughter of the esteemed Brekkar Draketerus, I will have full control over the Brekkar Army, just as his Majesty wants it to be.¡± he spoke in his solemn tone of voice as he approached me. There was no way I could retort to his words. Doing so would only be seen as an act of disobedience towards his Majesty. As a Knight, this was beyond shameful and unthinkable. Thus, just like my friend suggested, I abstained and bared with it. Seeing me like this, Draejan smirked and walked past me. With this our first meeting would end, but before he left, he did tell me one last thing. ¡°Oh, and don''t bother going to visit your human pet tonight. Just a moment ago, I sent him and your other friends an official invitation to the Palace. Of course, I will allow you to bring them first before the Third Princess. After all, such a meeting would only serve better in showing to this human the real truth of this world... That humans are not welcomed here, and a relationship of any sort with them can only be seen as... disgraceful. And those who go against this rule will only end up... suffering.¡± As Draejan walked away, I was left standing there, clenching the hilt of my sword and glaring at the floor. There was absolutely nothing I could do right now to stop this dragon. His power vastly surpassed mine. What should I do... How can I protect them? I asked myself as I cursed my own lack of power. If only I was Awakened. If only I was stronger. If only... I had already married Alkelios. Such were the thoughts which plagued my mind as I made my way back to my own room. Chapter 43: Rumors in the wind [Alkelios'' point of view] Seryanna left in a hurry as soon as we paid the fee and received the keys for our rooms. I didn''t put too much thought in her hasty departure, she had her own troubles to deal with, and me sticking my nose into them could accidentally make things worse. After we made ourselves comfortable at the inn, I realized I didn''t have much to do in my room. Not having a computer to play games or browse the internet was a killer, so I went to check up on Kataryna and Kleo. With a [Purse] ring at hand, it was quite easy to make herself at home, so the silver-scaled dragoness'' room was already looking slightly different, the bed especially. It was a king-sized one. ¡°I see you are doing some redecorating. Got another one of those?¡± I asked Kataryna. ¡°No, but there''s room for two in it.¡± she smirked. ¡°No, thank you. I''ll pass.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Too bad~.¡± she giggled. ¡°So what are you and Kleo going to do now? I''m quite bored and have nothing to do, so I''m open for suggestions.¡± I told her. ¡°I was planning on visiting the city to see how things have changed around here. Last time I dropped by, this place was in the middle of a war.¡± she shrugged. ¡°I see. Well, even 100 years could be a lot of time for things to change.¡± I nodded. ¡°True.¡± she smiled. ¡°Where''s Kleo by the way?¡± I asked her. ¡°She went down to send a letter back to her grandfather.¡± she replied. ¡°Oh, really?¡± I said surprised. ¡°She''s been doing that in every city with a Post Office.¡± she revealed. ¡°What? How come I never noticed this?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°If I said that your eyes were constantly glued on the chest and bottom of a certain redhead dragoness, would you know what I''m talking about?¡± she asked with a smirk. ¡°Hm. Maybe?¡± I replied with a serious look on my face. Well, Seryanna was a truly enchanting woman, so it was natural for me to behave like this, although I won''t deny the fact that Kataryna also looked good, especially after she came out of the rain. The way her clothes stuck to her skin would make any man drool. ¡°Let''s wait downstairs for Kleo and then go visit the city with all of us?¡± I suggested. ¡°I agree.¡± she nodded. I left her room and then took a seat at a table. The silver-scaled dragoness came down not long afterwards and then we began to make a small plan about what to do. Collentra heard us talking and suggested we should go visit the workshops to the south of the city just outside the walls. Apparently their merchandise was cheaper but by no means inferior to the ones in the Market Area or Workshop Area here in the city. She made me curious about it, but we decided not to go outside the walls, since we didn''t want to pay the extra coin to get back in. If by chance we ended up spending a long time in Drakaria, I was going to eventually pay that area a visit and see what the dragoness was talking about. When Kleo returned, we already settled on where to go and what to see. The black-scaled dragoness got dragged outside by us the moment she stepped in. Outmatched and outnumbered, she had no choice but to follow our whims and guide us through the city. One of the things that interested me the most were the [Purse] rings, so she guided us to one of the shops in the Market Area. Apparently, the only ones who could make these were either Dungeons or a Grand Master Enchanter. For the latter, it was a 1 out of 10 chances of success, and the result would be a very spacious ring. What Kataryna used to carry our bags and other stuff was something only a Grand Legendary Enchanter could try to make, but even he would have a small chance of success. Because of this, the prices displayed in the shop were outrageous. 100 gold coins was the cheapest one and it wasn''t even spacious enough to hold one of our bags. At most it could store only as much as the mushroom backpack Seryanna made me wear back then. On the other hand, one similar to what Kataryna had was way over 10000 golds coins. Seryanna did tell us back then that these things weren''t cheap, but by the gods were they expensive! ¡°There goes my hope of obtaining one.¡± I let out a disappointed sigh. ¡°Now you see why my Twin Daggers group prospered so much. By renting out such rings, we could achieve a steady flow of income.¡± Kataryna said with a smirk as she patted my shoulder. ¡°Speaking of which, where are the rest of your rings?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°After word got out that you and Seryanna exterminated the Twin Daggers bandit group, none of our previous customers dared to reveal that they borrowed those rings from us. They vanished like the wind.¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°Didn''t you have a list of those you lent them to or something?¡± I asked. ¡°Remember that hole you made in my lair?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm... maybe?¡± I replied. ¡°Well, guess where the ledger was?¡± she smiled. ¡°Oops...¡± I said. ¡°Well, don''t worry about it.¡± she waved it off like it was nothing. ¡°I wish we could have managed to retrieve at least one of those rings... or Seryanna not return hers.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Well, if you wish to find one, then who knows? We might stumble onto one of my former clients and ''retrieve'' it from him.¡± the dragoness smiled as her tail swayed in the air. From her gesture, I could only understand that she was going to pummel the poor bastard into the ground and take the ring with his finger and all. ¡°Yeah, who knows. Although what I really wish for is to obtain a skill with a similar effect to that of the [Purse] ring.¡± I said and then sighed again. ¡°By the way, when are you going to give my sister her bags back? She left without them, I think?¡± Kleo pointed out. ¡°If she comes by and asks for them, I will take them out for her. No problem there.¡± Kataryna replied. ¡°That reminds me, back in Toros, I completely forgot to ask you to take out some of our things.¡± I said. ¡°I also didn''t realize this until after we checked in at that inn.¡± Kataryna said. ¡°Yup.¡± Kleo nodded. ¡°Speaking of which, what''s the name of our current inn?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm, sister never said, did she?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Nope.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It''s called Brekkar''s Inn or Inn Brekkar, however you wish to call it.¡± she replied. ¡°Ah, so from here the connection to the old man.¡± I nodded. ¡°Yup.¡± she smiled. ¡°Or more like they used the name for its fame, and he didn''t mind it at all.¡± Kataryna smirked. ¡°Yup.¡± Kleo nodded. After our small talk and the failure of acquiring a [Purse] ring, we looked around various stores that sold armors and weapons. Thanks to my skill [Identificus Processus Juridicus], I was able to see the quality and enchants all of them had. Because of this, I felt like I was walking through an end game town in a MMORPG. All of this stuff was downright crazy! No, it was ALL high-end stuff, but most dragons here treated them as average. Kataryna took interest in swords, while Kleo looked around at spears. I had no idea what to look for, so I just wandered around hoping to see something that caught my eye. However, let us not mention the part where Kataryna accidentally turned a very sharp sword into a boomerang, and Kleo accidentally cursed one of the spears. We quietly left before anyone could point us out as the culprits. While we were looking around for stuff, I happened to hear several rumors that were flying around the market. ¡°The King is said to not be doing too well...¡± a dragon merchant whispered. ¡°Yes, I heard the Queen was seriously ill as well. I never saw her again since the festival 12 years ago.¡± a buyer replied. ¡°Maybe giving birth to twins was a bit too much for her?¡± ¡°Who knows? I just hope that rumor about her having been poisoned by a human isn''t true.¡± If that''s true, then I hope I''ll never meet the King any time too soon. He might kill me before I got a chance to introduce myself. I thought and gulped. Half an hour later, we heard to soldiers talk about something else at the opposite stand. We all perked our ears and listened to the conversation. ¡°The new general sure is strict.¡± said one of them.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°He''s not a general yet. The King will make him one after the tournament next year.¡± the other said. ¡°He might as well make him now, because there''s no one else for the job. Besides, Sir Brekkar will die soon because of his illness... It''s a shame, but we can''t let the army go to waste either.¡± ¡°True as that might be, I still hate it... We were part of the Third Princess'' faction, now we''ll be in the Sixth Princess'' faction... or is it the Doesya Ducal Family faction?¡± he scratched the back of his head. ¡°It''s called a party not a faction, because they don''t fight for the throne. When they will, they will be called factions.¡± he corrected him. ¡°Don''t they mean the same thing?¡± he asked. ¡°Erm... I think.¡± ¡°Then why the change?¡± ¡°Who knows, it''s a noble thing. I would honestly prefer to stick with the term faction.¡± he shrugged. ¡°Noble thing? I don''t get it...¡± he shook his head, and the two of them walked away. Looking back at Kataryna, I asked her ¡°A noble thing?¡± ¡°To put it simply, a party is a group that backs up or shows favor towards a certain noble or royal family member who declares that they won''t try to aim for the seat of the ruler. The party is also an indicator of their potential political power, meaning that they are more valuable inside the country than outside of it. On the other hand, a faction is a group who backs up or shows favor towards an individual who aims for the seat of the ruler. In this case, when the appointed time comes, the one with the strongest faction wins.¡± she explained. ¡°So basically, it''s a political game?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°I see... Then does this mean that the Third Princess'' party is weakening?¡± I asked. ¡°If what we heard is true, then most definitely.¡± Kataryna said as she looked in the direction of those two soldiers. ¡°That''s worrying... The Third Princess'' party is the one Seryanna should be part of.¡± Kleo said. ¡°What happens if the support of a party reaches zero?¡± I asked. ¡°Then... that individual, in this case the Third Princess, will have absolutely no political value within the kingdom.¡± Kataryna replied. ¡°Could we join her party?¡± I asked. ¡°As a Breakthrough Awakened, I can, but you can only join if you marry Seryanna, but even then you won''t be considered of much value in their world. On the other hand, Kleo has a lot more political power as the fiance of a Paladin trained by Brekkar himself. Both of them are nobles, so their status is far higher than yours. Then again, you are a human, so your status could even be seen as a negative one by some.¡± Kataryna offered me a rather detailed explanation. ¡°For some reason, this depresses me.¡± I let out a sigh. We continued our tour of the city, visiting as many other stores as we could without going too quickly through them. We wanted to enjoy our little tour. At the same time, I was keeping my eyes open for any suitable locations that could be used for a future date with Seryanna. Unfortunately, this city wasn''t too good when it came to romantic dates. There was also something else I noticed around here... ¡°Is it just me or do the dragons here act a little different towards each other?¡± I asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Those two over there... Why is the fat guy acting like that?¡± I asked as I pointed at a fat dragon with little green wings on his back scolding a younger looking dragon with big blue wings. ¡°Ah, those two...¡± Kataryna let out a sigh when she saw them. ¡°Huh?¡± I was a bit confused. ¡°The fat guy is a noble and the other is a commoner.¡± she explained. ¡°But why is he looking down on him like that.¡± I asked. ¡°Haven''t you noticed it in the previous cities?¡± she asked. ¡°Huh? Not really...¡± I shook my head. ¡°Well, we were together with sister, a knight who doesn''t judge others based on class.¡± Kleo pointed out. ¡°True...¡± Kataryna scratched the back of her head. ¡°Now that I think about it, your chances of interacting with nobles from a commoner''s point of view were... almost non-existent.¡± she shrugged. ¡°With a Breakthrough Awakened and two noble women traveling with him, who would?¡± Kleo raised an eyebrow. ¡°That could be a reason.¡± she nodded. ¡°I don''t get...¡± I repeated myself. ¡°Well, you see. In this society it''s normal for nobles to act like that. Honestly, from a moral point of view, the fat guy might be in the wrong, but legally, he has every right to look down on the commoner who is supposed to always bow down to the nobles. Even if you are really talented in a profession, unless you reach Legendary rank or become a Breakthrough Awakened, chances are you will be treated like dirt by the majority of nobles. More so if they find out you aren''t just some unawakened dragon but an actual human. There might be some who would even go so far as try to kill you.¡± she explained. ¡°Ouch... I would rather avoid that.¡± I nodded. ¡°That''s why I believe that the moment other nobles find out that Seryanna fancies you, they will try to remove you. Killing a human is by no means a crime in Albeyater or any other Dragon Kingdom.¡± pointed out Kataryna. ¡°Great...¡± I sighed. ¡°Well, you do have one good point. The fact that you treated Brekkar and even gained his approval is enough to keep you alive at least, but in the end... it all depends on the King if it''s off with your head or not.¡± Kleo let out a sigh as well. ¡°That''s why I hate politics, and my advise is to never get yourself involve in them. Those idiots who flaunt their noble status can''t even see the end of their tails let alone judge someone by their true worth.¡± Kataryna growled, showing her disgust towards such individuals. Now that I thought about it, her own experience with politics wasn''t a very good one. She lost a good friend to the schemes of politicians who didn''t wish for the Breakthrough Awakening of a Superior Draconian of a High Element, basically someone like Seryanna. Gulping, I made a wish in my heart just in case... Whatever happens, I wish that I will be able to save Seryanna if she will ever end up in danger because she is a Superior Draconian of High Flame. With that being said, we continued our exploration of the city, but as we went on, we began to hear more and more rumors about this new general. Apparently, he was stationing the Brekkar Army outside of the city''s walls in wait for the tournament he was organizing. There were many who claimed he was a new genius just like Brekkar once was, while others claimed that he was only a cheat and shrewd individual. The latter blamed him for the fact that many soldiers were threatened to be fired, while others were promised to be risen in rank if they did well in the tournament. Brekkar apparently valued command, leadership, and the tactics employed by each squad more than the individual power of each soldier. As such, weak commanders with good leadership skills would often have strong soldiers under them. The way Draejan wanted to do things would mean the opposite. We also heard more than once that the party of the Third Princess was weakening with each passing day. Right now, it was rumored that she only had one knight left, which was Seryanna. If nothing changed in the next years, she would lose all favor and may end up married off to a ducal family or someone from the foreign royalty, like a prince of Embryger Empire. If rumors reached even the common folk around us, then it was clear that she wasn''t doing too well, and this in itself was causing me to worry about her. I was beginning to feel more and more like I made a terrible mistake back there in Toros, that I should have just accepted Seryanna as she was or at the very least show a reaction. Well, it couldn''t be help that my flag wasn''t raised, but I could have just stopped her from leaving the following day... Wait, no, doing it in that merchant''s house would have been very rude, but... at least I could have told her that I didn''t mind what I saw and even if I failed once, I wanted to try again and again until the flag was risen up high. Instead of reassuring her that I wouldn''t give up on her... I acted like a fool. I said nothing. I mentioned nothing. I didn''t even try to go for a grope when we were in the tent alone! There''s something wrong with me... I shook my head. Unfortunately, I had no idea what, and as we were returning to the inn, I couldn''t help notice something else... No matter where I looked, the Unawakened dragons were looked down upon by all the Awakened ones. It didn''t matter if they were nobles or not, the gazes were the same... In their eyes, not having Awakened as a Dragon was the same as still being a child no matter your physical or mental age. ¡°Not being Awakened is a big deal for dragons, isn''t it?¡± I said in a low tone of voice. ¡°Yes...¡± Kataryna nodded. I let out a sigh and tried to look away. Today I learned many things, but most of all, I was once again confronted with the truth that said this world was very different from the one I came from. Most importantly, I once again came to realize that dragons were a completely different species from humans. They chose their life partners based on the elements they possessed and were considered adults not when they reached a certain age but when they Awakened as Dragons. I also learned that people never took the Unawakened ones seriously, unless they held a high position in their society, like Seryanna held the status of a Royal Knight. At the same time, I learned that although Earth was different from this world in many aspects... in the end, they were both ruled by the cumbersome laws of politics. The games of the cunning ones within the state could shift the balance of power or even mean the difference between the life and death of certain groups or individuals. I was unaware or maybe I just ignored it because I was afraid of it, but the truth was that I was a Human in a Dragon Kingdom when both species were at war with each other. More so, I was in love with a dragoness who served as a Royal Knight for a Princess whose power was declining... One wrong move, and it was off with my head. Worse even, it could be off with Seryanna''s head as well... I shivered in fear at the very thought of it, and my heart tightened from these conflicting thoughts. I had no power... no say in this country''s course of action. I could do nothing to stop or save Seryanna from ending up accused as a traitor or even sentenced to death. As we stepped inside Brekkar''s Inn, we were greeted by two soldiers wearing typical chainmail armor and carrying a sheathed short sword at their waist. ¡°Are you the one who goes by the name of Alkelios?¡± one of them asked. ¡°Erm... Maybe?¡± I replied. ¡°Answer with yes or no.¡± he glared at me. ¡°What''s this about?¡± Kataryna asked calmly. ¡°We have receive orders to bring a message to the one named Alkelios.¡± declared the other soldier. ¡°Alright, yes, I''m Alkelios... What''s the message?¡± I asked letting out a sigh. ¡°You are summoned at the Palace together with Kataryna Greorg and Thrarher... Tahar... The young lady of the Draketerus family. You are to present yourself at the gates tomorrow as soon as the Sun has risen. That is all.¡± he said, butchering Kleo''s name. ¡°It''s Thraherkleyoseya, you dolts.¡± the girl glared at them. ¡°My apologies.¡± he said, but didn''t seem to take it as an offense. ¡°Who summoned us exactly?¡± I asked since according to those the details, the person in question could have even been the Palace toilet scrubber. ¡°You are being summoned by Milord Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya!¡± he declared proudly. Ah, not the toilet scrubber, but close enough... great. I thought. So far, my impression of this dragon wasn''t a very positive one. From what I heard, he was making a total mess of Brekkar''s Army and even organized a tournament which role was to further make a mess out of it. I let out a sigh and then nodded. ¡°I think I will decline.¡± I said with smile. ¡°What? How can you decline Milord''s summon? Are you mad?¡± he asked. ¡°Erm... but I don''t know any whatever his name is.¡± I shrugged. ¡°If you dare disrespect Milord''s name, I will have no choice but to skewer you!¡± he declared. ¡°Would that be alright if... let''s say, I really am his guest?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°Urk...¡± the dragon stopped and sheathed his sword. ¡°Very well... Milord foresaw such a possibility, so in case it happened, he ordered us to tell you that Sir Seryanna''s honor is at stake. If you do not wish to spit on her name as well, you better accept the summon.¡± he said with a smirk. I squinted my eyes at him and just as I was about to move, I felt a strong grip on my right shoulder. Looking back, I saw Kataryna who stopped me. ¡°We''ll be there.¡± she said in my stead. ¡°Very well.¡± he nodded. ¡°But do tell that whatever his name is. If I find out this summon is a joke, I will make sure that he will PAY dearly for this... rudeness.¡± the dragoness declared with a cold glare in her eyes. Before the soldiers had a chance to retort anything, they were shivering from the cold air that surrounded them. ¡°W-We will...¡± the soldiers said. ¡°Good.¡± she smiled and let them go. After they were gone, I let out a deep sigh. ¡°It was good you stopped me...¡± I said. ¡°You would have acted like a child, Alkelios. I know you care about Seryanna, but you don''t have any strength to back you up. You would need to at least have reach the Breakthrough point to be taken into consideration.¡± she showed me a smile and hugged me from behind. ¡°But don''t worry, I won''t let anyone take a bite out of you... if anyone, that should be me.¡± she giggled, but instead of feeling relieved, I felt a chill running down my spine. What she meant by ''taking a bite'' was by no means in a pleasing manner, she was referring to actually... harming me. Maybe that''s just my imagination? I wondered. Chapter 44: Draconian Politics [Alkelios'' point of view] I wasn''t able to sleep properly that night. I turned and twisted in my bed, while I kept thinking about that soldier''s words and my upcoming visit to the palace. What was to come? Who was I going to meet? What was I going to say? How should I act? What was I going to do if...? It wasn''t excitement or anticipation what I felt... but fear. After all, I was a human and they were dragons. I was weak and they were strong. Without them, I was even weaker. Without them, I would die, yet together with them, my life would be under constant threat. I was a human and different, so they sought to eliminate me. I was weak and different, so it was natural for them to try and attack those like me. Such thoughts and worries flew through my mind and heart like annoying mosquitoes on a hot summer day, tormenting me throughout the entire night, all twelve hours of it. I was beginning to hate the fact that one day on this planet meant 32 hours back on Earth. Overall, even the year was longer, but then again... this was a different planet. Waking up in the morning was a cruel and agonizing process for me, who had not slept all too well last night. I squinted my eyes at the ceiling for several minutes, then I rolled to the side and dropped out of bed. The hard wooden floor was welcoming enough to make me try to catch a few more minutes of Zs, but I was well aware that I wasn''t going to close my eyes that easily. With a curse escaping my lips, I got up and walked over to the bucket filled with water. I washed my face several times, and dried off with a towel. Three yawns later, I decided I was too tired to function normally in a world filled with dragons, so I decided to gulp down a healing potion and a Rotiqus one in order to regain some of my strength. My mind though was still in a haze. It kept going back and forth between what could happen that day once I reached the palace. To put in a few words: I was afraid. This was the conclusion I reached after a night of turmoil. I was afraid... of dragons, but not of those who had become my friends. Actually, I felt like that was the only way to keep them from killing me. I knew I was probably exaggerating because I had more than enough strength to defend myself from the majority of dragons trying to attack me, but this didn''t keep me from thinking about those against whom I couldn''t. It was messed up, I knew that... but what could I do about it? Giving up on trying to find the cause of my fears and solve it, I headed down to the tavern and picked an empty table by the window. It was here where I waited for Kataryna and Kleo, and as I had expected... I wasn''t afraid of them. On the contrary, I felt safe around them. After we had a small breakfast, we left the inn. Several minutes later, we were sitting in front of the gates of the outer wall of the Royal Palace, and we were all taking turns yawning. ¡°Are you three here because of a summon?¡± one of the guards there asked us with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Yes. My name is Alkelios.¡± I replied. ¡°Is that so? Give me one moment.¡± he said and then went inside to check the ledger. After about two minutes or so, he walked out and returned to his post. ¡°Well?¡± I asked. ¡°A guard was sent to let Sir Seryanna know of your arrival. You will wait here for her.¡± he said. I blinked surprised. I thought we were being summoned by that Draejan fellow not her. What''s going on? I wondered. ¡°Let''s wait then.¡± Kataryna said after she let out another yawn. I shrugged and tried to find something to do while I let the time pass. About twenty minutes later, the redhead dragoness finally arrived at the gate. ¡°Open the gates and let them pass.¡± she ordered. ¡°Yes, Sir Seryanna!¡± they all saluted and did as ordered. After we entered, the dragoness greeted all of us with a hug. ¡°I apologize for this unusual summon, my friends.¡± she told us. ¡°No need to worry about it, but why was the one who called for us that Draejan fellow?¡± I asked curiously. Seryanna looked away for a moment, but she didn''t reply. ¡°Follow me, Princess Elleyzabelle has requested to meet you.¡± she said. I blinked and then looked back at Kataryna and Kleo, who simply shrugged. They too didn''t know what this was about either. On the other hand, I wished in my mind that this meeting would go well, or that at the end of the day, I was still alive and not locked up in a cell awaiting my execution. As we followed Seryanna, I looked around the Palace. It reminded me a lot of the buildings I saw in games and High Fantasy movies. Every stone, column, and even the hedges in the garden seemed to point out that this was a place of great elegance and refinement. Just by following the redhead dragoness through this place, I felt the need to pull my stomach and push out my chest, to stand straight and appear more dignified than I did before. The number of guards patrolling this place gave off a certain sense of security but also danger. If anything happened, it wouldn''t have been funny. Escaping this place alive was a feat no ordinary man could achieve, yet thanks to all those stealth games I played, I found a surprisingly amount of holes in their security. A lack of security cameras was the main reason for this, but there was also the way the guards themselves patrolled. While it looked intimidating, a skilled assassin could even walk behind them without being detected. ¡°Is it just me or you could actually infiltrate this place quite easily?¡± I asked as I looked around. ¡°The Royal Palace of Drakaria has one of the tightest securities in the Albeyater Kingdom. I do not believe it''s that easy to infiltrate this place.¡± Seryanna replied. ¡°I could always bust through the front gates.¡± Kataryna snorted. ¡°I would just use my shadows to hide myself. Give me any night of the year, and I can even go as far as the King and Queen''s chambers! Kyahaha!¡± Kleo bragged. ¡°I would refrain from making such statements within the Royal Palace, they could be taken the wrong way.¡± Kataryna warned us in a serious tone of voice. After we passed through the big garden in front of the Palace, we finally arrived at the entrance. While this place was quite huge, I had a feeling the Parliament Palace back in Bucharest was far bigger than this. The two dragon guards at the entrance saluted Seryanna and let us pass through the doors. Once inside, I found myself once again at a loss of words for the beauty and detail put into making this place. The exquisite paintings hung on the walls, the tapestry, the spiral columns with carved drawings of dragons at the bottom and top of them, the carpet that led to an arched staircase, the elegant chandeliers hanging from the ceiling by a golden chain, all of these made me gasp in awe. ¡°You''ll catch a fly like that.¡± Kleo giggled. ¡°Yeah... I was just... This place is... wow.¡± I said dumbfounded. ¡°It is one of the many palaces our kingdom prides itself with. It is said that over 1000 dragons worked tirelessly to build it.¡± Seryanna said. ¡°Amazing...¡± I said. At the end of the carpet, right between the pair of staircases, I saw two big golden doors with two carvings of European fire-breathing dragons on it. Curious about it, I asked ¡°What''s in there?¡± ¡°That would be the throne room where his Majesty would usually greet his guests or hold auditions.¡± Seryanna replied. ¡°The throne room? Hm, but why ''would usually''? Something happened to it? Are they doing repairs?¡± I asked. ¡°Ah, no... His Majesty currently has some circumstances and lately hasn''t appeared in public that often...¡± Seryanna replied and looked down at the floor with a sad gaze in her eyes. We climbed the stairs to the right and just as we reached the top, we encountered a dragon who wore a long regal-blue robe embroidered with gold and rose-red thread. He had long brown hair, going past his shoulders, and wore a serious expression on his face. As a dragon, his tail was hidden underneath the robe, and his wings were average size and covered with brown and gold scales. ¡°Good morning, Prime Minister Elovius.¡± Seryanna said and made a quarter bow in front of him. We followed suit and bowed our heads, except for Kataryna, who raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°Good morning, Sir Seryanna. I see you have brought some peculiar guests within the Palace. On whose summon may I ask?¡± he looked at us with his chin up. ¡°Sir Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya summoned them, but the Third Princess Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher wishes to see them first.¡± she replied obediently. ¡°I see. My sister has, hm?¡± he then squinted his eyes as he looked at me. What''s up with this fellow? I wondered and gulped. ¡°I''m surprised that you would bring a... human inside the Royal Palace, Sir Seryanna.¡± Elovius said, showing clearly how disgusted he was of my species. I gulped and could only wonder what gave me away. ¡°He has received an official summon, and I can assure you that...¡± Seryanna tried to explain, but he raised his hand, stopping her. ¡°I don''t care about such things, Royal Knight, but you should know very well what shame just being around his kind could bring to the Third Princess, not to mention your own reputation. I say this out of concern, but you should have this sheep tossed out of the capital before he shows his true colors and bites the tip of your tail off.¡± he spoke in a very cold tone of voice. ¡°I understand, your excellence.¡± Seryanna gulped. ¡°I wonder if you do... Need I remind you the pain and suffering his kind have brought upon the Royal Family? You of all people should know best what they are capable of, Sir Seryanna. Your family suffered the most because of them and now faces the possibility of being no more. Or have you forgotten the tears you yourself shed on your parents graves?¡± he asked coldly.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°No, your excellence... but I do believe that not all humans are like that.¡± she barely spoke those last few words, but it was clear that she was shaken by both the presence of this dragon and his merciless statements. Meanwhile, I had no idea what to say. All I knew was that Albeyater, like all the other Dragon Kingdoms, was at war with the humans, and that some time ago Brekkar was in a battle that nearly cost his life. However, the old dragon was now alive and cured. As for her parents, all I knew was that they weren''t alive anymore, but did their death have anything to do with the war? ¡°I pray that you thought this through, Sir Seryanna. Unlike me, his Majesty may not take this... intrusion lightly. Good day.¡± he said and then passed by us. We all remained in a bowing position for a few more seconds and then continued on our way. Still, the things this dragon spoke about made me a bit worried. It appeared as though Seryanna''s past wasn''t as simple as I initially thought it would be. I wonder what it means for her to have fallen in love with me? What sort of feelings did she struggled with? I thought as I looked at her back as she led us through the hallway. Neither Kataryna or Kleo said anything else anymore. We calmly followed her and hoped no other dragon was going to stand in our way. At the same time, I prayed I wasn''t going to meet with the King today because I very much wanted to stay alive, not become a blood splatter on these exquisite walls. Stopping in front of a black-wood door, Seryanna knocked three times and announced her arrival. ¡°Your Royal Knight, Seryanna Draketerus, has brought the ones you summoned, your highness.¡± ¡°Enter.¡± the voice of a woman came from the other side. I gulped. With a push on the handle, Seryanna opened the door, and we all entered the elegant bedroom of a high class noble woman. To be brought inside the private chamber of the Third Princess was... unexpected, but I had to say that luxury and exquisite taste was one thing that defined someone of royal blood. The dragoness herself was quite beautiful from many points of view, but the refined air that surrounded her surely increased her quality by several folds. Like the dragon who was the Prime Minister, she also had two scale colors: white and gold, but unlike in his case, I didn''t feel the same oppressing aura from the Princess. ¡°Oh? So you are the one this knight calls her ''master''?¡± Kataryna asked calmly. ¡°Indeed I am.¡± Princess Elleyzabelle nodded and replied in calm tone of voice. Seryanna walked next to her and stood by her side with her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. In a moment, this meeting took on a very serious note. ¡°A pleasure to meet you, your highness! I am Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus.¡± Kleo introduced herself and gave a polite bow as it was required. Hm, and here I was thinking that she''s incapable of showing a polite and elegant side? The apocalypse must be upon us... I jokingly thought as I looked at her. ¡°Kataryna Greorg.¡± the silver-scaled dragoness introduced herself. ¡°My name is Alkelios Yatagai.¡± I followed suit and made a small bow in front of the Princess. ¡°A pleasure to meet the ones my Royal Knight sees as friends.¡± she nodded. ¡°I should say the pleasure is all ours, but this summon of yours is a bit strange. First off all, we were called to the palace by some rude fellows who follow Draejan what''s his name, then we were surprised to find out that the welcoming committee was in fact formed solely out of Seryanna here. Now, it seems that the first one we are going to meet is not the so-called general who issued the summon but you, the Third Princess who is rumored to have severely weakened in power.¡± Kataryna said with a smile as she looked straight into the dragoness'' eyes. Seryanna had nothing to refute against her words. She could only look away and show a grimace on her face. As for me, I was bit surprised by the sudden attack. ¡°That is true. My current party is only made up of those you see present in this room and a blacksmith who was unable to arrive, and whose absence I hope you will excuse.¡± she revealed with a calm demeanour. ¡°Are we to be included as well?¡± Kataryna asked squinting her eyes at her. ¡°While your strength would provide an impressive aid, I by no means wish to force or coerce you into supporting me.¡± she replied. ¡°So says the sheep in wolf clothing.¡± Kataryna smirked. Erm... Well, I''ve lived to hear this one as well... I looked at the dragoness with a blank expression. ¡°In the past, you may have considered me a sheep, but now... I''m more of a wolf.¡± she smiled. Please stop with the sheep and wolf analogy, you''re making my brain bleed! I cried on the inside. There was a moment of tensed silence between us before Kataryna let out a sigh and spoke on our behalf. ¡°So tell us then, Third Princess, for what reason have you summoned us... or to be specific, why was Alkelios summoned to the Palace?¡± she squinted her eyes at her. ¡°A fair question.¡± she nodded and closed her eyes for a moment before she replied looking straight at me ¡°As you know, it was not I who extended this summon, although I wished so initially, it was Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya who did so. This dragon is part of the Sixth Princess'' party and will soon become the General in charge of the Brekkar Army. The soldiers gathered outside the city''s walls are those who were led into battle 38 years ago by Sir Seryanna''s grandfather, Brekkar Draketerus.¡± she explained calmly. ¡°And why would this dragon have need of Alkelios?¡± Kataryna asked, putting pressure on the word ''need''. The Princess smiled and replied ¡°Fu~ Why would YOU believe there is a need for this human?¡± Kataryna squinted her eyes and let out a guttural growl. Her tail swished in the air, showing her impatience. ¡°I do not have time for such games, golden scale. Either you reveal what you know or we leave this place.¡± she threatened. ¡°I don''t think that would be a wise idea...¡± I pointed out. ¡°Political games are not something I enjoy or wish to participate in.¡± she growled. Ah yes, she absolutely loathes them because of what happened to her friend. I remembered. ¡°Very well then. The reason for summon is to simply see this man who claims to be Sir Seryanna''s lover. That was my only intention, but... Draejan might have something else in mind.¡± she closed her eyes for a moment. ¡°He is a dragon who despises humans, so I do not believe his intentions are friendly.¡± she said. I gulped. ¡°But what did I do?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°You are a human and this would be enough to stir the anger of most dragons in this Palace, but besides that, you have also stolen the heart of his... fiance.¡± she replied calmly. ¡°Huh? Well I am a human... I can''t do anything about that, but not all of us are bad and... wait... Fiance?¡± I furrowed my brow. ¡°Who? When?¡± I titled my head to the left. ¡°Me.¡± Seryanna replied to my questions. ¡°Sister?¡± Kleo said surprised. ¡°Hooo~?¡± Kataryna was also intrigued. I was in a state of shock. Those words took me by surprise and gave me a right hook straight to the chin. My mind stopped working, the air was trapped in my lungs, and my heart felt like it had been strangled with barbed wire. Everyone was silent now, waiting for my reaction, while Seryanna looked with apologetic eyes at me. I honestly didn''t know what to do now. Did she lie to me all this time? Was this a joke? Was this a scheme to bring me here and use me? I didn''t know and I feared the truth as well. My whole world was suddenly collapsing around me. The ground was shattering under my feet. My strength was leaving my body. What''s happening? I asked myself. ¡°I''m sorry...¡± she apologized and looked down. ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°If I said it was because you are not strong enough to protect her, would you understand?¡± the Princess asked. ¡°What? Of course not! What does that have to do with her being that guy''s fiance?!¡± I shouted. ¡°Alkelios, please calm down.¡± Seryanna told me in a soothing tone of voice. ¡°Calm down? How can I calm down?! You were just introduced as that dragon''s fiance! Isn''t he part of another political group? Doesn''t this mean you are betraying the Third Princess as well? And what about me? When was I supposed to find out? At your wedding? Just walk by and ask me: hey do you want to be the man of honor at my wedding with the man I never TOLD you about?¡± I asked outraged. It was clear that my emotions and feelings were all going haywire. Nothing inside my mind made sense. All I know was that I had been betrayed and made a fun off. All I knew was that the dragoness I was almost willing to sacrifice everything for, including my own species, turned out to have fiance she never told me about. Wasn''t it clear that I had been abandoned? Wasn''t it clear that I was used? How could I explain my feelings? How could I even look at Seryanna after this? Was this also why she suddenly asked about a marriage and mentioned that if she was ordered to, she would have to? Where was the fight for us? Where was the struggle? Did I mean nothing for her? All these questions, all these thoughts turned my mind and heart upside down. I didn''t know what to believe, where to look, and what to think. To find out that the woman I loved had a fiance... was... shocking to say the least. And this was clearly seen on my face. ¡°Maybe you were wrong when you chose this man, Sir Seryanna.¡± the Princess then said. ¡°What?¡± I said as I felt my rage reaching its peak. ¡°No, I don''t believe so... Alkelios, please calm down and listen. This isn''t what I really want... The King sent an official declaration. This was all a political move that stole the power from the Third Princess'' grasp. As she said earlier, only I am left serving under her. This dragon, I never even met until yesterday, and this engagement was as shocking to me as it is to you now. Please believe me, my heart lies with you not him.¡± she told me in a heartbreaking tone of voice, while she struggled hard not to cry. I listened to her. I looked at her, but the words trust and belief didn''t ring a bell inside me. I felt empty and lost... I felt abandoned. ¡°Then... what do you want to do?¡± I asked her. ¡°I...¡± she stopped and looked down. Why do you hesitate? Why? I thought. If she loved me, she should have immediately declared that she wanted to be with me, not him. ¡°Seryanna...¡± I took a deep breath and asked her in a trembling tone of voice ¡°The King ordered you... ordered you to marry this man.¡± I gulped ¡°Your master, the Third Princess, doesn''t seem against it from the looks of it... so...¡± I clenched my fist and gulped again ¡°You... what are you... what do you want and what are you going to do?¡± I asked her. The redhead dragoness clenched a fist at her chest and looked down with a troubled on her face. There was only one word I wanted to hear from her, only one sentence... that she would fight for me. ¡°I want to be with you, but I am going to marry Draejan to prevent him for harming you...¡± she replied as she looked at me. Her words stopped at his name. The rest wasn''t registered by my mind. Feeling weak to my knees, I slumped down on the ground and felt like the whole world shattered around me. A strange darkness turned and twisted in my heart as spears of pain sprung forth and stabbed mercilessly. I wanted to cry, but I was empty inside. I wanted to scream, but I didn''t have the strength to open my mouth. I wanted to do something, but I had no idea what... I was at a loss... No, I lost... and felt lost. My lover abandoned me, but maybe this all came as a retribution to what happened before, when I failed to return her love, when I went limp. I failed so many times that maybe she was the one who felt the most betrayed out of both of us. I didn''t know what to do, so I looked up and said ¡°I see... then this is good bye... for us...¡± I then got up, and walked back to the door. Kleo called out to me and so did Kataryna, but I couldn''t hear them. I was devastated... [Kataryna''s point of view] After Alkelios said those words and turned around, Seryanna called out to him, but he didn''t reply. Hurt by the outcome and end of their relationship, she too slumped down to the floor and cried. This scene was heartbreaking, and I could only imagine what these two were going through. What sort of numbing pain did they feel to have them both crumble on the floor like that? Kleo rushed up to her sister, to comfort her, while the princess was clenching her own fragile fists. Maybe this wasn''t the outcome she was hoping for, or maybe Draejan got to Alkelios before any of us did. What surprised me the most was Seryanna''s decision. The will and strength she would require to sacrifice herself for the man she loved wasn''t something any woman could do. For this alone, I grew a new sense of admiration for her. But this left only one thing unanswered in my opinion, so I turned my gaze towards the Princess. ¡°Is this really the end for them?¡± I asked. ¡°I didn''t want it to be...¡± she replied, leaving aside her mask of royalty. She spoke like a dragoness who was looking at her hurt friend and shared her pain as well. ¡°Then?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s the truth... Alkelios isn''t strong enough to compete against Draejan. Not only in a battle of strength but of words as well. As for me, I do not have the needed backing to change the King''s mind.¡± she said. ¡°Are you hoping I would lend a hand?¡± I asked. ¡°I wanted to ask you for your cooperation... but only if Alkelios proved himself at least to be strong enough to retort to Seryanna''s decision. However, you saw it yourself... He gave up.¡± she looked into my eyes, and there was a small sign of anger in them. ¡°The boy is just confused... give him time.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°We don''t have any time left!¡± she shouted. ¡°Then use my name and gain some.¡± I smirked back at her. ¡°What?¡± she blinked confused. ¡°I''m going to deal with Alkelios... Ah, Seryanna... remember that talk we had?¡± I asked her. She didn''t react. ¡°Well, I guess we''ll talk about it later... For now, I''m going to go and see what happened to him. Oh, and if in the end Alkelios doesn''t come through... I might end up doing something... bad.¡± I tilted my head to the left and smiled then turned around and left. I didn''t want to give any explanation to the princess. It was her job to figure it out before it was too late. As for me, I was a Breakthrough Awakened. Those like me didn''t follow the normal rules, and as such dealing with us could be seen as quite... dangerous. ¡°Sigh... That''s why I hate draconian politics.¡± I said as I scratched the back of my head. Chapter 45: Official Duel [Alkelios'' point of view] Broken and confused, I walked down the hallway of the Royal Palace, lost in my own thoughts and pain. I didn''t answer any calls nor looked at the guards that passed by me. I didn''t even fear the possibility of being pointed at as an intruder and slain on the spot. There was no more strength in my limbs, no more desire to fight. With Seryanna''s answer, I had lost everything... at least as far as I was concerned. Even the fight for Earth didn''t seem like a good enough reason to keep on fighting. Funny... now that I have lost her, why do I feel like I''ll never be able to love another woman? Why do I feel like I had just one chance and ended up squandering it on some foolish fear? I thought and stopped. Looking up at the ceiling, I felt like nothing mattered anymore. Then, I realized that there was no certain place for me in this world. The thought of going to the human kingdoms crossed my mind, but I didn''t know if I could communicate with them. I knew only the language spoken in Albeyater. Even if I managed to learn it somehow, I had no idea how to reach them. Right now, I was in Drakaria, the capital of Albeyater Kingdom. I was brought here by my friends, by my ex-lover... so I had no idea how to get there. I was completely lost. ¡°Huh? Am I that useless?¡± I thought and then looked to my left. On the wall was a painting of some sort of scenery, but it was unfamiliar to me. The dragons living in this palace might have been able to recognize it, but I was in no way able to. It looked like something made up even if it was just the painting of a simple mountain as it was viewed from the shore of a lake at sunrise. Is this world even real? It can''t be, right? Such crazy things are happening around me... Dragons, spells... Maybe I simply went mad from all of that gaming? Or maybe... I''m trapped in VR game I don''t even remember buying? What''s happening to me? Why was I picked, you stupid God-like! I wish you would show your face to me and tell me... Tell me... is being with Seryanna only a dream within a dream? I shook my head and the I grabbed it in my hands. I felt like pulling all of my hair out and even shouting out in despair, but I couldn''t release the sounds trapped within my chest because I was still afraid... of the dragons... the guards... everyone around me, crazy murderers who thought of humans only as enemies. ¡°Well! Well! Who do we have here?¡± the mocking voice came from behind me. I wanted to reply: a madman. But I abstained and instead took a deep breath. ¡°Who are you and what do you want?¡± I asked coldly. ¡°My, that''s no way to speak with the one who will soon become the General of the Brekkar Army.¡± he replied in the same mocking tone of voice. General? Is this... him? I thought and then turned around. The white-scale bastard who stole Seryanna from me was right here, looking back at me with a triumphant smirk on his face. I wanted to punch him, so I clenched my fist, but I didn''t launch the attack. ¡°I have nothing to talk to you. Leave me alone.¡± I glared at him. ¡°Well, as much as I would like to do that, you see, that''s a bit impossible for me.¡± he tapped the hilt of his sword. ¡°You won already. Seryanna is yours. The Third Princess party is done for. What the hell do you want from me?¡± I asked in anger. ¡°True. True.¡± he nodded. ¡°But you see, you still need to do something more.¡± he smirked. ¡°What?¡± I asked. ¡°Grovel at my feet and beg for forgiveness for being born a human from... stinking human parents.¡± he smirked. I gulped and clenched my fist tight. If glares could kill, I would have destroyed him by now, yet he was still here, mocking me, insulting me, insulting my family too. ¡°Grovel at your own feet, you bastard!¡± I retorted. ¡°Well, you see. I''m a noble with royal blood flowing through my veins. See the golden scales?¡± he tapped on his chin ¡°That''s a proof of that. As such, I cannot take an insult lightly and simply ignore it, especially since it comes from a human. To think that here, in the Royal Palace of Drakaria, a human like you instead of begging on his knees for forgiveness for ever being born and breathing the same air as us, dragons, he stands up straight and dares challenge me! Ah~! Such shame and disrespect! Well, no matter. I am a merciful dragon, so I will give you the chance to repent yourself... in a duel.¡± he smirked. ¡°A duel? Why should I accept it?¡± I glared at him. ¡°Because otherwise I''m free to kill you. Then I can just say I did it because you were plotting something against his Majesty. You are a human, no one will bat an eye and search for the truth.¡± he shrugged like it was nothing. ¡°What?¡± I furrowed my brow at him. ¡°Don''t you get it? This is why I hate your kind... so stupid to understand even the most simplest of things! Well, let''s put it this way, I''m bored. You are said to be fairly strong, so a duel against me should be considered an honor! But relax, I promise I''m not going to kill you if I win. You will just be tossed out of the Palace and forbidden from ever seeing Seryanna again. However! IF you win, I will... what will I do... Hm.¡± he scratched his chin. ¡°Oh, yes! How about I... will extend a letter towards his Majesty through which I will ASK him to dissolve my engagement with Sir Seryanna?¡± he asked with a cunning smirk on his lips. This was a trap, I could feel it... I knew it, yet this was the only chance I would ever have at making things right. If I still had a chance with Seryanna. If I could still come forth and tell her... no, prove to her that I was strong enough to be by her side, then... then... things would turn out differently. Inside my head, this was my reasoning. The result of my logic told me this was the only chance, the only shot I would ever have. Even if this is just a dream or some weird VR game... Even if this is reality, I already lost everything, so I have absolutely no reason not to accept this. I thought as I glared at this dragon. ¡°Fine. We have a deal.¡± I told him. ¡°Great! I will meet you outside in the courtyard, where the Royal Knights usually train. Don''t be late!¡± he said with a smirk on his lips and then left me alone in the hallway. I let out a sigh and tried to calm down. A few minutes later, somebody placed their hand on my shoulder. Blinking surprised, I looked back and saw Kataryna there. ¡°How are you doing?¡± she asked me with a gentle look in her eyes. ¡°I''m sorry... I must look pathetic to you now...¡± I looked away, nailing my gaze to the floor. ¡°Yes. I won''t deny that, but you also have a lot on your mind, don''t you?¡± she asked me. I didn''t answer. ¡°Let''s go back. The others are waiting and then we have to see what that Draejan fellow wants.¡± she told me. ¡°I''m not going back, and I already met him... He challenged me to an official duel, and I accepted. I''m going to go fight him now.¡± I said and then shook off her hand as I walked away from her. [Kataryna''s point of view] What did he just say? I thought when I heard him mention duel. I was too shocked by this and lost my time to stop him. Clicking my tongue, I shook my head and clenched my fists. ¡°I can''t let it happen again.¡± I growled. There was no way I was going to let tragedy repeat itself again. There was no way I was going to let Alkelios fall into the same political trap my friend did. These duels of the nobles were all just a convenient way to try and kill someone. It was a way for the strong to flaunt against the weak, but more importantly, the nobility against the commoners. Alkelios didn''t know, but in a duel like this, a commoner was not allowed to kill the noble, but the other way around was permitted and considered most of the time an unfortunate mistake. The idea that the nobles were far more powerful than the commoners floated around these duels and permitted tragedy to repeat itself time and time again.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Besides, there was no telling if the winner of the duel would keep his promise or not. If it was between nobles, then the promise was required to be kept. Even the King himself would enforce this, but Alkelios was a human. He belonged to the enemy''s side. Thus, if Draejan killed him, then it wouldn''t be seen as a mistake, but an honor. Even if Alkelios was a noble himself, it didn''t really matter at all. Blasted be these hallways! If I didn''t get lost or stumbled into those two brats, I would have reached Alkelios in time! I cursed in my mind as I hurried back to Seryanna and the others. They had to know of this duel and be there to put a stop to it, if not I was going to do so, and it wasn''t going to be pretty. [Alkelios'' point of view] The training grounds for the Royal Knights were right outside the Palace to the right as we entered. I arrived there thanks to the guidance of a maid who worked here, otherwise, I would have found myself to be endlessly lost among these luxurious corridors. Either way, I was far too upset and distracted to notice their beauty or even think that maybe this whole duel was something I was getting lured into from the get go. Actually, it wouldn''t have been that surprising if this Draejan fellow aimed for this duel from the moment he sent out the summon. It made sense, however, he miscalculated one, very important factor. I am the owner of the 100 Luck stat. The only one with perfect Luck! There''s no way I can lose this! There''s absolutely no way! I thought as I made my way to the training ground. Honestly speaking, Draejan may have been a powerful dragon. He may become a general who will lead the Brekkar Army, but I was a human who defeated a Breakthrough Awakened. I was someone who could fight fate itself because I held all the dices. In this game event, there was no way I would lose against a mob character like Draejan. I can''t lose... There''s no way. I kept thinking. When I reached the training ground, I barely kept my anger in, but I was glad I was like this, because then I could unleash it entirely on this foolish dragon. How dare he steal my dragoness away! I thought. The training ground was a big patch of dirt with a ring in the middle, a running track around it, and several dummies scattered about for sword, tactics, and skill practice. It wasn''t very impressive in my opinion. I saw larger ones in the pictures with military camps back on Earth. As expected though, there were quite a lot of stares aimed at me. I was a new face, and more so, I looked like a non-awakened dragon. It was normal, and from what I heard from Seryanna, although not unthinkable, it was still very rare. Dragons didn''t treat unawakened ones with the same respect as they did awakened ones. It was almost instinct with them. Even so, I ignored them and patiently waited for jerk-face to make his appearance. I was here to beat some dragon general behind not socialize with the knights or anything like that. After several minutes passed, Draejan finally arrived on the battlefield, but he wore a completely different armor. This one was bulkier and didn''t have any sort of emblem on it, however, I could feel a far more intense Magic Energy flow from it. Without even thinking if it was a good idea or not, I called forth one of my skills. ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus].¡± (General Draconian Armor): [Bounded to Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya] Draconian armor made by a Grand Master Blacksmith. Can only be bounded to one Dragon at a time. Special stats: [Increases All Stats by 25%], [Immunity to High or Low Temperatures], [Immunity to Mind Control Spells], [Increased Magic Regeneration by 10%], [Absorbs 10% of ALL incoming attacks and changes the energy into a Magic Barrier]. Special skills: [Passive: Reduced Weight 10%], [Passive: Protection Buff (Nullifies 10% of incoming Damage)], [Active: Paralyze on touch with Shock], [Active: Casts Shadows around the user], [Active: Shockwave worth of 75% of all stored absorbed energy], [Active: Telepathy with linked dragons]. This was one quirky armor. It was probably just as impressive as Seryanna''s, although I had the slight feeling that hers was far more powerful. Although it didn''t have any ''Active'' skills, it focused more on passives and allowed the dragoness to do the rest. It was an armor specialized for her combat style. At the same time, this one was made by a Grand Master while the other by a Legendary. If the latter was an honorary title or the actual level of their skill, it remained to be seen, but judging from the given stats alone, I was inclined to believe it was a bit of both. ¡°I see you didn''t run away. Good!¡± Draejan said with a smirk as he put on his helmet. I stepped into the ring without bothering myself with armor or taking a good weapon. My luck would make sure I wasn''t going to die, so what was the use of weighing myself down like that? ¡°Funny. I thought you were going to be the one to run away.¡± I mocked him. ¡°Impudent little human, you will be thought a very painful lesson today.¡± he declared, and then added ¡°One that Earth doesn''t have.¡± he smirked and stepped into the ring. What did he just say? I looked at him surprised. Even though he saw my reaction, he didn''t bother to explain why he knew that name, but if I were to guess... he managed somehow to get his hands on one of the summoned humans. ¡°Good morning, to the both of you. For this official duel, I will be the one to judge the winner and the loser.¡± said a grizzled old dragon as he stepped into the ring. He had silver scales, medium sized wings, and a pair of horns sprouting from his temples. His tail was long and covered in sharp spikes, but it was cut clean at the tip, an old wound by the looks of it. His slit eyes hid a deep note of wisdom within them, but also carried a strength that I knew in an instant far surpassed mine. This old dragon wasn''t one to be recklessly challenged to a battle. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Of course. I accept, Master Teolas.¡± ¡°Who?¡± I asked. ¡°This here is the esteemed Teolas Draegu, one of our Kingdom''s Breakthrough Awakened and also the Knight Master at this Palace. By the way, I am just a couple of power levels myself from reaching this esteemed status.¡± Draejan explained and showed me a confident smirk. This means he is around level 990. I thought. ¡°Just a few more years, and you''ll become one.¡± Teolas said with a nod. ¡°Thank you.¡± Draejan made a polite bow in front of the dragon. ¡°Now, if I understood this right, you... the human, accepted this duel?¡± Teolas asked as he looked at me. When he mentioned my species, everyone here began to whisper among themselves. It only annoyed me, but I replied him with a nod. ¡°Then, Sir Draejan, what are the conditions of this duel?¡± he asked as he looked over at the other dragon. ¡°Everything goes, but we both agreed not to kill each other.¡± Draejan replied. I nodded. ¡°What does each side stand to gain from this duel?¡± he asked. ¡°If I win, this human will leave in shame from the palace and never show his face ever again in front of Sir Seryanna. If he wins, I will extend a request to the King and inquire if it may be possible to dissolve my engagement with Sir Seryanna.¡± he replied. ¡°What? You said you will break it off, not ask!¡± I retorted and pointed my finger at him. ¡°I said ask, which means inquire. Do you really think that I, a noble, would dare to use underhanded methods against one of lower birth and species?¡± he asked with a smirk. ¡°True, you boy should be glad he accepted this duel in the first place.¡± Teolas nodded. ¡°What? But he was the one to...¡± I stopped when I saw that silver-scaled piercing gaze. ¡°Watch your tone and language, human. This is Drakaria, and I am a dragon noble with royal blood flowing through my veins. IF I demand your head, I will have it. So far, I have shown you a lot of leniency. Don''t make me regret it.¡± Draejan glared at me. I ate my own words and glared at the ground. I dug my own grave... I thought. ¡°With both sides settled on their terms, I declare this official duel as legal and ready to begin.¡± Teolas stated. I clenched my fists and prepared myself to battle this dragon. I even fought against Kataryna when I was far weaker than now. There was no way I was going to lose against him! I had all the luck in the world, after all! ¡°Wait!¡± Seryanna shouted. Draejan lifted his palm up, to let me know that he wished to wait and see what this was about. I agreed. ¡°Sir Seryanna, a pleasure to see you again.¡± Draejan said with a bow. ¡°What''s the meaning of this? Why are you and Alkelios dueling?¡± she asked with a glare. ¡°Oh my, but I merely replied to his words.¡± he defended himself. ¡°He lies.¡± I said simply. There was no way Seryanna was going to listen to him over me. ¡°I find it hard to believe it was so, but please stop this duel at once.¡± she demanded. ¡°I''m afraid that''s impossible. I declared it official just a moment ago. If you weren''t late, maybe I would have put it off.¡± Teolas came forth and told her. ¡°Master... why are you here?¡± she asked. ¡°Sir Draejan asked me to oversee this duel to make sure nothing impolite happens.¡± he replied, then looking back at me, he added ¡°Although, I doubt he has anything to fear... even if he kills that boy.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± Kataryna asked as she stepped forward. ¡°Hm? You? What are you doing here?¡± Teolas asked, and there was sudden change in his attitude. That was shock... or maybe fear? ¡°I came out of my cave because I wanted some sunshine. You know it does well for the silver-scales.¡± she smirked at him. ¡°Hm, to see an old fossil like you step out after such a long time, I''m starting to wonder if maybe I''m getting too old and my eyes are failing me.¡± Teolas shook his head. ¡°Breakthrough Awakened dragons need not fear age once they went past that level.¡± she replied with a chin up, showing complete defiance to the one who held the title of Knight Master. ¡°That may be, but why do you care about this human?¡± she asked squinting his eyes. ¡°He is my friend.¡± she then lowered her chin and looked straight into his eyes ¡°And you know how I... become, when I lose a friend, right?¡± she smiled. Teolas gulped. ¡°I will make sure such a tragedy won''t repeat itself...¡± he sighed. ¡°Good. I would hate to see Drakaria destroyed because of this incident.¡± she smiled, and even I could feel the chilling threat behind her words. This dragoness had the power she needed in order to bring down the end of most of the dragons living here. ¡°Seryanna, don''t worry, I''ll get you back from this guy.¡± I said squinting my eyes at Draejan. ¡°How rude.¡± the dragon commented. ¡°Alkelios, this is an official duel... If you lose, you will have to do exactly as he says, otherwise not even the King will guarantee your safety.¡± she warned me. ¡°Well... IF I lose.¡± I said, but I was quite confident I wouldn''t. ¡°Don''t do anything foolish, Alkelios. These mongrels aren''t worth it.¡± Kataryna warned or maybe advised me? ¡°I won''t.¡± I said. ¡°Oho? You have quite the confidence in the young human?¡± asked Teolas. ¡°You''ll see.¡± she smirked. ¡°He will lose, you know.¡± he pointed out. ¡°Even if that will be so, I''m certain he''ll find a way to get back up.¡± she replied. Thank you, my friends... I thought in my mind. With this, our duel finally began. Chapter 46: History and shame [Alkelios'' point of view] I didn''t hesitate to be the first one to attack. My speed was practiced against Kataryna, so I was quite confident that I would land a hit before he did. However, he dodged. ¡°That was close.¡± he said mockingly. I slashed again, but he avoided it and counterattacked. The blow was aimed at my right shoulder, and it would have hurt quite a lot if struck, so I avoided it. The blade''s tip missed by a centimeter. He pulled it back and then rushed forward with the intention of slamming into me with his shoulder. I used [Side-Step] and avoided the blow this time as well. We had switched places on the training ground now. ¡°It seems I may have underestimated you by a little.¡± Draejan said in a mocking tone of voice. ¡°Appearances can be deceiving.¡± I said and used [Dash]. Right when he entered my strike range, I used [Side-Step] again and [Ten Strikes Attack] from his left. The consecutive hits were faster than my previous attacks because they were part of a skill that utilized the brute force of my stats. As a result, Draejan grimaced and jumped back, but I knew a few blows managed to land on him, yet he remained unscratched. ¡°Interesting...¡± he mumbled and then started to chant. His palm was aimed at me, so I jumped back and quickly cast [Firewall]. It was pure luck, but he had cast [Fireball], and as a result, my barrier was highly effective. ¡°Tch!¡± he clicked his tongue and side-stepped to go past my magic. I used [Dash] towards him while at the same time, I activated [Air Barrier] and prepared an [Air Scythe]. The dragon was surprised by my sudden attack and tried to counterattack, but my barrier blocked his strike, granting me the perfect opportunity to launch my spell at him. Unable to block it, he was tossed back a few meters, but he was able to land on his feet. ¡°You managed to hit me... I''m surprised.¡± he said. ¡°That''s not the first blow, you know.¡± I smirked. ¡°Up until now, not many were able to land a Spell attack on me. Even so, against this armor, something of this degree is useless.¡± he laughed. ¡°What?¡± I furrowed my brow in confusion. When I looked over to the audience, at Kataryna and Seryanna, they expressed worry on their faces, but I didn''t understand why it was so. Unfortunately, it never cross my mind that their worry was aimed at the overwhelmingly difference in gear between me and this dragon. Being submerged in my own anger, I even forgot to think logically and realize that maybe battles in this world were also a little bit gear dependent as well. In case of two equal opponents in terms of stats and levels, battle experience and their gear was what made the difference. After all, in most games, it was quite often that you saw lower level characters challenging a higher level enemy. In Dragon Hunt, the game I used to play on Earth, I often participated in such battles because my gear allowed me to do so. Even that dungeon I was challenging when the God-like message popped up in my head, I could only do so because my gear was one of the best the game could offer. In my mind, that knowledge and experience belonged to a game, and I was fighting in real life. Thus, they didn''t count, they were amounted to 0. The laws from there didn''t apply here, but I forgot and also denied the fact that there might be similarities between the two. My mind simply ignored the fact that even Earth''s armies were gear dependent in a battle when their skills, tactics, and experience was the same. Yet, instead of them, I was thinking of two martial arts fighters who always used the same armor or weapons in order to challenge each other on a ring. Those battles and rules were designed to value experience and skill over the quality of item, but the reality I was in, the duel rules in which I currently fought dictated that what mattered most was winning and surviving. Right now, Draejan was wearing a General Draconian Armor. I didn''t know if it was General as in the rank or as in a category, but unlike me, he was wearing something. His weapon too was sharper and better. On the other hand, I was wearing what could only be described as an average adventurer armor and weapon. More so, it wasn''t even something someone of my combat power would wear. Once again, it was the situation where a Level 1 was challenging a Boss character. The difference in gear and experience were visible, but because I was in the heat of the battle and completely distracted by what happened today with Seryanna, I failed to realize this. If I did, maybe I would have postponed the duel or declined it completely. Or at the very least, I would have changed my battle style... Unfortunately, it didn''t happen like this. As the battle continued, we resumed ourselves mostly to exchanging sword blows, which were more or less blocked or parried by our skills or barrier spells. I was the one that kept using magic, and it was slowly draining my energy. If I didn''t had Kleo as a friend, I might have had a bit of trouble. Still, exhaustion and gear ware were starting to show on me. My sword, which was of an inferior quality and not handled by the hand of a master, was starting to show signs of damage. My armor wasn''t doing to peachy either. Repetitive strikes and blows kept pushing it to its limit. On the other hand, Draejan showed neither signs of weakness or gear ware. I was the only one at the loosing end, and it didn''t feel very good. It was almost as if Luck had run dry on me. Or rather like it wasn''t on my side from the very beginning, and it was just barely there; not enough for me to win, but enough to keep me alive. I have to end this quickly, or else... I thought as fear began to make its way into my heart. Clenching the hilt of my sword, I prepared to launch another attack while preparing to cast [Lightning Chicken!], through which I would summon Jophiel Thunderash. With her help, I would be more than able to defeat this joke of a knight Draejan. ¡°You know, while I am a bit surprised of how powerful you seem to be despite your level... There is a great difference between us.¡± the knight said as he squinted his eyes at me. He used [Dash], I tried to move away, but instead of aiming his sword at me, he sent a punch. It was faster, and I was unable to avoid it. I took the blow directly to my stomach and was tossed back several meters. All spells I was trying to use in my head were canceled and the flow of Magic Energy was interrupted. ¡°While you barely have any experience at all when it comes to real combat, I was forged through it from an early age. Just because I am a knight does not mean that I won''t ever use my fists.¡± he smirked. ¡°Ugh...¡± I groaned and coughed. My insides hurt, and my head was spinning. ¡°That little attack is called [Shockwave] in Martial Arts. It basically sends out a pulse of energy through the opponent''s body as soon as the fist connected. Although not very easy to pull off, it can easily cause a dragon to lose his stance for a moment and a human to fall unconscious. I''ll congratulate you on staying conscious, human.¡± he smirked. Damn you... I thought while holding my stomach and trying to get up. He used another [Dash] towards me and struck me with his right knee in the face. I barely avoided a broken nose, but I was sent back another two meters. The whole world was spinning around me, and it didn''t feel like I would be able to stand up any further. Damn it! Don''t tell me this it! I cursed in my mind. Such a simple attack, and yet so effective against me. If I had a better armor or a shield, I wouldn''t have even felt it. If I had been prepared, I would have stood a better chance. While thinking so, I couldn''t help but realize my own weakness when it came to such battles. ¡°To be honest, when I first heard that you were brought here by Sir Seryanna as a friend, I was surprised and confused at the same time. I couldn''t believe that someone with her past would be able to befriend a... human.¡± Draejan said and shook his head. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I groaned as I rolled over and tried to push myself up. ¡°Oh my, don''t tell me she never told you? Hm, I see... She didn''t tell you about what happened to her in the past, did she?¡± he asked. ¡°What?¡± I was confused and looked up at him with a furrowed brow, then my eyes fell on the dragoness in question. She was clenching her fists and holding her head down as if she was regretting it. ¡°Well, we still have a bit more time, so I can tell you. It will be more fun this way.¡± he laughed. ¡°What?¡± I didn''t understand what this dragon was talking about. ¡°Don''t you dare Draejan!¡± shouted Seryanna. ¡°Why not? I do believe that as someone who claimed to be your lover is entitled to know about your family''s past, doesn''t he?¡± he said. ¡°I don''t understand... What past?¡± I said as I tried to get up, but the dizziness wasn''t going away like it did in the movies. ¡°The one known by all dragons and humans, but a mystery to those like you.¡± he said and once more pointed out the fact that he knew I was summoned hero. I could only glare up at him.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°This happened 38 years ago when the last big battle between the humans and dragons took place. In the land now known as Scar Battlefield laid the once prosperous domain of the Draketerus ducal family. Oh yes, at her origin, Sir Seryanna holds the same status as me, a duke''s son!¡± he made a bow. The Draketerus were once dukes? I wondered surprised. ¡°In their domain, they controlled three mighty fortresses: Sendra, Callus, and Thorn. Then, 38 years ago, the human army invaded. Led by a Breakthrough Awakened of their own, they conquered all of the Draketerus domain and laid siege to those three fortresses. In three days, they toppled them over.¡± he smiled. He paused for a moment and looked into my eyes to make sure that I was paying attention to him. This meant he was reaching an important part in his story. ¡°At the time of the invasion, Sir Brekkar Draketerus was visiting Drakaria together with his two nieces: Seryanna Draketerus and Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus. One of them was brought here to take her Royal Knight examination. You can pretty much guess that she passed it, right?¡± he smiled and looked over at Seryanna. ¡°What happened in the Draketerus Domain?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, you may be a human, but even you may have noticed the lack of members in their household, right?¡± he asked. I blinked surprised. Now that he mentioned it, I never heard Brekkar talk about his wife or children. Kleo and Seryanna never spoke about their family either. Was it because of me? I wondered. ¡°Those three fortresses I mentioned later were led by the entire Draketerus family. Sir Brekkar''s wife was in Sendra, which carried her name, while Sir Seryanna''s parents were in Thorn.¡± he said. ¡°What?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Not only that, but Sir Seryanna''s cousins, uncles, and aunts were all there as well. Among them, there was even Prince Coshun. Although an adopted son of the Royal Family, he was nonetheless a part of the Royal Family and a legitimate Prince. His highness together with every single member of the Draketerus family were BRUTALLY MURDERED by the invading humans. Their bodies were HUNG by the neck on the walls of the fortress as proof of the human... MIGHT.¡± he said as he put a lot of pressure on some of the key words. I gulped in horror as I heard this, but no one was denying this and some dragons who heard him now were even showing signs of their hate and disgusts for those who did these acts. Feelings and emotions which were further cast upon me. ¡°When Sir Brekkar heard this, he requests the King''s permission to take his army to the battlefield. His Majesty agreed and Brekkar went forth on the brink of dawn of the following day. His army marched without rest until they reached the battlefield. There, Sir Brekkar himself took up his weapon and retaliated with all of his might. In just one month, he took back his domain, but in doing so, he also scorched it to the ground. Now, among the enemy humans, there was also one who reached a Breakthrough. He battled against Sir Brekkar, but the brave general won in the end at the costs of his own body. Although he returned victorious, he had lost all those he could celebrate it with and even the power to return to the battlefield. He retired to Tomeron, but this heroic battle of his was without a doubt one of revenge.¡± Draejan said in a tone of voice that glorified the once former General. I could only sit there and listen in a daze. Everything this dragon was telling me sounded like the absolute truth and not even Seryanna denied it. To think that crazy old dragon had such a past, I could only wonder what he went through inside when I came into his home and then asked to be his friend. To be the friend of the enemy who took your wife and children from you... who took everything... Why didn''t he say anything? I wondered. ¡°That''s why I don''t understand why Sir Seryanna decided to spare your life. I can''t even begin to comprehend how she could come to hold any sort of feelings for you besides hate and disgust. After all, your species... your kind was what brought ruin to her family, her happiness, and can be considered the main culprit for the Third Princess'' loss of power right now.¡± he said. ¡°That doesn''t mean a thing! I''m not one of those who participated in that battle!¡± I shouted back at him. He squinted his eyes at him. ¡°I don''t think you understand... but I''ll say it again. Humans were those who mercilessly slaughtered her family, her friends, and everyone she cared about back on the former Draketerus domain. Your species brought ruin to her family, to her life... and your very appearance is a symbol and reminder of that suffering.¡± he stated these words clearly and put pressure on them. I found myself at a loss. My will to fight was shattered, and then... I was struck. Draejan used [Dash] and didn''t punch me but slapped me so hard, I rolled in the air and landed outside of the ring. ¡°I declare this official duel to be over. Sir Draejan wins.¡± Teolas said as he raised his hand up. ¡°I lost? No way... but my luck shouldn''t have let me... I... No, it''s impossible.¡± I said in shock. When I looked back, I saw the sad gaze in Seryanna''s eyes. Does this mean... I''ve lost her for good? I thought and my heart tightened. ¡°Of course, you lost. Who do you think you are facing? If I lost against a pathetic human like you, I would have been buried in shame.¡± Draejan said as he took off his helmet and walked out of the ring. Anger flowed inside me, and clenching my fist, I got up. I rushed at him, wanting to punch him at least once, but Seryanna stepped in front of me with her arms spread out. She was there to stop me, and on her cheeks, I could see... tears. ¡°Stop it, Alkelios... There''s nothing else you can do... You lost... You fell for his trap. This duel wouldn''t have been able to dissolve my engagement to him either way because the King himself ordered it.¡± she said and clenched her fists. ¡°Indeed. Ah! You don''t know. Well, I''ll tell you. Her Majesty, the Queen, was poisoned 12 years ago by a human right after she gave birth. The human was an ambassador of peace who was sent here to discuss the possibility of ending this war. The King allowed it and... you can see what happened. Thus, I highly doubt his Majesty would have EVER listened to you in the first place.¡± he laughed. I clenched my teeth and looked down. I was mad, furious, but I had lost on all fronts. ¡°Is this true?¡± I asked through my gritted teeth. ¡°Yes...¡± Seryanna said. I lost... eh? I thought. ¡°Goodbye...¡± I said... broken on the inside. With rage, anger, and a feeling of complete loss swirling in my chest, I ran away from her. I didn''t even want to look into her eyes. I didn''t even want to see Draejan''s face. I didn''t even stop to listen to Seryanna''s last call... All I did was run away as fast as I could, to flee from that place where I was taken for a fool, where I was hated and looked down upon for being... human. So, I ran... I ran as fast as I could, ignoring everyone who called out to me, who tried to stop me, who looked at me in a strange way. All I cared about was finding the exit and leaving this place, this whole experience behind me. I wanted to forget about Seryanna and everyone else. I wanted to be left alone... After all, there was nothing left for me here... nothing. Just as I reached the gates, two children stood in my way. It was a little girl and a little boy, both with golden slit eyes and shoulder length pale-blond hair. They looked like two porcelain dolls, eerily beautiful. ¡°W-what?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Please save our mother.¡± they both told me at the same time. I clenched my fist and jaw for a moment. What a joke... I thought. ¡°I''m sorry, but I''m a loser... I''m not a savior or a hero. I don''t know you either, and I have no idea who your mother is. I''m sorry.¡± I said and then ran away past them. The guards at the entrance didn''t stop me and let me pass, while the two children looked at me as I went. It was weird, but I had the feeling they didn''t believe my words. This palace has nothing to do with me anymore... Nothing... Seryanna and everyone else... I''m nothing to them... I thought as I ran through the busy streets of Drakaria. [Kataryna''s point of view] ¡°Aren''t you glad you got rid of that pest?¡± Draejan asked Seryanna. ¡°You won today. You may have won the right to marry me. You may have won the right to claim my body as yours... but my heart still belongs and will always belong to Alkelios.¡± she said, but... the light in her eyes was gone. The dragoness left the training ground to return to her room, but she was nothing more than a former shell of her true self. The energy around her had vanished. The endless fire I felt when I fought against her and together with her was now gone... as if it had been washed away by all the tears she shed on the inside. I let out a sigh and approached Draejan and Teolas. ¡°I''m going to give you a warning, you brat. IF you dare touch Alkelios again, you will find out why the history of Albeyater never mentions me. Ask the old man about it, he should know.¡± I spoke calmly, but for the first time in centuries, I released a terrifying wave of killer instinct. They both gulped as they looked at me. With this said, I walked away from them and returned to Kleo, who was currently guarding the Third Princess. Tomorrow, I planned on visiting Seryanna and then Alkelios at the inn. That was the place he had most likely returned to, but before I did so, I shouted something to these other fools. ¡°Kataryna Greorg, a Breakthrough Awakened, officially declares her TEMPORARY allegiance to the Third Princess and the human Alkelios Yatagai.¡± That was the last thing I needed to do. In this game of theirs, these fools would all now know not to touch either of them... at least until I declared otherwise, which would be when this whole mess had come to a more... definite conclusion. [Teolas Draegu''s point of view] In all of my long life, I never thought I would see that old fossil rise up again or even declare something as frightening as that. To think that SHE made a move was simply... terrifying. That was why, I decided to heed her warning and also impart it on this foolish youngster who was stirring a sheep herd with a stick. ¡°Who does that dragoness think she is?¡± Sir Draejan spoke in a mocking tone of voice. I walked up to him and looked into his eyes. My piercing gaze made him flinch. ¡°Were you blind boy? Did you not feel her strength and power?¡± I questioned him. ¡°Well, she did appear to be strong, but... I''m certain Knight Master Teolas could easily handle her.¡± he said with a political smile. ¡°Don''t be a fool. I would need a thousand lives before I could even land a single hit on her!¡± I declared. ¡°What?¡± he looked at me as though I said something outrageous. ¡°Listen up and listen well. About 500 years ago, on a battlefield far away from here, Albeyater''s armies clashed with Zerudan''s. From all points of view, we shouldn''t have stood a chance against them... However, in the middle of the battle, a single dragoness came forth and although she was of the enemy''s side, she began to mercilessly attack her allies. Without care and with a crazed smile on her face, she danced with those swords in her hands.¡± I closed my eyes as I remembered the scene from when I was a just a young whelp who barely knew how to put on his armor, yet I was one of the youngest commanders who stood by our King''s side. The clash of swords and shouts of fury all faded away as this dragoness danced among her foes and allies alike. All those who stood too close were cut down by her swords. The enemy commanders tried to bring her down, but she cut them down in the blink of an eye. One after another, she cut them down and cleaved her way through the flesh of her allies until she reached their General. ¡°In that battle, the one we feared the most was their Breakthrough Awakened General, yet that dragon was struck down by Kataryna Greorg. Our side, by the orders of the King, didn''t move an inch until this internal dispute of theirs was over. Their army... was almost twice as big as ours, yet from the moment that dragoness stepped on the battlefield until she cut off the General''s head, she reduced it to a number below ours.¡± I gulped. ¡°That''s impossible.¡± Draejan claimed. ¡°Boy... DON''T dare to insult me.¡± I glared at him, and he froze. ¡°I apologize, Sir Teolas.¡± he bowed his head. ¡°Sigh, well it''s normal for you think that way. Unless you see her in battle, you won''t believe it either... Yet, that''s the truth... More so, Kataryna Greorg is the ONLY dragon I heard of so far who was EVER able to defeat a Breakthrough Awakened while she herself was not one yet.¡± I said and then looked back at the dragoness who left. ¡°If she is someone so great, why doesn''t our history mentions her?¡± he asked. ¡°Because after she won, she brought the head of the general to our King''s feet and then pointed his sword at him. In exchange for his life and that of all those in his army, she demanded for Albeyater to leave her alone and erase her name from history. IF she ever desired to return as an ally or foe, she wanted it to be of her own accord.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Someone like that... The King agreed?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°We did as requested, and she left peacefully.¡± ¡°Then...¡± Draejan looked confused. ¡°Boy, if that human was able to bring that old fossil out of her cave... He might also be the one who will either bring this dragoness to our side or make her fight against us. I fear that this duel was a foolish one and as such, if she EVER requests it, I will make it VOID.¡± I declared with a sharp tone of voice. ¡°You can''t be serious, Sir! This was an official duel! More so, my opponent was a human!¡± he retorted. ¡°I rather have you lose face than this kingdom several towns and countless lives.¡± I replied then left him to think it over. Chapter 47: Friendly talk [Kataryna''s point of view] The day after the duel between Alkelios and Draejan, I went to visit the Third Princess. She expressed her thanks for my desire to support her through these tough times. Those were the honey-filled words any noble or royal would have said in her position. ¡°Just to be clear, with me, you drop the political act.¡± I warned her, cutting through her mask before it annoyed me too much. She gulped and then nodded. ¡°To be honest, I didn''t know what to do... I was at a loss in regard to my political standing, but with you at my side, I may still have a chance at staying just above the floating line. Those who have Breakthrough Awakened individuals under them are not that many and the politicians in our kingdom are like sharks when it comes to... collecting them.¡± she said and then let out a sigh ¡°I apologize beforehand for whatever inconvenience these people may cause.¡± she bowed to me. I nodded. ¡°What of Alkelios and Seryanna?¡± I asked. She knitted her brow and then looked down ¡°I haven''t gotten the chance to speak with either of them since yesterday''s incident.¡± ¡°Sister didn''t answer the door even after I knocked on it for half an hour.¡± Kleo expressed her worry. I let out a sigh and rubbed the back of my head. ¡°I had a feeling this might happen. Well, I''ll go talk with them...¡± I said. ¡°Please do... I''ll leave my friend in your hands.¡± the Princess said. ¡°Friends.¡± I corrected her and then left. Half an hour later, after I managed to find Seryanna''s room in this overly complicated Palace, I opened her door and entered her room. It was located at the first floor on the east wing. This area was reserved strictly for the knights, while the rooms of the servants were on the ground floor. Inside, I saw a simple bed with cotton bedding, a writing desk to the left, and a small closet for storing various clothes one may need to wear at the Palace. The dragoness in question was sitting at the table by the window and looking out at the passing clouds. Her eyes lacked the energy of life just like when I last saw her. It was as if she had given up on every last bit of hope and couldn''t see a way to take it back. The Seryanna right now was one I found to be... disappointing. ¡°Still drowning in self-pity?¡± I asked her as I walked up to her and stopped next to the table. ¡°I think I remembered locking the door...¡± she mumbled. I blinked and looked back at... the wreck. ¡°Doors are cheap for Royal Knights, right? Just get a new one, besides, you didn''t answer when I knocked.¡± I shrugged and looked back at her. ¡°You didn''t knock.¡± ¡°Details.¡± I then placed my hand on her head and released a wave of cold. ¡°W-What are you doing?!¡± she flinched and jumped back, landing on her bed. She was breathing fast, and there were a few icicles on top of her head now. I smirked. ¡°Looks like there''s still some light in there.¡± Blinking surprised, Seryanna brushed the ice out of her hair. While she did this, I took a chair and sat down in front of her, one leg over the other. ¡°So, care to talk?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°About what?¡± she glared at me. ¡°Alkelios.¡± I replied. When I said this, she looked away and gathered her knees at her chest. ¡°There''s nothing to talk about.¡± she mumbled. ¡°Oh really?¡± I said raising an eyebrow. The air around the room began to turn cold. She glared at me, but she stubbornly refused to talk and pulled a blanket over her shoulders. I remained like that and didn''t say a thing for several hours until her stomach started to growl. ¡°Hungry?¡± I asked her. She poked out her head out of her cocoon of blankets and glared at me. It was so cold, I could see her breath turning to steam. If I could compare her to something, that would be a newborn whelp as it poked its head out of its egg and took a peek at the curious world around it. In a way, she was cute, especially the way she was pouting back at me. ¡°No.¡± she grumbled and then returned to her blanket cocoon. I giggled, but I didn''t leave. A few more hours passed by and when it was starting to turn dark outside, she finally said a few words. ¡°Why are you still here?¡± ¡°I''m curious about this new critter I found. It lives in a cocoon of blankets.¡± I giggled. ¡°Not funny.¡± she mumbled and poked her head out a little. My tail was waving in the air, moving up and down at my side. I was having fun with this redhead dragoness. Several minutes later of constant glaring, she finally realized that I wasn''t going to move my tail from here, so she reluctantly gave up on her defiant stance against me. This dragoness was 500 years too early to try and confront me! Poking her head out completely, she asked ¡°Can you at least stop with this cold?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I nodded and smiled. The air would return to normal once the heat from outside was going to melt the ice that gathered on the inside. It was going to take at least two hours for this to happened, so I thought about changing the scenery a bit. ¡°How about we go for a flight and eat a few pieces of preserved meat?¡± I asked as I showed her my [Purse] ring. This was the special one I was using, which could carry an entire warehouse of goods. I still had our traveling luggage with me, including her bags. Once I had finished my talk with her, I planned on giving them back. I saw no need in keeping a hold on them. ¡°Sure...¡± she replied with a nod. Once she was out of her cocoon, I grabbed a hold of her and jumped out the window. The weather was nice and just perfect for a flight. So, I stretched my wings and flew. Several guards flew over and tried to stop us, but once they realized who we were, they let us pass. I continued to fly until we reached a nice spot on the shore of the river that passed by Drakaria. I landed there and set up a small camp. The fire was up in a matter of moments and burning beautifully under night''s starry sky. All I had to do now was to prepare the grill for the meat. Just in case, I made sure there were no monsters or other dragons around us. After all, I had no need of anyone who would spoil this moment after all the trouble I went to pull Seryanna out of her ''egg''. ¡°The meat will be done in ten minutes.¡± I let her know and then I walked up to her. The dragoness was sitting on the shore of the river, watching the reflection of the two moons in the calm waters. It was almost the end of the dwarf month. I personally preferred their calender over ours. It was precise and easy to follow. Once the two moons were perfectly aligned with each other, I knew that one month ended and the next one began. ¡°Thank you...¡± Seryanna said after she let out a sigh. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and took a seat next to her. Picking up a rock, I tossed it in the water, making it skip four times before it went under. ¡°Did you have a lover? Back in Zerudan?¡± she asked me. ¡°Hm...¡± I leaned back with my arms pressed on the ground and looked up at the sky. ¡°A lover, huh?¡± I said and then closed my eyes. I thought back at the time when I was still a Knight in the Zerudan army. There was someone I fancied too, after all, I may wield the element of ice, but in the end... I was still a dragoness at heart. My last wish, eh? Yes, I have one... Aimed at a certain dragoness... If you are here, among this crowd, then know that I always loved you. That''s why, from the bottom of my heart, I wish for you to be happy... Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Those words... that scene... it returned to my mind like a bad joke memory. It was the day I witnessed the execution of a brilliant dragon. He was someone who was found guilty by those with the so-called ''noble blood'' flowing through their veins. When I cut them to pieces though, their blood was the same as a soldier''s, nothing special about it. But yes, his crime... was made up because they feared him becoming more powerful than them. It was foolish. To survive, our kingdom required his strength, yet the King saw not his value, just the greed and envy of the nobles around him. When his head rolled on the ground... so did theirs. ¡°Ah, I remember something unpleasant.¡± I sighed. ¡°Is that so... then why did you ask Alkelios to impregnate you?¡± she asked me. ¡°Ah, the egg business...¡± I said and closed my eyes again. ¡°For someone with your strength, that''s not normal. You could have even asked of this from a prince.¡± she said and shook her head. ¡°Do you think his value would grow if his blood was said to be royal?¡± I asked her. ¡°Wouldn''t it?¡± she asked me. ¡°Seryanna, you are very young, so you might not know this, but the higher on a pedestal a dragon puts the value of his blood, element, or the color of his scales, the lower his worth as a dragon becomes. What are we, Seryanna?¡± I asked her and then tilted my head at her. ¡°Erm... Knights?¡± she asked. I shook my head. ¡°We are women.¡± I looked into her eyes. ¡°Women don''t have strength, do they?¡± she looked down. When I heard her say this, I couldn''t help but laugh from the bottom of my heart. ¡°W-What? Did I say something funny?¡± she quickly asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded and wiped a tear off. ¡°Explain.¡± she glared at me. ¡°One moment.¡± I said and got up. I walked over to the cooking meat and turned it on the other side. Just a few minutes and we would have our meal. With a stick, I also stoked the fire a little bit, to make sure it was spread out nice and evenly. Afterwards, I returned to Seryanna side. ¡°Where was I? Ah, yes!¡± and then continued to laugh. ¡°Stop that!¡± she slapped my shoulder. ¡°Very well, but the answer is that we do.¡± I smirked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± she asked. I smiled and then looked up at the sky. ¡°With a single kiss, we can topple countries. With a wink, we can change a King''s mind. With a wave, we can shift history... If you know how to use this power and accept yourself, such things are not impossible.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± ¡°Hm. There''s a saying that goes like this: Fear not the King but his Queen, for whatever woman was able to steal his heart can surely turn the tide of war!¡± I then looked into her eyes. ¡°I still don''t get it.¡± I sighed. ¡°Sorry... Although I''m the one who usually tells others not to speak in riddles, in the end, it seems like I failed to listen to my own words.¡± I rubbed the back of my head and showed her a weak smile. ¡°Then please speak without them... Maybe like that I can understand.¡± she told me. I nodded. ¡°Before talking about a woman''s strength, I think I need to speak of your strength as a dragoness. I don''t know if anyone told you this, but being Awakened has more to do with the basic meaning of the word than it has to do with physically growing up. To Awaken means to find that which is true to yourself. It means to become the one that is true to the voice that is hidden within your heart.¡± I said. ¡°Is this true?¡± she furrowed her brow. I nodded. ¡°It was a belief of Zerudan, but one which I didn''t find in Albeyater. Maybe nobody bothered to verify it, however, I can prove it very simply. How many dragons you know before having Awakened?¡± I asked. ¡°Several.¡± she replied. ¡°Did you notice how they changed after Awakening? Their personality was mostly the same, but there were some key aspects which made them look different. In some case, they probably estranged themselves completely from you, did they not?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, but isn''t that because they simply Awakened and saw me only as a child?¡± she asked. I shook my head. ¡°Dragons aren''t idiots. In general, our instincts are very good. For us those who have went past the age of body maturity and entered the Pre-Awakened period, the one which you are experiencing now, are seen as dragons who have yet to find their inner truth. They are dragons who still put on a very thick mask and forbid themselves from doing many things.¡± I explained. ¡°What?¡± she replied confused. ¡°Awakening means to be true to yourself. Just remember this, and whenever you will find yourself going against what you believe on the inside... or what your heart and soul truly wish to do, try and act like them for once. You might unexpectedly find yourself clearing the conditions to Awaken little by little.¡± I smiled and then patted her head ¡°That''s why you are seen as a child.¡± She furrowed her brow and looked down at the ground. ¡°If it only were that simple... Maybe I''m just not destined to Awaken.¡± she grumbled. ¡°Not true.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It is true, after all... after all...¡± she hiccuped ¡°If I was Awakened and had more power... If I wasn''t so weak... I could have stopped the duel... I could have protected Alkelios, and he... he wouldn''t have said ''goodbye'' to me!¡± she retorted as tears began to flow down her cheeks. I got up and went over to the fire to check the meat. It was almost done, so I waited there for a moment. Once it was ready, I gathered it on a plate and walked back to Seryanna. I placed the plate between us and took a bite out of one piece of grilled meat. ¡°It''s good.¡± I said. She took one piece as well. Her stomach was demanding it through a noisy protest. We ate all of it in silence. Once we were full, we washed our hands in the river, and I took out a few juicy fruits to quench our thirst with them. By now, the sky had completely darkened. It was night. ¡°I don''t think you are to blame about what happened to Alkelios. He''s someone who needs to learn how to handle himself. The strength one holds within their grasp is dependent on many things, including certain life changing decisions.¡± I said as I tossed another stone in the river; it skipped three times. ¡°No, it''s my fault... I was too weak... He''s just a human.¡± she grumbled. ¡°Aren''t you looking down on him now?¡± I asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°I would never...¡± she stopped mid-sentence ¡°Yes... I just did that, didn''t I?¡± she asked. I nodded. ¡°Of all people I should have been the one to never think like this!¡± she growled and grabbing a pebble next to her, she tossed it in the river; it skipped seven times. ¡°Don''t be so hard on yourself.¡± I told her. ¡°Then... What should I do, Kataryna? What can I do? I can''t even keep a hold onto my own lover!¡± she cried out and hid her face in her palms. Whimpers escaped her lips as more tears gathered and flowed down her cheeks. ¡°Learn to be what you are...¡± I told her with a smile. ¡°What I am? A woman?¡± she asked. ¡°A Royal Knight who is also a woman that fell in love with a human from another world.¡± I replied. ¡°That sounds weird.¡± she replied. ¡°Learn all parts of it, and you won''t have trouble standing up even against someone like Draejan.¡± I smirked. ¡°How? He''s far stronger than me!¡± ¡°Then grow in strength. Fight, battle, explore Dungeons if you have to. Do anything to become stronger.¡± I told her. ¡°But he has tied up all the political loose ends! I can''t do anything against him!¡± she added the second excuse. ¡°Then learn to undo them. Become cunning and skillful at gathering information. Learn to read your friends and enemies, then use that against them. Learn the laws.¡± I told her. ¡°But I''m a Royal Knight... my duties are towards the Third Princess.¡± she whimpered. ¡°Rely on your friends to help you in your time of need.¡± I told her. ¡°You... you''re telling me that I can''t back away... that there''s still hope? Do you realize what you''re asking me to do?¡± she asked. ¡°To be yourself, but if you don''t believe me... for now, simply wait.¡± I closed my eyes and laid down on the shore. ¡°Wait... for what?¡± she asked. ¡°For Alkelios... or his reply to your desire.¡± I said. ¡°My desire?¡± she asked. ¡°You want to claim that human as yours don''t you?¡± I asked. ¡°What?¡± When I opened my eyes and looked at her, she was red as a tomato. ¡°You want to take Alkelios in your embrace, wrap your tail around him, and hiss like a crazy dragoness at any other woman that dares to approach him. Me excluded, of course.¡± I giggled. ¡°What? I would never...¡± she said, but I stopped her when she saw me raise an eyebrow at her. ¡°You would never what? Claim him as yours? Then why suffer and cry here if you don''t want him. Toss him over to another woman. Let him become their problem now.¡± I shrugged. ¡°How can you say that!¡± she retorted. ¡°Then? Are you saying that you won''t hand him over to another?¡± I asked. ¡°I didn''t exactly...¡± she stopped and looked down, knitting her brows. I let out another sigh. Maybe she''s not ready yet? I wondered. This whole thing could have been a bit too early, but we were at a good start for now. Seryanna needed to sort out her own feelings and think about what she wanted about her future, but if I left her now, she would surely think of something stupid, so I decided to give her some food for her thoughts. ¡°This may be a bit too soon or just at the right time, however, it''s clear that both you and Alkelios are going through a very difficult period. In my eyes, all of this isn''t that much of a big deal, but this is just me. I''m a Breakthrough Awakened and my mind doesn''t always follow the same track as yours does. Since it''s like this, however, why don''t you agree on doing a little something for me until you get a reply from Alkelios regarding the two of you?¡± I asked. ¡°But he''s forbidden from seeing me...¡± she said. ¡°Forget about that. Just concentrate on what I said and take it as something quite possible. What do you say?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm...¡± she rubbed her chin and looked down at the ground. The redhead surely took her time to answer, but I didn''t voice out my complain. The more I rushed her now, the higher the chances of her breaking down and returning to her little blanket cocoon. ¡°Alright, I''m going to trust because you are my friend.¡± she nodded. Friends, huh? I thought. It was good to know I had friends again, but this time, I wasn''t going to lose them to some idiotic political games. Not only was I far more powerful now, but I also knew how to bring those noisy mouths of theirs to a complete stop whenever I wanted to. ¡°While I deal with Alkelios and pull an answer out of him in regard to where he wants the two of you to move from now on, you think about the same thing. Just think carefully and don''t bother about the duel''s result and requirements. Don''t even bother about putting Alkelios'' political and military strength into balance with others, just think of this strictly from the point of view as Seryanna Draketerus the dragoness. Not the Royal Knight, not the noble, not the vengeful warrior, just the woman who fell in love with a man. After you thought about it, set up a plan on how you wish to obtain that. Add more to your current strength and get rid of your weaknesses by improve yourself. If you are weak, then grow more powerful. If you don''t have enough allies, then make more. If you aren''t confident enough, then give yourself reasons to be. Build yourself up little by little, step by step and don''t worry about the end result, alright?¡± I explained to her. ¡°I think I understand... Erm can you repeat it again?¡± she asked tilting her head to the left. ¡°Sure.¡± I showed her a smile and repeated myself. From the way I saw things, Seryanna wasn''t a dragoness who had trouble understanding such things, however, there were a lot of new objectives and tasks she had to take into account from now on. Many of them were things she never bothered doing with anyone else, however, what I told her was the best and fastest way she could take without going through an endless drama of who knew how many years to pass. Alkelios would certainly not leave Drakaria, and the stubborn dragoness would end up meeting him sooner or later. A single night of passion was all they needed then in order to spark things up again, but at that time, more drama would ensue as a result of their unsolved problems, and I honestly had neither the time nor patience to handle all of it. That was why I was currently drilling my advice in Seryanna''s thick noggin. Once the redhead dragoness was on her way, I planned on doing the same with Alkelios. Chapter 48: Self-destruction [Kataryna''s point of view] Seryanna was a strong dragoness. She withheld her tears with all of her might and didn''t try to let her suffering be shown to those around her. Normally, this pep-talk should have been done by her Master, a colleague she trusted, or Kleo, but I honestly didn''t believe any of them would be able to help her out. All of them would have just stopped at her door and not try to force themselves inside like I did. If I went about that way, then eventually Seryanna would have let me in, but only AFTER the light in eyes was completely gone without a chance of ever returning. At that time, even I wouldn''t have been able to do anything. Everyone''s words would have simply flew past her like they were nothing, and the only one who could have an effect wouldn''t be able to reach her. As for Awakening... although not many seemed to talk about it, there were countless dragons out there who died of old age and never Awaken. I did all I could for Seryanna, now everything depended on the strength of her will and desire to be freed from her own chains. Now, Alkelios was another piece of work... He was a human, but not even one from this world as far as I understood. The way he saw the world was quite similar to someone who achieved a Breakthrough, but unlike them, he had neither the power nor conviction to reinforce his own beliefs. As such, he would end up being tossed aside or slapped from left to right by the beliefs of others. He was in the ''wrong'' while they were in the ''right''. That being said, I wasn''t too sure on how to approach him... If he thought like someone with a Breakthrough, then his stubbornness would be as big as mine. Last time I ended up suffering greatly, I secluded myself for several centuries, letting the world pass by me like it was nothing. If I were to take that period as an example, then this time I would have to do the opposite of what I did with Seryanna, meaning wait for his feeling to settle down a bit and then try to talk to him. ¡°What do you mean he''s not here?¡± I asked and furrowed my brow. ¡°Alkelios didn''t show up here ever since you left. Did something happened?¡± Collentra asked. He was not at the inn. This meant he was moving around Drakaria or maybe something really happened to him. Since he was in that sort of mental state, I wouldn''t be surprised if he picked a fight with a guard and got himself tossed in jail. ¡°Let''s just say he''s not feeling too well.¡± I said scratching my head. ¡°Is that so. Will you be staying any longer here?¡± she asked. ¡°No. We''re currently staying at the Palace. Well, Alkelios will continue to stay here. I''ll pay for a month in advance.¡± I said and then took out my coin purse. ¡°Thank you for your patronage.¡± Collentra showed me a smile. After I paid the required fee, I went out to look for the foolish human. Now where could he be? I wondered. [Alkelios'' point of view] Weird how a breakup could have such an effect on me. I felt like the whole world was coming down on my shoulders. I wasn''t able to see straight, my steps were heavy, and even breathing felt like a chore. Ever since I left the Palace, I dragged myself through the city, waiting for the moment when my body was out of strength, and I would collapse, but blasted be my stats because it had been way over 48 hours and I was still walking. At one point someone managed to pickpocket me and stole my sword. That was the only thing of value I had on my person. There were no coins, no jewels, nothing... The thief spat at me asking me why I was poorer than him. I laughed at his remark and then continued to move through the city, walking down the streets like an old ship looking for a place where it could become a wreck. I thought about drinking myself to no end, but I hated alcohol. No, to be more specific, they had no beer. Not like I had that much of an experience as a drinker either. Romania''s legal law for drinking was 18, but like any other kid out there, I took a few sips of beer and wine before I was of age. I never got drunk though, at most just a bit tipsy, but considering my age, a glass of wine was enough to do the job. I thought about starting a fight, but seriously though, could any of these dragons be a match for me? If I wished hard enough, I would probably stumble onto someone who could kill me with a slap, but at this moment, I didn''t even feel like I had the strength to properly wish for something. To put it simply, I was depressed and I felt like nothing mattered anymore. When the sky darkened again, I thought about trying to go for a run out of the city. It didn''t matter if I didn''t return here. Who would wait for me? I had no family left... I was alone in this strange world where the only human I had ever met tried to kill me! So many times I felt like screaming at the sky and asking that God-like why he sent me here. Why did I have to fall in love with Seryanna? Why did I have to got through this?! Couldn''t I have lived better if I was sent in the same place where the other humans from Earth were? At least... with them... I wouldn''t have to feel like a stranger every day. I wouldn''t need to worry for my life and constantly put up the mask of someone who didn''t care. I was an 18 years old human... still a kid, maybe? I was scared... I was afraid... But I knew... I knew I wasn''t supposed to be like this, to show fear, to show uncertainty. In a land filled with strong, imposing dragons... how could I show fear? But... even so... I''m a human... I''m not allowed to be afraid? I''m not allowed to cower? I''m not allowed to love? Hah! Love... Of all people, I fell in love with a dragoness. And even then... I couldn''t hold on to her and lost her... I failed her... I let her go... I guess, no matter your Luck, some things are never meant to be? Or maybe... I didn''t deserve her from the beginning? Who am I to deserve Seryanna? She''s a dragoness, and I''m a human... She has to be with her kind, not me... who is of the same species as those who killed her family. Did she think about this every time she looked at me? What did she feel when I embraced her... Did I force her to betray herself... and her dead parents? Why didn''t she just kill me back then? Why? WHY?! WHY?!! As I thought this, I bumped into someone. I didn''t apologize, just went around them, but they grabbed me by the neck and a sudden cold swept through my body as well as the area around me. ¡°Oho~ So this is where you have been wandering about?¡± I recognized the voice. It was Kataryna. Looking back at her, I saw one of her eyes twitching. ¡°Erm... can you let go...¡± I said. ¡°No. You are thinking of doing something stupid, aren''t you?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Just run through the fields until my legs give up... Look I can defend myself if something happens.¡± I said and tried to pat my sword, but it was gone ¡°Ah! It got stolen. I forgot.¡± I said and then shrug ¡°Then I''ll just punch them or summon Jophiel...¡± I mumbled. ¡°As if that Phoenix is going to reply to your call when you are like this.¡± she snorted. ¡°Just let me go, Kataryna, I''m not in the mood for anything.¡± I said. ¡°No.¡± she told me and then punched me in the stomach. I don''t know what happened next because I blacked out. When I came through, I was in my bed at the inn, resting in my bed. I was changed out of my armor to normal everyday clothes. The pieces of armor laid on the chair next to the table. It was all ragged and barely holding up together. No sane adventurer would wear something like that. ¡°You''ve finally come through. I was getting worried.¡± said Kataryna after she entered the room with a jug of water in her hands.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Worried? Why?¡± I asked. ¡°You''ve been out for two days.¡± she told me. ¡°Ungh... Really?¡± I asked rubbing my forehead. ¡°Yeah. A whole 34 hours!¡± she said as she placed the jug on the table and then walked up to me. ¡°Was I sick?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope, just very very tired. When I found you, you were pale as an undead and moving like one too. People were starting to wonder if by chance you were starting to change. A guard was even considering ''putting you down''.¡± she replied. ¡°That bad?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Yup. How are you feeling now?¡± she asked me. ¡°Better... but who changed me?¡± I asked. ¡°I did.¡± she smirked. ¡°You forgot the pants.¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Don''t worry, I tried to attack you in your sleep, but you''re body was too tired to react to anything. I actually slept naked next to you, and you had no reaction.¡± she waved it off as if it was nothing. ¡°You tried... You actually tried? Isn''t that a crime?!¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Would you report it?¡± she smirked and pushed out her chest. I looked away. ¡°No...¡± I then laughed. She laughed as well. ¡°Alkelios...¡± she started talking ¡°I know you''re going through a lot because of what happened. Seryanna is as well...¡± I gathered my knees to my chest and looked out the window. ¡°I''m not worthy of her...¡± I said. ¡°That''s what you believe, but you know that''s not the truth...¡± she then stopped and scratched the back of her head. ¡°Ah, giving advice to you is tough...¡± ¡°Sorry for being a pain, but hey! Look at the bright side, I''m the bastard who didn''t manage to get it up even when two stunningly beautiful women offered to be with him! Your efforts on this piece of junk human are undoubtedly wasted!¡± I laughed, but it was a forced one. ¡°That''s not true.¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°How could it NOT BE!¡± I shouted and glared back at her. ¡°Alkelios...¡± she tried to speak, but I stopped her. ¡°Listen, Kataryna, I appreciate your efforts, but... let''s face it... I''m not some great guy. Like that bastard said, I''m weak. I couldn''t even protect the woman I love! And honestly speaking I don''t feel like I want to love another... I''m just a broken mess right now. My lover and friend was in a pinch and all I did was make it worse for her... I don''t think you could understand how I feel.¡± I glared at her. Instead of a raised eyebrow and a smug expression, Kataryna looked pained and lowered her gaze. ¡°You can''t know what I''ve been through in my life either, Alkelios, but let me give you a piece of advice...¡± she then looked into my eyes, a gentle look was on her face ¡°Right now, you are an emotional mess. My guess is that you can''t even think straight and as soon as something ticks you off, you burst out into a shout like you did earlier when I contradicted you. Right now, you probably hate yourself, you loath the way you acted or think, but that''s NOT the real you. Alkelios, you aren''t someone who is like that. No matter how much all those voices in your head scream that is the truth, you know it isn''t. If you don''t believe it, then believe in me, your friend. The only reason I''m here. The only reason I picked you up the street and dropped you back at the inn before you died off of exhaustion was because I CARE about you as my friend.¡± she stopped and took a deep breath. I couldn''t retort a single word. No, I had things I wanted to say, but they all would come out of that part inside of me which I didn''t want to show, that darkness that kept whispering in my ears that I was nothing but a piece garbage. I didn''t dare say those words... they weren''t mine, maybe. ¡°In the past 500 years... you have been the very first sapient being, human, dragon or otherwise, who came forth and honestly asked me to be their friend... no strings attached. Everyone else who approached me wanted me for my power or lusted after my body. The moment they spoke the word ''friend'', I killed them. But you... you, back there, in that cave, you asked me to be your friend because you really wanted to. I have a feeling your skill activated only because I was also looking for a true friend and not a self-proclaimed friend with hidden intentions.¡± she said and then stood up and walked over to the door. Kataryna stopped before turning the knob and looked back at me. ¡°Do we still appear as friends when looked at with your skill?¡± she asked. I looked down and mutter the words ¡°Show my status menu.¡± The ability activated, and I saw it: [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai [Species]: Human [Level]: 182 [Strength]: 24+518+826+218+1958.2+164 [Speed]: 18+366.2+584+246+2548+286 [Dexterity]: 22+333.4+784+121.4+2146+242.8 [Magic]: 17+286+510+1090+734+178 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 1%+9%+9%+13.8%+9%+3% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 42 [Stat Points]: 1810 The stats were a bit different from when I last saw them, and it appeared as though Iolaus was putting in some real effort in growing stronger, but everyone gained a few more points since that time when we registered as adventurers at the Guild. ¡°Am I still there?¡± she asked me. ¡°Yes...¡± I replied. ¡°Then that''s the real truth of the world around you. Not what other people say... Alkelios think well about it, and when you made up your mind leave a message for me with Collentra. I''ll come speak with you then. Listen, I left you on the table some gold coins to use as you please. You can get drunk with it, replace your gear and go hunt monsters, I don''t care what you do with it as long as it helps you get over this state you are in. Also, don''t worry about your meals or fees for the room at this inn. I''ll pay for all of it... I''m doing all of this because I consider myself to be your friend.¡± Kataryna said and then left the room. I was left alone to my own thoughts. For a moment, I actually thought she or Kleo was going to burst inside and make some sort of joke out of all this, maybe pull a prank, but no one came. I kept staring at the status window and the skill points I never used. Everything seemed so ridiculous to me right now, all of these stat points, everything. When I remembered the duel between me and Draejan, I couldn''t even believe how much of an idiot I was because I wasn''t thinking straight... Well, I wasn''t thinking straight even now, so all I could do was laugh at myself. Then, as the sky darkened, I looked outside at the dragons flying up in the sky. They looked so free and strong, but I knew I alone could probably take down all of them. This status window was that ridiculous. It simply didn''t make any sense for me... none at all. Even my loss was big mystery. Did I even use all of my power back then? I wondered. Strange, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt like I was meant to lose... like I wasn''t ready to win. When night came, and the moon was up in the sky, I opened my status window again and looked at those numbers. ¡°Assigns all Stat Points... to Luck.¡± I said. Nothing happened. ¡°Of course.¡± I laughed. When I stopped, I ordered again. ¡°Assign all Stat Points to...¡± I stopped... a thought crossed through my mind Are you sure? This could spell out your doom? I clenched my fists and tossed it aside. ¡°Yes, I''m sure... What''s the worse that can happen to me.¡± I glared down at the blanket. This was the so-called point of self-destruction when one was overwhelmed by the stress, depression, and the very situation of their daily lives. When one suffered a shock so powerful they didn''t see any hope in trying to become better, so all they did was destroy their chances for a future in the hope of being completely crushed by the bitter state their were in... and maybe... someone would end them. I was in that state at that moment. I wasn''t thinking straight. I wasn''t hoping to get better or change for the better. ¡°Assign all Stat Points to... Magic.¡± I said. [Magic]: 1826+286+510+1090+734+178 Then I opened the skill window. ¡°I wish... I wish with all of my being to acquire the most dangerous and destructive of all spells in this list.¡± I said. So I scrolled down randomly and then tested out my Luck and picked one. [Itsy Bitsy BOOM!] was the name of the new skill I picked. [Do you wish to spend 35 points to acquire this? Y/N] ¡°Yes.¡± [Are you sure?] ¡°Yes.¡± This was the first time I was asked something like that, so it made me even more determined to take it. Besides, like this, I would also kick my chance at becoming half-dragon. No way I would be able to gain enough points now unless I went outside to hunt seriously. But something like that was impossible for the current ''me''. ¡°Let''s see what I got...¡± I said and opened the skill list. [Itsy Bitsy BOOM!] [Max Level]: Creates a CONTAINABLE Thermonuclear explosion with the equivalent of 100 Megatons TNT using the fission of a Magic Energy Core boosted by the fusion of a Deuterium and Tritium gases. [WARNING! This skill will cause nuclear fallout on a 25 km area around Point 0 of the Blast.][CONTAINMENT is achieved through the usage of 3 specialized barrier domes. The first one will contain the Fireball, which can reach a maximum of 16 km in radius from the Point 0 of the Blast. The second one will contain the heat and a part of the shockwave, spanning at 20 km in radius from the Point 0 of the Blast. The third and final dome barrier spans at 25 km in radius around the Point 0 of the Blast and has the purpose of stopping any Radiation that may spread farther than this.][WARNING! DO NOT use INDOORS!!! Like seriously! It''s a pain to stick continents back together, so do this God-like a favor and don''t pop this thing inside a cave or a dungeon!][Cost: 10000 Magic Energy Points] After I finished reading the description, and more importantly the cost value, I couldn''t help but burst out into a loud laughter. Unfortunately, from all the laughing, I ended up crying. My stupid Luck didn''t even let me self-destruct... ¡°What''s up with this messed up situation?¡± I said and then continued to cry until I fell asleep. The next day, I didn''t leave my room... nor the following one. Chapter 49: A good beating [Alkelios'' point of view] Two months and several days went by since I last saw Seryanna... I haven''t seen Kataryna or Kleo either, but I knew they both dropped by this inn from time to time and asked how I was doing. Whenever I heard Collentra inform me of this, I began to laugh at myself and returned to my room. I didn''t even stay to listen to what else the dragoness had to say, I simply ignored her. I think it was about a week ago when Kataryna stopped by and told the innkeeper that she would stop paying for my rent. Today was the big day when I was going to get kicked out. Honestly, I didn''t care... I was a mess, and I HATED myself for this! I had neither the desire nor the intention to get better. What was the use anyway? I was a human in the middle of a dragon continent where everyone loathed my very existence. I lost the woman I loved because I was an idiot, and to be more specific, I was an even bigger idiot because I, for some reason, believed that I could never TRULY FULLY love her because we were of different species. Indeed, I was the scum of all scums! I was a defected product of the human species! I was a failure! So here I was, sitting on my bed, unwashed since god knew when, with a big grin on my face and a bottle of mead in my hand. That one was just for show, I tried getting drunk once, but I failed as expected. I wore the same unwashed clothes from two months ago. It was a wonder they didn''t disintegrate already. In this disgusting state, I was going to welcome in my room one of the most powerful dragonesses on this continent: Kataryna. Today was the big day when she would certainly come over and tell me how much of a failure I was. Why? Because I wished so, and my Luck would certainly make it happen! Then, finally... the key turned and the door opened. My heart was beating really fast, and I was frightened, but I had a big grin on my face. The grin of a broken and desperate man... Of someone who believed he had lost EVERYTHING. Well... with Seryanna marrying Draejan, I did, didn''t I? When the door was fully opened, I tossed the bottle of mead at her... It broke on the wall, splashing the alcoholic substance everywhere, except her. An ice shield prevented the pungent liquid from touching her. I didn''t want to do that... crud. I thought. ¡°Sooo... Are you here to beg me to give you that baby?¡± I asked like the worst kind of man on the face of the planet. I didn''t want to say this! What''s happening to me?! I thought. Inside, I was in a state of panic, of madness brought to the edge. I was pushing the limits of how low I could get, wondering if I will be able to break it and somehow turn everything upside down. It was that sort of twisted logic my mind was running on. Two months of seclusion and depression tended to do that people... Unfortunately, I never expected it to be so bad that one thing I thought and another spoke. Actually, what came out of my mouth was only trash. ¡°It appears you are doing well, Alkelios.¡± Kataryna said as she shattered the shield and entered the room. The frozen mead fell on the floor, and I looked at her from head to toe, but I forced my eyes to stop on her chest. ¡°Strip.¡± I ordered with a grin. ¡°Hm?¡± she smiled and tilted her head to the left. ¡°Strip.¡± I repeated myself. An ice spike was sent and stabbed at just an inch away from my neck. I didn''t even flinch. I smirked instead and let that disgusting word escape my lips again. ¡°Strip.¡± I ordered. Kataryna shook her head and let out a sigh. ¡°Maybe I waited for too long?¡± she asked herself. ¡°Who knows? Are you going to strip or not?¡± I said Please don''t... I thought. ¡°Tell me... is Seryanna still in your list?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes... What of it?¡± I asked in mocking tone. ¡°I see... What about me and Kleo?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes...¡± I replied. ¡°Good...¡± she nodded. I moved from the bed, and approached her with a staggering walk. ¡°There''s only the two of us here... I''m young, I can handle more.¡± I smirked. Someone please punch me... I thought. And my prayer was answer, Kataryna''s fist came flying straight at my guts. It was such a powerful strike it made me barf all that I had eaten that day. ¡°You forgot to say ''please''. Now, I do believe I am the one who needs to apologize here. After one week had passed, I should have known things would go like this. But I thought of you as a dragon and not a human. For us it takes longer to reach the state you are in.¡± she told me with a smile that sent chills down my spine. ¡°I''m cough perfectly fine cough!¡± I retorted and glared at her. ¡°Really, now?¡± she said with a mocking tone of voice. ¡°Yes... I don''t need you, Seryanna, Kleo, Brekkar, or ANYONE ELSE! Just leave me cough alone! I''m a human ain''t I?! Just a fool! A toy for you dragons!¡± I glared at her and tried to push her away, but she dodged, and I stumbled on the floor. ¡°I can see that. You are so fine you are living like a swine in a place where the sun doesn''t shine.¡± she retorted. ¡°Hah! Good one!¡± I pointed at her. ¡°So, are you going to strip or not?¡± I asked her again with a mocking smile. ¡°First you tell me to leave you alone, then you ask me to strip.¡± she tilted her head ¡°If I was Seryanna, maybe I would try to comfort you like that, but... I''m wise enough to understand that isn''t the cure you need.¡± she smiled. ¡°And what is?¡± I asked and then laughed. I had no idea what happened because the next thing I knew was that I was standing upside down in the middle of the street among a bunch of wreckage. I blinked surprised and looked around at all the startled dragons. ¡°What the... Ugh! My body hurts...¡± I groaned. ¡°To think you couldn''t even dodge something as slow as that. How the mighty have fallen~.¡± Kataryna said and shook her head. Following her voice I looked up, well... down from the position I was in, and saw her walking up to a big hole in the inn I was staying at. This crazy woman actually sent me flying through the wall?! And... I survived? I thought, although I didn''t know which part was more surprising. ¡°I''m just a bit rusty...¡± I commented and tried to get back up, but I stumbled on the ground and fell on my bottom. Bumping into something, I looked back and saw Kataryna standing there with seven Ice Spikes floating behind her. I gulped, and jumped out of the way. One of those spike was stabbed right in the ground where I was at. ¡°Are you trying to kill me?!¡± I shouted. ¡°YES!¡± she replied with a laugh. ¡°You are crazy!¡± I shouted and started running. ¡°I''m a Breakthrough Awakened! Crazy is my little name!¡± she shouted and came after me. As expected, guards and everyone else was keeping out of our way. Actually, now that I looked better, Kataryna was wearing a chest piece with the emblem of the Third Princess on it. Maybe she put it on in order not to be bothered by the guards and other people. If it was two adventurers quarreling, they would have tried to step in, but if someone like me, who looked no different than a bum, was being chased around by someone who represented a Royal, they certainly wouldn''t have dared to step in. As soon as I realized this, I tried to run faster, but the spikes she was hurling down at me were no joke. One of them came close enough to scratch me. After that one, I wished hard on the inside that none of them hit me. ¡°Stop running and start dying!¡± she shouted after me. ¡°No!¡± I retorted and jumped up on a building. Running through a crowd of dragons was hard, so I made use of my stats and jumped up on the rooftops. Just as I was about to land on it though, I heard Kataryna shouting behind me. ¡°An opening!¡± When I turned around, I saw her flying towards me with her wings spread open. I tried to block, but before I could even make a wish to not get hit, I was struck. The punch sent me crashing through the rooftop of a building and through the window of another. Several dragons were screaming in fear, startled by the sudden battle. I coughed and spat some blood. The punch cut my lip. Cursing, I pulled myself off the floor, but when I when I raised my head up, I saw Kataryna standing next to me and grinning. She kicked me as hard as she could in the chest. The hit was so powerful, it once again sent me flying through a building''s wall and smashing into the giant wall that surrounded Drakaria. ¡°Don''t worry, the Third Princess will pay for the damages!¡± Kataryna announced soon after she hit me. The force of gravity peeled me off the wall, and I fell on the ground with a thud. My whole body was aching from the pain. I coughed a few times before I tried to get up. Damn it... I don''t remember her being so powerful... Maybe my Luck isn''t working as it''s supposed to? Ungh... I wish I will get out of this alive... I said in the hope that I won''t die. Funny how until now I was looking for death or something to push me deeper into that hole of suffering I was tossed into, and now I was hoping not to die. ¡°So, do you still want me to strip for you?¡± she asked with a grin as she landed a few meters away from me. The dragons around us were startled and ran away, except for one. ¡°I won''t mind if you strip for me, missy.¡± a half-drunk idiot replied. Kataryna didn''t waste even a single second and decapitated him with an ice spike. ¡°I wasn''t talking to you.¡± she smiled and then shattered the spike she committed the crime with. ¡°Now, Alkelios... Where were we? Ah yes, me hunting you!¡± she nodded in satisfaction. Is she really trying to kill me? I thought horrified. Seeing her charge up a spell, I immediately aimed my palm towards her and tried to cast a fireball, but it didn''t come out... No, I didn''t have the guts to attack her. I cursed, dodged the attack and then ran away. ¡°Come on! It just got better!¡± she said and then came flying after me. She grabbed me by the back of my clothes and then flew straight up into the sky. ¡°Argh! Let go of me!¡± I shouted at her. ¡°No. I want you to see something first.¡± she told me. ¡°What?¡± I asked and hoped it wasn''t my life flashing before my eyes. Strange enough, I wasn''t really that afraid of her. For some reason, I felt like she had the intention of killing me, but she wasn''t going to kill me. At most, I had the impression that she was just going to beat me half to death. ¡°Look down there.¡± she said when she stopped ascending. We were quite the distance high up. So high, that I saw a flying penguin stroll by us. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised as I saw the tuxedo bird with gigantic wings as it flew farther away, not minding us at all. ¡°Alkelios! Forget that stupid bird and look down!¡± Kataryna barked shaking me in the air. ¡°Yes! Yes!¡± I said as I looked down. What I saw from such height, besides the smoke coming from the buildings we just wrecked inside the capital, next to its walls, spreading over the whole field was an army camp. Thousand of tents and multiple camp fires covered the land. A couple of training fields were made, and next to the river was the Khosinni Cavalry. ¡°What''s that?¡± I asked confused. ¡°That''s the Brekkar Army now under Draejan''s control. It''s three times the size of the one that went to the Scar Battlefield. However, very few if any soldiers at all from those who originally participated in that battle are present down there... Most of what you see there are nothing but hoodlums and bandits. The commanders are tough dragons with no brain, and unlike how the former army was, this one doesn''t even accept a dragoness soldier, let alone one of a higher rank. They are even looking down at them.¡± she told me. ¡°And that''s bad right? But I didn''t knew Brekkar''s army had women in it.¡± I told her. ¡°They say no one roars louder than a dragoness who had her tail stepped on. And gods have no mercy on those who anger a pregnant one. But you didn''t actually believe all those servants who were back at Brekkar were ALL local dragons, right?¡± she asked with a big smirk on her lips. ¡°They weren''t?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Those ''maids'' took out more than half of the bandits that invaded the mansion before Brekkar even joined the battle.¡± she told me. ¡°It didn''t seem like that to me... Were they always that strong?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Yes. Brekkar once bragged to me how all of them were fine ladies who were at the top of his army. The best of the best commanders he could find. The butlers, all of them, were the male ones.¡± she replied. ¡°Does Brekkar have a maid fetish?¡± I asked. Pulling me up, Kataryna then whispered to me ¡°I don''t know, but if you like, one day... who knows...¡± she then let go. ¡°Huh? YOU DROPPED ME!¡± I screamed as I plunged towards the ground. ¡°Tehe~ Oopsie?¡± she giggled. This dragoness was having way to much fun beating me to a bleeding pulp. Well, I had other matters to attend to than being angered at her, and that was to somehow manage to land. At the speed I was heading towards the ground, it didn''t matter how high my stats values were, I would end up breaking more than my legs. ¡°One day, she''s going to pay for this...¡± I grumbled as I aimed my hands at the ground and then chanted the spell for [Air Barrier]. I cast several of them on top of each other and prayed to all the gods out there that I wasn''t going to die when I hit the ground. The moment felt like an eternity and spiked my adrenaline to the max. I clenched my jaw, tightened my fist, and had my whole body tensed. My life was at stake in this fall, and the only thing that could pull me through were my magic, reflexes, and hopefully a good judgment. The landing was anything but pleasant. The barriers shattered one after another until the last one went poof, and I hit the ground with whatever force was left. My hands touched the dirt, and I could feel my muscles screaming and giving away as I slammed with my chest into it. Because I came at an angle, the force recoiled me forward, and I did a spin in the air, landing on my back. There wasn''t enough force for a second bounce, so I was left grinding the dirt with my back. My clothes were all ripped, but I still had my skin intact. My Luck made it so that I survived, but my chest hurt so bad, I felt like I was going to feint from the pain each time I took a breath. ¡°What was that?¡± someone asked as the dust settled around me. ¡°Someone fell from the sky.¡± another said. ¡°Maybe some idiot who can''t control his own wings?¡± someone wondered. ¡°Is he dead?¡± another asked. ¡°If he''s dead, I''m taking his coins.¡± ¡°Hey! He''s moving! Tch!¡± As I laid on the ground, groaning in pain, I realized that I wasn''t surrounded by the best the draconian species could offer. With some of the dust clearing away, I could see better where I was at... right in the middle of the Brekkar Army. If what Kataryna said was the truth, then from the once glorious group that marched to save Albeyater from the human invasion only the name remained.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Then... What use does Seryanna even have? was what I was wondering. ¡°Hey! Who are you?¡± one asked. ¡°Look at his back... no scales.¡± one pointed out as I got up. True, the shirt on my back was gone, and my upper body was there for everyone to see. ¡°Can''t be... a human?¡± one asked. ¡°Here? When did humans learned to fly anyway?¡± another asked. I held my chest, my ribs were hurting, and I could barely stand. If these guys thought about attacking me, I wouldn''t be able to do much. ¡°Ah! Look at that beauty!¡± one suddenly said. I blinked confused. I hope he''s not talking about me... I prayed. Suddenly I realize that Kataryna had descended as well and landed several meters away from me. ¡°Look at that booty!¡± one pointed out. ¡°Are you alone lady?¡± ¡°Finally, a female!¡± one said in an exasperated tone of voice. ¡°I was getting tired of hunting the lasses that ventured out of the city... Urk.¡± The last one who spoke found himself with an ice spike in the middle of his chest. Kataryna didn''t even flinch as she took his life. ¡°By the gods! She killed commander Prampus!¡± someone shouted, and all of a sudden the dragons began to unsheathe their weapons and surround us. ¡°Who do you think you are?¡± ¡°Once we beat you nice and well, we''ll turn you into our camp''s whore!¡± ¡°You woman have no right to be here!¡± ¡°We''ll kill you!¡± ¡°We''ll rape you!¡± Their shouts were getting annoying to the point where even I was getting mad, but Kataryna wasn''t even flinching. She just stood there and looked at me. With her strength, she could easily kill all of them... Why isn''t she even threatening them? I wondered. Suddenly, one of them moved behind her and tried to attack. Out of reflex, I launched a [Earth Arrow] at him. The stone spike went right through his chest and killed the other two behind him, then continued to fly until it stopped, stabbing halfway through a breastplate armor placed on stand near a tent. I was shocked by this. ¡°Hey... Did you see that?¡± one said in a shaken tone of voice. ¡°Impossible... What power...¡± another said. That was... That attack wasn''t supposed to be that powerful. I thought. When I looked over at Kataryna, I saw her smirking. I gulped. ¡°Kill that guy first!¡± one screamed and about six ran towards me. Surprised, I raised a [Firewall] and cast a [Wind Scythe] with the same strength and speed I used back when I fought against Draejan. Two of them stumbled and slammed into the wall, screaming in pain from the burns, while the others were chopped in half because of my latter spell. In the blink of an eye, I had killed another six dragons. Then I saw another one rushing towards Kataryna, but she wasn''t doing anything to stop him, so I cast a [Water Ball] at him. The moment the attack struck him, his whole body was ripped apart into several pieces. The dragoness raised an ice barrier to protect herself from the flying guts, but she was showing me a very broad grin. ¡°Was this what you were after?¡± I asked as I made my way towards her. At this point, none of these soldiers dared to approach us. I stopped right in front of her, but my chest was hurting a lot, and I felt a bit of blood in my mouth. She didn''t reply. ¡°Hey! Who are you? What are you... and whose that dragoness?¡± one asked. I was just staring at Kataryna who wasn''t replying, just grinning. I give up... I have to give up! I can''t win against you... I just don''t know what you are thinking... You and your mind games. YOU are driving me nuts! There! You won, you silver-scaled dragoness! I thought and then closed my eyes for a second. To be honest, at this point, my mind was blank. Kataryna''s perseverance won against the weak-willed me. I said I wanted to die, but I fled like a coward. I tried to push her back, but I was actually begging her to stay. I tried to show her that I didn''t give a rat''s tail about her, but I saved her when she got attacked. If anything, this stubborn and absurdly powerful dragoness managed to prove to me that everything I spat out at her, my whole gloomy and disgusting self wasn''t the real me... My real intentions, my real self was different. I gulped and then took a deep breath. ¡°I''m the one who''ll beat Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya to a pulp.¡± I opened my eyes and looked at Kataryna ¡°And this one is my friend.¡± I said. ¡°And?¡± she asked. ¡°And my second woman after Seryanna.¡± I added. I can''t believe you made me say something so preposterous in front of these idiots! I thought. ¡°Good!¡± she then picked me up. ¡°Oi!¡± I glared at her. ¡°What?¡± she asked tilting her head. ¡°Really? Princess-carry?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Because you are my cute little princess!¡± she giggled and then spread her wings. ¡°You two! Don''t think you''ll get away with this!¡± one shouted. ¡°Hm? I heard a bug.¡± Kataryna said and then released a wave of cold air. In an instant, everyone around us for an area of 50 meters was frozen solid. She showed no mercy to these people. She didn''t even look at them as she did this, just kept staring at me with a big grin on her face. ¡°You sure do love your ice sculptures...¡± I said. ¡°I practiced a lot when I was younger.¡± she replied and then jumped up in the air. We flew away from the camp, while the sudden appearance of the frozen soldiers was met with a lot of ruckus. To my surprise, I wasn''t feeling worried at all about the consequences of having killed all of those dragons. In modern times, this example of a mass murder wouldn''t have been taken lightly. The whole country would have mobilized to catch the felon, but here, such things depended on a lot of factors. As much as one would have wanted to catch and cuff Kataryna, they were still dealing with a valuable Breakthrough Awakened, meaning that they had to put into balance the REASON why she killed them. In the end, worrying about their lives was just a waste of time. Thinking that someone would try to make us responsible was all the same as well. Some time later, Kataryna landed on the shore of a river. I had no idea where exactly we were just that this place was far away from Drakaria, an hour or so of flight distance. The moment she set me down, I felt my whole body aching again, and the dragoness tossed me a healing potion. ¡°I don''t need it...¡± I stubbornly said. ¡°Drink it, or I''ll make you drink it.¡± she showed me her fist and a smile. I gulped it down like a soldier on command. Once it was over, I let out a sigh of relief and felt my body starting to heal. It would take more than a potion to get me back on track, but it was a good start. ¡°I''m sorry I had to rough you up like that...¡± she said and sat down on the grass. I took a seat next to her and sprawled down. ¡°Between the two us... I deserved it...¡± I said. During this flight, I thought about a lot of things. ¡°I know...¡± she nodded. ¡°But thank you...¡± I said and closed my eyes. ¡°You''re welcomed.¡± A moment of silence followed as we only listened to the gentle sounds of running water. It was pleasant. From time to time, we heard a fish jumping out and then going back in with a splash. It was surprisingly soothing and relaxing, not the type of feeling I would expect to experience after getting my ass handed to me. ¡°You know, you''re Luck isn''t that flawless...¡± she told me. ¡°I noticed...¡± I replied. ¡°If you don''t use it, it''s the same as it is with everyone else.¡± ¡°Yes... And I forgot to use it back then in that battle with Draejan... Ah! Because you killed his soldiers, now nobody will go and tell him about my awesome declaration!¡± I laughed. ¡°You''ll get another chance.¡± she giggled. I heard rustling, and I opened my eyes. Kataryna sat down behind me and patted her thigh when I looked at her. The dragoness was offering me a lap pillow, and I didn''t dare refuse. After I settled in my new position, she started stroking my hair. ¡°You need to take a bath.¡± she commented. ¡°I know, but don''t you dare toss me in the river. My ribs are still fusing themselves back together.¡± I told her. ¡°Tch.¡± she clicked her tongue. Another moment passed by like this, just listening to the sound of the river. The first one to break the silence this time was me. ¡°Kataryna? Where did I go wrong?¡± I asked her. ¡°Depends...¡± she replied. ¡°I tried my best since I got here... I tried not to stand out or be a trouble to anyone. You know, a year ago I would have not thought possible that I would ever be able to kill someone and not even flinch, yet I found myself being able to do this with extreme ease... and it scares me. It really scares me...¡± I said. ¡°I know...¡± ¡°I thought about Seryanna as well... I thought long and hard after you left, but I could only see myself fail. She''s a good woman, a good Knight, I don''t deserve her was what I thought, but I don''t want to give her to anyone else either!¡± I placed my hand over my face, trying to hide my tears, but she pulled it away. ¡°Cry if you have to... I want to see the real you.¡± she smiled. ¡°But I''m weak... I''m so weak, aren''t I?¡± I asked. ¡°You killed those dragons in a split second. You didn''t hesitate to protect me even when you knew I didn''t need it... A weakling can''t do that. A weakling wouldn''t have claimed a Breakthrough Awakened like me to be theirs in front of so many dragons without fear of being killed by me.¡± ¡°I don''t care about that... I knew you wanted me to say it. Ever since you said you wanted to have a child with me, I knew you were serious about it, but I was too afraid to accept it. I was too afraid of responsibility, the future, this world, everything... I mean, I''m just 18! Well, almost 19, but still a kid!¡± I cried. ¡°Then... grow up.¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Grow up?¡± I looked up at her through my tears. ¡°Do you know that when I said those words to you, I was expecting you to decline me, to feel disgusted of the idea of having to sleep with a dragoness like me, to make me give up, or basically do anything...¡± she said. ¡°I didn''t see a reason to do so...¡± I said furrowing my brow. Kataryna leaned down and kissed me on the forehead, when she pulled back she smiled. ¡°What was that for?¡± I asked. ¡°To see how you would react.¡± she smiled. ¡°Did I pass?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded. ¡°Good... Now, please, explain... Think of me as an idiot, a baby... Explain... Please.¡± I said and closed my eyes. ¡°Sure. What to start with then... Hm... Ah yes, do you know what a Breakthrough is?¡± she asked. ¡°Reaching level 1000?¡± I replied. ¡°That''s a Forced Breakthrough.¡± ¡°There are variants of it?¡± ¡°Yes, but not many know this... You see, back in Zerudan I was seen as a very weak dragoness when I was young. Most dragons picked on me, and if not for some lucky breaks, I would have ended up raped or worse. Back then, dragons weren''t as civilized as they are now, or maybe it was just that the whole Zerudan Kingdom was messed up to begin with.¡± she said and shrugged. ¡°How messed up?¡± I asked. ¡°The royal family never married outside their bloodline. The nobility, although consisting of just four big families were all blood related. Women had almost no role in their society besides that of giving birth to lots of eggs for their males. They practiced slavery, and to some extent the fourth and fifth child of a family regardless of bloodline would always end up as a slave. Half of the army was made out of them. And this was just the light stuff... If you lived in the shadows like I did, you would see things that were far worse... Dragon experiments and torture were among the top ten. You see, most nobles tried to figure out how it was best to Awaken someone. They realized there were some conditions behind it, but they never understood what they were. The one who did was my first friend, a dragon with blue scales, who was beautiful, smart, and brave...¡± When she described him, I sensed a certain changed in the tone of her voice. It was as if she was remembering a lover, not just a simple friend. ¡°He was like Seryanna, a Superior Draconian of a High element. Unlike her though, his was water and as you would expect, he strived to become a good healer and farmer. He had a dream of one day planting a field of fruit-baring trees with which he would feed the nearby orphanages.¡± she let out a soft sigh and then continued her story ¡°Back then, I too thought myself as being too weak to protect him...¡± Two drops of water fell on my forehead. I opened my eyes and saw Kataryna''s contorted expression as she fought with the feeling of loss she held locked up inside. This incredibly powerful dragoness was crying in front of this weak... human. ¡°I thought I didn''t have enough strength to be by his side. When those sheep jumped in and took a bite out of him, they pushed me away... They blamed me for things I didn''t do.¡± she shook her head. ¡°So, I ran... thinking that it would be better to first gain strength and then return to his side. I left without saying a word. I hid and grew... but...¡± she closed her eyes and let out a whimper. ¡°I still keep thinking... What would have happened if I didn''t leave. What would have happened if I asked for help? What would have happened if I simply looked him in the eyes and told him the truth?¡± she spoke in a trembling tone of voice as her tears kept flowing down her cheeks. For me, the one whom I believed to be the weakest of them all, seeing this powerful dragoness cry like this simply shocked me. It made me wonder what the true meaning of strength could be. It made me ask myself what did I sought by being strong and what did that mean? When would I achieve it? The weak me asked these feeble questions, and the strong Kataryna replied through her tears. ¡°That dragon... without anyone by his side, he fought for his little dream. But there''s only so much one could handle, and those sheep finally grabbed hold of him by the neck. When I returned... I witnessed his demise, but even then... with a smile on his face, with a forgiving smile... he told me... He told ME, the one who ran away and left him like that, that he loved me. He wished for me to be happy... Despite what was going to happen to him, his last wish... was for me to be happy.¡± she said and closed her eyes, but the tears didn''t stop. Lifting my hand up, I gently touched her cheek, and asked her ¡°Is that why you wish for a child?¡± I asked. Opening her eyes, she nodded ¡°I like you Alkelios, but love is too much for me... not now at least. In time, maybe... but now, I simply can''t love anyone else but him, and you certainly don''t want to be seen as a replacement for him. However, a family was something I always believed would make me happy. To have a child of my own was something I longed for, but not while I was still weak... Funny how my ''weakness'' might have been his salvation.¡± she laughed, but she was still shedding tears. ¡°Am I going to make the same mistake as you? That''s why you''re doing this for us?¡± I asked. She nodded. I gulped. ¡°What was I going to end up... doing?¡± I asked. ¡°You would have left like I did in order to become strong. In that time, Seryanna would have been alone... She would have felt alone, abandoned, and responsible for your departure. This would have eaten her on the inside, and in the end, she would have caved in. She would have made a mistake like that man once did because it''s only natural. We are not gods to be flawless, Alkelios, we have hearts, emotions, and live with the idea that tomorrow and today as well will bring us a smile. And you would have returned when it was too late...¡± she wiped her tears. ¡°Are you certain of this?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes...¡± she nodded. ¡°After you left like that... Seryanna''s energy vanished.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I furrowed my brow. ¡°The light in her eyes faded, and she felt like a walking husk. Nothing seemed to touch her, but she didn''t have the strength to change either. She was just walking on an empty road towards that sign that said... ''Stop''.¡± she looked up at the sky. I gulped and felt guilt gathering inside of me. I didn''t know Seryanna was going through something like this, that my departure affected her like that. I thought I was the only one, but... I guess I was wrong. ¡°Everyone wants to become Awakened in order to ''grow up''. Then everyone wants to achieve a ''Breakthrough'' in order to be ''strong''. But you know, to Awaken, just like the name implies, it means to become true to yourself and accept who you are. It means to awaken as an individual, not gain a change in your physical appearance as most tend to believe. Awakening for dragons is the moment of MENTAL maturity, but throughout ages, it ended up being confused with PHYSICAL maturity. Meanwhile, a Breakthrough means ''strength'', but this was confused with the idea that you NEED to reach a power level of 1000 according to a temple''s divination. Another misconception... True, reaching that power level does offer you a boost in strength, speed, and magic, but... nothing when compared to the TRUE Breakthrough, which you can achieve even at lower levels.¡± she looked down at me. ¡°I see...¡± I said. ¡°That''s why even thought Draejan is so close to power level 1000, he is still so far away from a Breakthrough. He is a dragon who lusts after political and military power, who believes there''s a BIG difference between nobility and commoners, and most importantly whose mentality cannot see past the laws made up by society he lives in. That''s why Nature itself will do everything it can to slow down his growth. At the same time, this explains why yours was so amazingly fast... You didn''t go against it and try to adapt, to learn, to grow... In a few months, you achieved what ordinary humans need decades and what dragons need centuries.¡± she smiled. ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded ¡°Seeing a human with the mentality of someone who has reached a Breakthrough yet not even past level 200, is beyond amazing. I fell for you because of that.¡± ¡°Yet you don''t love me?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°I like you. I will sleep with you. I will let you even impregnate me, but I will not let you have my heart... not yet. For that, you will need to wait until I am ready... if I will ever be. Until then, I''ll be your very best friend.¡± she showed me a gentle smile. ¡°I don''t know if I should be surprised or shocked.¡± I said. ¡°That''s the same thing.¡± she giggled. ¡°Ah! Well... in that case, erm... happy?¡± I raised an eyebrow. She shook her head ¡°Be what you wish to be. I''m not going to force you to do any of those things and if I don''t feel like it, I''ll turn you into an ice sculpture if you do try to push them onto me.¡± she showed me a cunning smile. ¡°I see...¡± She sighed and then said ¡°Well, going back to the what were talking about... a True Breakthrough is something like accepting the world as it is, seeing past it''s laws, and having the inner strength like that. Many tend to shrink back and run away the moment they enter this state. As such, I first became aware of it not long after I witnessed his death... I was way under a power level of 1000, maybe around 500? Either way, a month later, I heard that the army of Zerudan was going to face the army of Albeyater. It was going to be a decisive battle.¡± she smiled. ¡°What happened? Well... Albeyater won, I know, but tell me what happened to you.¡± I said. She giggled ¡°Yes, they won, but did you know that the Zerudan army was almost twice as big as theirs, yet they didn''t even lose one tenth of their soldiers?¡± she said. ¡°How?¡± I asked baffled. ¡°Because of me... Reaching a True Breakthrough allowed me to gain a boost in power the likes I never felt before. I wasn''t weighed down by the laws of this world anymore, or to be more precise, the laws of the mortals living on this world. I stepped into battle... and danced. For the one man I loved and could never be together with, I danced... It was my final dance, my final performance, the proof of how powerful I had become. Although I was unable to show him this dance in life, I believed that his soul still saw it. My blades cut the flesh of my allies and any of the Albeyater soldiers that strayed too close. I hopped around and cut them to pieces... My power level went up faster than I ever thought possible and then... I killed the commander of the army, the Breakthrough Awakened General. That moment was when I also went past power level 1000.¡± she looked down into my eyes. ¡°You waltzed in and performed the last dance for your departed lover... Do you think he liked it?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°He would have loved just to see me try...¡± she smiled and then leaned down and kissed me on the lips. I didn''t push her off, and accepted her kiss. It was a long one, but when we parted lips, she smiled and said ¡°You know, if you truly take me up on that offer of granting me a child, you will be the very first male, human or dragon, who ever laid a hand on this body of mine.¡± ¡°What?! Then you are?!¡± I blinked surprised. She blushed and looked away. I let out a sigh and shook my head. ¡°Who would have believed it?¡± ¡°I''m a difficult dragoness, not many can tame me, and I didn''t let anyone try.¡± she giggled. I took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. It was completely dark by now, and the stars were all shinning so bright up there. It was a different view than the one I often saw back home, well... whenever I was out of Bucharest. ¡°I want to save Seryanna from Draejan, but I don''t have the physical strength to do it. I want to be the one to punch him in the face not use you or anyone else to do it.¡± I let my desires be heard. ¡°I see, so what do you want me to do then? Ask, and for you... I''ll do it.¡± she smiled. ¡°Be there for Seryanna. Help her. Keep her safe while I''m gone...¡± I said. ¡°So you do plan on leaving?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes, but not without telling Seryanna where, why, and for how long. Not without telling you and Kleo either...¡± I looked up at her. ¡°Where do you want to go?¡± she asked. ¡°Seculiar Forest... I want to go hunt and train there. I''ll need one of those [Purse] rings and some supplies. I''ll also need new equipment and three or four swords, but after I have gained enough levels, my skills and Luck will do the rest.¡± I replied honestly. ¡°When did you came up with this?¡± ¡°One week ago, but I was thinking of it more as a way to see for how long I can survive before I end up getting killed by monsters... I wanted to go with the intent of making it my grave, but I realized now that I am too much of a kid and coward to give up on my life like that. Because of this, I''m going there now with the intent to hunt, train, and return alive.¡± I showed her a confident smile. ¡°I''m glad you think that way.¡± she said. ¡°I would have wanted to meet this King of Albeyater. There''s a few things I wanted to say to him, but I fear I can''t get to him that easily...¡± I sighed. ¡°If you think like a normal dragon and human yes, but what would a Breakthrough-er do?¡± she asked. ¡°Ignore the guards and climb up the window?¡± I raised an eyebrow. She smiled. ¡°You''re serious?¡± She nodded. ¡°Won''t he kill me the moment he sees me?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Why? How can I make it happen?¡± I asked. ¡°Take this.¡± she then took off a small necklace and showed it to me. It was shaped like a pointed star and had the emblem of Albeyater in the middle, however, it had a deep scratch on it that went from the center to the 2 o''clock mark. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°In that battle 500 years ago, the King of Albeyater gave me this one of a kind medal of honor. He himself made the scratch on it to differentiate it from the rest. At that time, I received it in order to use it as a means of proving my identity in the future. If you take this to him, he''ll know, but I would also recommend adding two fail-safe proofs. Something that belongs to Brekkar, and a letter from the Third Princess vouching for you. I''ll take care of the letter, and you get the other proof form Seryanna.¡± she told me with a smile. ¡°Well, then it sounds like a plan.¡± I laughed. ¡°Yes. So, how does it feel to have taken your first steps into becoming an adult? How does it feel to... grow up?¡± she asked. ¡°Good...¡± I nodded. That night, Kataryna probably saved my life in more ways than my idiotic 100 Luck ever did. Chapter 50: Proof of my resolve [Alkelios'' point of view] Kataryna''s lessons and words that night were ones I wasn''t going to forget any time too soon. They were spoken through tears and smiles, but also with a wisdom gathered throughout centuries. If it wasn''t for that, I might have had a hard time believing her. When we returned to the city, Kataryna lent me a few coins to pay for another week at Brekkar''s Inn... in another room, seeing how she destroyed the previous one. I also had enough there to buy myself some new cloths and take a bath. As for the rest of my equipment, including a [Purse] ring and camp supplies, she was going to take care of them. Because of our battle, most of the dragons and even the guards were keeping their distance from us. I felt bad about making a mess of so many buildings, but Kataryna assured me the Third Princess would see to it that they were all reimbursed properly, especially the owners of Brekkar''s Inn. The silver-scaled dragoness escorted me all the way to the street where the inn was located on, but then she made a U turn and left. When I called out to her, she excused herself by saying that she didn''t like the ominous feeling the inn was giving off. I didn''t feel anything of that sort. The wreckage outside was mostly cleaned up, so I stepped inside with the thought of first apologizing to the owners for the disturbance I had caused even if I had a good excuse for it. As a friend of Brekkar and his family, it was unsightly of me to behave that way. Upon seeing my ragged up and beaten state, Collentra took a good look at me from head to toe and then politely asked ¡°Have you sobered up now?¡± ¡°Yes, I apologize for my unsightly behavior.¡± I bowed my head. ¡°Good. If it wasn''t for Kataryna, I might have been the one to go up there and slap you to the other side of Drakaria!¡± she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°I appreciate your intention to help me, but I can assure you Kataryna punched me throughout the WHOLE of Drakaria.¡± I showed her a wry smile. ¡°Did you deserve it?¡± she asked raising an eyebrow. I looked down and closed my eyes ¡°Yes.¡± Collentra walked up to me and tapped me on my left cheek. When I opened my eyes, she was showing me a gentle smile. ¡°I may not know what happened to you when all of you went to the palace back then, but I do know something. I had NEVER seen either Seryanna or Kleo look so bright and happy ever since that day 38 years ago when Brekkar brought them over. After their parents died, they never were the same.¡± she shook her head and sighed ¡°It doesn''t take a genius to realize that you were behind their smiles.¡± ¡°Even if the one who brought those smiles was a human?¡± I asked. She smiled ¡°More so because this means our King was right, and there''s still hope for your species... You may very well be the embodiment of that hope. Well, that''s probably asking a bit too much of you right now, but at the very least... don''t give up on those two girls. If you can still be their friend and help them in their time of need, do so.¡± She tapped my cheek and then returned to sweeping. ¡°Also, tell that silver-scaled dragoness that I''m not letting her off that easily for breaking my home!¡± she said. I smiled and replied ¡°I will, but first... I need a bath.¡± I laughed. ¡°Thank the gods he noticed it!¡± Bayuk said as he raised his hands to the sky. ¡°Hey! I don''t stink that bad!¡± I pointed a finger at him. ¡°Indeed! You could kill a whole herd of sheep with that stench of yours! I''ll give you a bath on the house just go get yourself cleaned up!¡± he retorted. ¡°Yes, mister Bayuk... and thank you!¡± I made a small bow to him. A week later, when the sun was going down, I met up with Kataryna and Kleo inside my room at the inn. For some reasons I didn''t know, the silver-scaled dragoness was grumbling something about a waitress uniform, while the black-scaled goth one was abstaining from laughing. We first looked through everything Kataryna brought for my long journey ahead. I had to spend a few months in the Seculiar Forest, and no matter how high my Luck was, I learned that simply relying on it wasn''t going to get me to the finish line every time. Actually, it had some very nasty flaws and possible side-effects whenever I forced it. As such, I had to look at my current situation as though I barely had any Luck at all. The ring Kataryna brought wasn''t as excellent as her own, but it could held about the same amount of items as the one Seryanna used when we first met. She also brought me a few bags as well for any sort of materials or plants that couldn''t last inside it. Once everything was set and ready, I explained the rest of the plan and how I was going to attempt the breaking and entering inside the most secured and well-guarded building in the entire Albeyater Kingdom. ¡°That''s insane...¡± Kleo expressed her opinion. ¡°My first plan included borrowing Seryanna''s pet squirrel and having you summon all sorts of fiends from the underworld, but I figured bringing forth the Apocalypse was a tad bit too much for this.¡± I shrugged. Kataryna laughed when she heard this. ¡°Yeah... that would have been too much.¡± the black-scaled dragoness looked back at me with a raised eyebrow. ¡°The Four Horsemen are just a myth, there are actually over 500 of them... and expensive. Greedy bastards...¡± she then added. Apparently my joke had a seed of truth in it. ¡°Then once you are done talking with Seryanna, you''ll return here?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°Yes. I will then fly together with you two back to the edge of the Seculiar Forest.¡± I said. ¡°Fly?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°Your beast form is faster than a typical Khosinni, and you can go there on a straight line.¡± I pointed out. ¡°Is that so? A human riding on the back of a dragon... That will be... unheard of.¡± giggled Kataryna. ¡°Well, what do you think?¡± I asked with a smirk. ¡°It''s good, but you are forgetting one thing.¡± she pointed out. I blinked surprised. ¡°What?¡± ¡°This.¡± she then handed me a letter with the emblem of the Third Princess on the red wax seal. ¡°Is that...?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. The Princess wrote it and sealed it in my presence, so you can rest assured that it''s authentic.¡± she nodded. ¡°Great! Then this means I only need to get now something to prove that I am Brekkar''s friend.¡± I said with a big smile on my face. ¡°I have that one. Here.¡± Kleo said and then handed over another sealed letter, but this one held the emblem of the Draketerus family. ¡°When did you get this?¡± I asked as I carefully received it. ¡°When we left Tomeron, grandpa gave it to me and told me to hand it over to you if you were ever going to visit the King.¡± she smiled proudly. ¡°I see... Thank you.¡± I nodded. ¡°Alkelios, I have a feeling even now you don''t understand what it means to have healed grandfather and also to have become our friend...¡± she showed me a soft smile. ¡°Is it about the battle from 38 years ago?¡± I asked. She nodded. ¡°What you have in your hand... is basically the proof that two of the families who have been heavily struck down by humans have put their entire faith within you.¡± she said in serious tone of voice. ¡°Remember her words when you meet with Seryanna, Alkelios. You are not someone who should think lightly of himself. In my eyes, you are already someone well on the road of becoming the most ridiculous individual on all of the known continents.¡± Kataryna said. ¡°And who would that be?¡± I asked. ¡°The human hero of the dragons who rule Albeyater Kingdom.¡± she smirked. I gulped and even though I was short of a few achievements, I didn''t feel like it was such an off-shot prediction. [Three hours and 24 minutes later] In the middle of the night, when every dragon was asleep, I opened the window of my room. I closed my eyes and then took a deep breath to calm down my heart. With a calm mind and with every fiber of my being, I thought I wish to be able to reach Seryanna''s room at the Palace tonight without having a single dragon spot me as I head there. I wish that when I reach her room, I will find her there. I wish to succeed in the goals that I had set for myself tonight. Any wrong move from now on could land me in jail or get me killed on the spot. What I was about to do was risky, stupid, and unthinkable for the common dragon, but for me... this was my only shot. I wasn''t doing this for a country. I wasn''t doing this to save Earth. I wasn''t doing this because I was ordered to. I was going to do this because I fell in love with a redhead dragoness. That was all... Thus, I climbed out the window and jumped down into the alley bellow. With a speed far surpassing that of a human, I began to ran through the buildings, staying only in the darkness of the shadows. For tonight, I wore black clothes, with a black cloak and a hood to hide me better as I moved along. Just in case, I also wore a pair of black leather gloves, to avoid getting pricked or cut. At that time, it didn''t occur to me that thanks to my stats, this sort of thing would have been near impossible. Thanks to the information those two dragonesses had provided me with, avoiding the guards on the ground and hiding from those up in the sky wasn''t going to be such a difficult thing. Even so, there were moments when I waited for several minutes in the shadows before I was able to advance, but little by little I arrived at the walls surrounding the palace. On top of them, the patrols were made out of Royal Guards instead of City Guards. They were different in both skill and strength, with the former being the elites of the latter. Half of these groups moved clockwise on top of the walls, while the other half counterclockwise. Using my strength and agility, I climbed swiftly all the way to the top and waited there for a bit until two patrols past by each other. At that time, I jumped over and dropped down in a bush on the other side of the wall. There, I waited for a few minutes before I advanced again. All those bushes and statues were perfect for me to hide behind and slip through unnoticed. The number of patrols here was also smaller than the ones on top of the walls, showing that they focused more on keeping intruders out than trying to spot those that may have gotten through. As such, I safely reached the palace. From where I was to Seryanna''s room, it wasn''t that far, but I couldn''t afford to let my guard down now. With a good timing and always on the watch, I managed to get through and finally reach her window, which I opened with ease since it wasn''t locked from the inside. This marked the ending of the first stage: breaking and entering the Royal Palace at night. But, truth be told, although on the outside it was a smooth ride, on the inside I had more than one moment when I almost panicked and prayed like a maniac to not be spotted by the guards. The biggest danger for me were the air patrols, which although smaller in number, they had a top down view of the whole area. Despite the danger and doing something that many would have thought both impossible and crazy, I was finally able to reach this place, and before me, I saw the one I wanted to meet with. ¡°Hey! Long time no see.¡± I said with a soft smile as I pulled down my hood. Seryanna was standing on the opposite side of the room. She was wearing her armor and had her sword unsheathed. It was pointed at me, and the look in her eyes was one that told me she wasn''t joking. ¡°You are trespassing on the palace grounds.¡± she told me in a harsh tone of voice. ¡°I know.¡± I nodded and took a step forward. ¡°Stop right there! If you back away now and leave this place, I won''t kill you.¡± she declared. ¡°Harsh words, but you won''t do it, and I won''t leave until I got what I came for.¡± I said and approached her. ¡°I said stop! I am a Royal Knight! It''s my duty to stop intruders!¡± she retorted and glared at me. ¡°What I came for is right in front of my eyes, so why should I leave?¡± I asked. ¡°Because I will kill you for trespassing! For... breaking your oath to Sir Draejan, my fiance.¡± she declared. ¡°I don''t care about some stupid duel. I don''t care that he was forced upon you as your fiance.¡± I squinted my eyes and grabbed her sword with my hand. I was wearing leather gloves, so unless she put some strength into it, I wasn''t going to get cut that easily. ¡°L-Let go...¡± she said, but she didn''t pull or push. ¡°What does your duty, your laws tell you to do?¡± I asked her as I pulled the sword out of her grasp and tossed it aside. She stepped back until her back hit the wall. ¡°To stop you... T-To kill you... T-To defend the honor of my fiance... and the... and the laws of this kingdom!¡± she said, but she was stuttering. I stopped when I was just a step away from her. ¡°You won''t do it.¡± I said.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I will!¡± she retorted. ¡°You won''t.¡± I shook my head. ¡°W-Why do you keep saying that?¡± she asked. ¡°Because you love me.¡± I showed her a soft smile. ¡°I don''t!¡± she shouted and lifted her hand up to slap me. I grabbed her before she could do so and pushed her against the wall. She looked away. ¡°Seryanna... I didn''t come here to take revenge on Draejan. I didn''t come here to threaten you or kidnap you.¡± I said. ¡°Then why did you come?¡± she asked. ¡°Because I love you, and I want you and only you...¡± I let go of her hand and stepped back. Seryanna was a proud woman, but I wasn''t here to break that pride or force her to submit to me. I wasn''t an animal... I stepped back because I wanted her to choose to come to me. When I said those words, a few drops of tears formed in the corners of her eyes, and she didn''t look back at me. ¡°I''m a dragoness, Alkelios... not a human.¡± she said. ¡°I know.¡± ¡°I''m a knight... You had an official duel with the man that was pushed onto me as my fiance by the King whom I serve!¡± she said, raising the tone of her voice a little. I wasn''t worried about the noise, Kataryna told me she was going to do something about it, but I didn''t know exactly what. Either way, I trusted the silver-scaled dragoness. That was why I could keep my calm, listen to her, and answer as though I had all the time in the world. ¡°A duel which I lost because of my own foolishness, but of which outcome I don''t care. A King whose orders I can''t follow because I''m a human and whose orders are against our love.¡± I replied as I took off my gloves and stuffed them in a pocket. ¡°Have you no honor, Alkelios?¡± she asked and glared at me. ¡°No.¡± I smiled. ¡°Have you no shame or respect for the King?¡± she asked. ¡°Not really.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Do you want me to betray my King?¡± she asked and clenched her hand at her chest. ¡°No.¡± I shook my head ¡°Just Draejan.¡± I declared. ¡°Alkelios, the King gave me a direct order to marry Draejan! Do you want me to go against this order?¡± she asked with tears in her eyes. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Why? Why should I betray my kingdom, my family, my King, and my future fiance for you, a human?¡± she asked through her clenched teeth. ¡°Because I love you.¡± I said. ¡°That''s not a good enough reason, Alkelios. You are asking me to give up on too much! You are asking me to do something every fiber in my body tells me not to!¡± she retorted and looked away. ¡°Then why do you tremble and wish to come to my side? Why do you say every fiber in your body tells you not to when your heart is screaming for me?¡± I asked as I tapped my chest with my palm. ¡°Because I don''t know if you... if you really want me... I don''t know if this is just a ploy, a trick, or a spell... I don''t know if you really love me... When I tried to confirm it, you pushed me away once, twice... then with the duel... three times.¡± she said with a soft whimper as she looked back at me. Taking a step forward, she looked into my eyes, and with tears flowing down her cheeks, she said ¡°I don''t want to go through the same pain a fourth time...¡± ¡°You won''t...¡± and I closed my eyes. ¡°I wish to marry the dragoness known as Seryanna Draketerus. I wish to become her husband and to raise a happy family together with her. I wish to become her lover and I wish for her to become my lover. I wish Seryanna Draketerus to become my wife. If I spoke a lie right now. If the gods are against this union, then I wish for something to happen in the next five minutes that will take me away from here.¡± I opened my eyes and looked straight into hers. ¡°Alkelios... if you said something like that... if the gods really are against... or...¡± she cringed her teeth and looked down. She grabbed my by the collar of my clothes and held tight as if she herself didn''t want me to go. ¡°You fool... what if it really happens?¡± she asked through her sobs. ¡°Then let''s wait. If it does happen... then this is what the gods have decided and no matter how powerful I become, I won''t ever be able to go against them. It could also mean that maybe... someone else is meant for us. But honestly, I don''t want anyone else but you right now.¡± I said and lifted up her chin. ¡°Why me? Why a dragoness that''s been promised to someone else? Why me who can offer you no support in politics or the army? Why me whose voice in this kingdom is far weaker than that of many others?¡± she asked with tears in her eyes. ¡°Because I love everything about you... and I want you to be mine just as you are now, unawakened, with no voice in politics, with no might in the military, with no assets of economical value. I want your lips, your embrace, your breath, your love... everything else is just... an extra.¡± I smiled and then I tried to kiss her. If she pulled back, I was prepared to stop, but she didn''t. If she pushed me away, I was prepared to let myself be pushed, but she didn''t. What she did was push herself closer to me; move her arms around me and pull me towards her; and savor this kiss as though it might be her last one. As we kissed, time passed by, and when we opened our eyes, I asked her ¡°Do you think it''s been more than 5 minutes?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± she nodded. ¡°Then I am yours...¡± I said. ¡°I know... but inside... I feel like I''m betraying everyone, my very purpose as a knight. Even by the simple fact that I let you inside my room and didn''t immediately chase you away is an offense... You sneaked inside an engaged woman''s room in the middle of the night. That won''t stand well with anyone...¡± she shook her head. ¡°No, it won''t, but how else can I show my resolve to you? I am willing to become a criminal in the eyes of this kingdom''s laws. I am willing to cast away any pride or honor I have inside of me to be with you. I am willing to listen to my heart rather than the laws and words spat out by those who don''t even understand me... or you.¡± I said. ¡°And you are asking me to do the same...¡± she closed her eyes. ¡°You know? Maybe you are thinking too much about this, about the consequences and what others will say or think. Why not just... go with the flow and see where you are taken? In the end, all of this treason you speak of might end up being pardoned or completely ignored.¡± I smiled. ¡°That''s a very risky ''maybe''.¡± she told me. ¡°Then, I''ll reinforce it once more.¡± As I said this, I knelt down in front of her just as I saw in all of those movies back home, and although I didn''t come prepared with a ring, I had been thinking about this moment for the past two months. After all, if I was willing to go this far, I had to behave like a grown man and take full responsibility until the very end, not play around with her heart and show insecurity regarding our future. I had to show her that this was also something I wanted, that I was willing to bet the rest of the years of my life on the happiness she could offer me. ¡°Seryanna Draketerus, I know I am young and foolish. I know I am a human and you are a dragoness. I know that you are Royal Knight and I am not even at the rank of a commoner. Even so, Seryanna Draketerus, will you be my wife?¡± I asked in a clear and firm tone of voice. To be honest, I repeated these words the entire past week, but saying them for real felt way more intense than I had imagined. Actually, from the very beginning, I felt that she had more reasons to reject me than to accept me. I didn''t believe I was prepared for a rejection, and I didn''t know how I would be able to handle it. The intensity of the moment was simply too much and my heart felt like it was going to pop any moment now. I didn''t want to be rejected, and I was firmly convinced that this was what I wanted to do, especially after my battle and talk with Kataryna. True, I came here from another world, I came here from a more advanced world than this one by centuries, but I came here as a child. If one were to ask what I was 2 months ago, I would answer them simply: an 18 years-old child who was too afraid of all the changes that happened around him at a speed that seemed unnatural. An 18 years-old child who until now never bothered thinking seriously about his own future and what his own choices might bring. An 18 years-old child who saw the world and lives around him as a mere game until reality struck him hard. An 18 years-old child who fell in love like this for the first time in his life and had no parents or childhood friends who could run to and ask for advice. An 18 years-old child who came from a world where loving, respecting, and trying to understand a woman at this age was seen as a joke or impossibility. If I was asked what I was now, I would like to answer that I was a grown up who was willing to take his first steps into a mature life by sticking to his own decisions and not running away from them at the last moment. I proposed to Seryanna tonight as proof of my own resolve as well as my courage to stick with my decision to love this woman until the end... I was not a child anymore that saw love as a play where men and women spoke honey-filled words that only ended with tears when asked to live up to them. To love meant more than anything to feel love, not have the courage to utter those words. That was why when I met Kataryna a week ago, I treated her as I did because I was still afraid of this truth. I was still afraid of the fact that I was not a child anymore and that I had to be truthful towards myself and Seryanna. I was afraid that I could play the make-believe love game and I loathed myself for this fact. I was afraid that I could love a woman like this and be willing to stand by her side my whole life. I was afraid of a foolish thing... I felt like my love for Seryanna was fake and just an illusion created by my mind. That no matter what, it couldn''t be possible for me to feel like this because I was either too young or not even a member of her species. Yet, her tears... her whimpers... her pain... her struggle... they were real. Only I was the one unwilling to accept them so far as real, the only one acting like a child. These thoughts of mine, these facts I became aware off didn''t happen in one night... These were the result of my struggle and pain, my muffled cries and silent tears for over two months. No, they were the result of my inner turmoil, my inner battle since the moment I realized that I really did love Seryanna. Yet, to break through that fear, I just needed one last push... and Kataryna stepped up for the job. Funny how all this time I was able to say that I love Seryanna, yet still wonder if I can accept her. But at the very least, I was able to learn my lesson. Now, everything came down to her answer. Our future and our love could truly begin or end with her decision. ¡°Is it... is it alright if I answer what I want and not what I should?¡± she asked with tears in her eyes. I nodded. ¡°Then... Yes... I want to be your wife and not Draejan''s! I want to be loved by you and be together with you!¡± she cried ¡°I want this... us... but...¡± I was happy and relieved by her words, however, I didn''t want her to enter doubt, so I quickly got up on my feet and sealed her words with a kiss. When we parted lips, I told her ¡°No but... Not tonight...¡± I said and shook my head. ¡°Is this really alright? Is it really fine for me to go against my King''s words?¡± she gulped and trembled. ¡°Yes... For tonight, there''s no King or Albeyater... It''s just us...¡± I said. ¡°For tonight...¡± she smiled. ¡°I love you, Seryanna.¡± I said. ¡°I love you, Alkelios.¡± she replied. We ended our talk with a kiss, and what came afterwards was the moment when we became one in both body and heart. Taking off her armor was for more easier for me now than it was before, and I didn''t struggle with mine either. Seryanna relinquished herself to the heat inside of her and didn''t hold back in showing how much she wanted me, and I didn''t allow myself to fall behind either. Without going into too many intimate details, our first time together was pretty awesome, and thanks to some potions she had at hand, we were able to continue on for much longer. I severely underestimated her desires... When it was over, it was almost the break of dawn. We were resting while embracing ourselves naked with the thin blanket over us. My hand was stroking her long red hair, while she was smiling softly back at me. ¡°We actually did it...¡± she said. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It wasn''t as bad as I thought it would be, but I think after this I might need to replace my bed.¡± she giggled. ¡°Yeah, I heard a crack at one point...¡± I showed a wry smile. ¡°I blame you.¡± she said and nuzzled me. Her lips landed a kiss on my chin and then asked ¡°What are we going to do now?¡± ¡°We can''t elope... It would be too cowardly, and we still have more hands to play.¡± ¡°It crossed my mind, but I wouldn''t want to abandon Princess Elleyzabelle or my sister. My grandfather would also be very sad, and with father gone, I wanted him to be the one to bring me to the altar on my wedding day.¡± she let out a soft sigh. ¡°You have that custom here too?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Usually, fathers are the ones who bring their daughters to the altar, while the men must wait there to receive them. In some cases, the fathers punch their future son-in-laws. If he can withstand the punch, it''s said that he will become someone who can take care of his daughter. If he doesn''t, it''s said that the daughter will be the one who will lead the household.¡± she smiled. ¡°So... I''m going to get punched in the face by Brekkar Draketerus? The one who pushed back the human invasion 38 years ago?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Yes, but don''t worry. I''m sure he won''t send you flying into a dangerous wall.¡± she patted my head. ¡°But I''m still going to be sent flying INTO a wall?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± she giggled. ¡°Well then, I better make sure to train hard to withstand his punch.¡± I laughed. ¡°Then... I ask again, what are we going to do?¡± she showed me a smile and came closer to me. I squeezed her in my embrace a little and then told her what I had planned to do... everything, including what I have yet to tell Kataryna and Kleo. ¡°That''s... dangerous... and stupid.¡± she told me and shook her head. ¡°Yes, but the prize for succeeding is totally worth it!¡± I said and slapped her bottom. ¡°And you didn''t tell even Kataryna about this part?¡± she asked. ¡°She knows I''m going to come back stronger than ever, but not about this part. Knowing her, it would just spoil the fun. It''s my treat for her. Let her know this when the time comes.¡± I winked at her. ¡°Sigh... Well, what I am most surprised about is your [Dragon Tamer] skill... Do you really want to go through it?¡± she asked me with worry in her eyes. ¡°I love you, Seryanna. One day, I''ll have that old geezer Brekkar carry you down the aisle, and when the time comes, I want to be able to have children with you. Maybe not now or in the next few years, but sometime soon... I''m taking this one step at a time... Still, like this, I''ll have better chances.¡± I nodded. ¡°Then why didn''t you do it sooner, if you had done it...¡± she then stopped and looked down ¡°If you have done it, you would have become a target for many of the nobles here... in a good and a bad way.¡± she squeezed me in her arms. ¡°That too, but I was simple too afraid of loosing my humanity...¡± I let out a sigh and gently patted her head. ¡°Right now, I don''t mind giving it up if I can have you.¡± ¡°We call it draconity. Dwarfs calls it dwarfity. Elves call it elfity. Relliars call it relliarity. But in the end, it''s the same thing with minor differences... I don''t think you will lose your humanity, Alkelios, on the contrary, you might gain draconity as well.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I furrowed my brow. ¡°Yes.¡± she giggled. ¡°Hah~ That make me feel better, and now that I think about it, you might be right... Having humanity is not something that''s defined by being a human, it''s more about how we think and act, right? Actually, now that I think about it, there were stories back in my world with characters that weren''t exactly human but acted more human than humans in that story did.¡± I said as I looked up, trying to remember how exactly I came to the conclusion that I would lose my humanity if my body changes. ¡°You''re silly. If I knew you had such worries, I would have been able to tell you far sooner not to worry about it.¡± she said and rubbed her nose against mine. ¡°Then, from now one, if anything bothers me I''ll come directly to you, my lover.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°The same for me, my love.¡± she kissed me. After that we talked about a few other things, and she gave me some survival tips for when I was going to be out hunting in the Seculiar Forest. She also told me that I should also keep my eyes out for monster eggs because with my luck, I would be able to easily find a pet. When it was time for me to leave, I got dressed and gave Seryanna a good bye kiss. I also made a wish for her to be safe while I was gone and for Draejan to stay away from her and my friends. ¡°Good bye, my love. See you in nine months.¡± I told her. ¡°Good bye and be safe.¡± she replied. With this, I climbed out her window and left, heading up for the King''s balcony. After this night together with Seryanna, I felt quite confident in the upcoming talk with his Majesty. I had wished for it to end smoothly from the moment I left the inn, and within it laid a big part of my plan. The only one who could keep tabs on Draejan was him. At the same time, he was also the only with whose approval I could make a comeback and ensure that Seryanna''s wish was going to be fulfilled as well. I will see you in a wedding dress, Seryanna, and I''m going to be the one waiting for you at the altar, not Draejan or anyone else! Me! Alkelios Yatagai! I thought as I jumped over the rail of the King''s balcony. Taking out the necklace and the two letters, with the two wax seals visible, I opened the door and came forth. There, I saw the King of Albeyater, Feryumstark Seyendraugher sitting at the bedside of his wife, the Queen of Albeyater, Elliessara Seyendraugher. His imposing big golden-scaled wings laid folded on his back, but his imposing presence was making me feel as though my life had been forfeited the moment I stepped in. ¡°Give me a good reason why I shouldn''t kill you, human.¡± he said with a low growl without turning around. ¡°I come in peace as a friend of Kataryna Greorg, Brekkar Draketerus, and your daughter, the Third Princess Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher. I hold the proof in my hands.¡± I said in a firm tone of voice, but I couldn''t help but gulp at the end. The dragon in front of me was giving off enough killing intent to make an entire army shiver in their boots. He most likely had the strength to do it too. Every cell in my body was warning me that the entity in front of me was by far the strongest dragon I had ever met so far, and he wasn''t in a friendly mood at all. One wrong step was going to mean the end of me. ¡°That''s one name I haven''t heard in over 500 years, and I can hardly believe that my friend Brekkar, who should be dead by now at the hands of humans had sent you.¡± he growled. ¡°Huh? What do you mean by dead? The potion I made for Brekkar healed him completely. I mean, sure it tasted bad enough to make him feint, but he was up and running the next day screaming that he couldn''t wait to get back on the battlefield. Are you sure you are up to date with the latest affairs in your kingdom?¡± I asked a bit surprised by his comment, and for a moment, I completely forgot to speak in a composed and respectful tone of voice, going back to my casual one. ¡°What?¡± the King turned around, and with a pair of bright golden slit eyes he cast his piercing gaze at me. I gulped. I screwed up. I thought. ¡°Did you speak the truth just now?¡± he asked. I nodded so fast I felt like my head was going to fly off my shoulders. ¡°Give me those letters and that medal. NOW! I will assess with my own eyes if they are indeed the original ones or not.¡± he held out his hand. I gulped. ¡°Sure... Here...¡± He grabbed them and then squinted his eyes at me. ¡°You sure have the guts to come her right after you bedded with a woman. Well, never mind... if it''s your last day, it''s excused.¡± he said. ¡°Nope, I don''t think so. I properly wish to take Seryanna Draketerus as my wife.¡± I nodded and smiled. ¡°What?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°She''s also the main reason I''m here. So go ahead, read the letters and see for yourself whether or not they are from those dragons.¡± I smirked. This was it... Chapter 51: Awakening [Seryanna''s point of view] After Alkelios left, I was laying down on my bed, with the thin blanket being the only piece of fabric covering my body, when a sudden headache struck me. I felt dizzy and my temples pulsed, but I thought it must have been from exhaustion after we did it so many times. There was one more healing potion on the table, so I gulped it down and laid back on my bed. My eyes felt like they were burning and my stomach was heating up as well. I didn''t panic because I didn''t feel in danger at all, however, something was happening to me... I blamed it on exhaustion and maybe a slight case of potion indigestion, but when I opened my eyes, I saw everything a bit blurry. A flap of wings caught my attention, and when I looked out the window, I saw Kleo in her beast form, a beautiful black dragoness, as she flew away from the Palace. Is she with Alkelios? I wondered and then closed my eyes. After that, I fell asleep. When I woke, it was already close to noon. I opened my eyes and the blurriness was gone. I felt refreshed and filled with energy. I must have been tired. I thought and then looked around. The scent of love-making was still strong in the air around me. I giggled to myself and then got up from the bed. Later that day I would have to clean the sheets. Not only did they smell now, but they also had a small stain of blood on it from my first time. As I walked to the bucket of water, I washed my face and neck, but then... I noticed something strange in my reflection. What''s this? I thought. Surprised, I got up and rushed over to my sword and took it out of the scabbard. Using my cleaning cloth, I wiped it a few times and then I looked into the blade. On it was reflected a sight I never thought I was going to see... ¡°Red eyes...¡± I said and gulped. When a dragon experienced their Awakening, the first thing to change would be their eyes. They would turn slit and most of the times even change color. Mine were now slit and red, just like those of any other Awakened dragon. As I lowered the sword, I was happy, but I couldn''t figure out how or why... My gaze fell on the bed and then I remembered what Alkelios told me one time. Two conditions out of four were met... Then... I met the remaining two? What were they? I thought and then remembered what Kataryna told me about the Awakening process as well, Awakening means to be true to yourself... Almost immediately, the answer to my question came to my mind, and I realized what those two other conditions were. I laughed when I thought about it. I laughed hard. When I stopped, I was looking up at the ceiling with tears of happiness flowing down my cheeks. Alkelios, you foolish little human... You are definitely underestimating how great of a man you really are... I thought. After all, if it wasn''t for him, I might have never Awakened at all. The other two conditions for my Awakening were simple. The first one was about allowing myself to break free from the cage I locked myself into, the world of politics, of laws and rules, of orders and dictated justice. I completed this one when I stepped over the King''s supreme orders and allowed myself to be taken by Alkelios even though I was promised to Draejan. Actually, that man had no claim over me right now... The last one was probably even harder... To accept that someone could love me and wish to be with me despite being an Unawakened dragoness. However, I had to be 100% sure inside my heart that this was true and proven in ALL ways. Alkelios did this by breaking the laws, risking death or life imprisonment, all to be together with me for this one night... He even proposed to me, so by all means... the one I was actually engaged to was him, not Draejan. The nobles might see the latter as my fiance, but in truth... Alkelios overwritten him tonight. Yes... I belong to Alkelios now, and he''s mine... and... I won''t let anyone change this FACT. I thought and summoned with ease a small fireball. I didn''t even need to use a chant this time... because this was my element. [Alkelios'' point of view] ¡°Are we there yet?¡± I asked. ¡°If you ask that one more time, I''m tossing you off my back.¡± Kleo grumbled. After my talk with the King of Albeyater, which ended surprisingly well... in the sense that I still had my head on my shoulders, I called over Kleo as we planned and then flew off together with her out of Drakaria. Since both her and Kataryna were recognized as part of the Third Princess'' party by now, the guards didn''t raise any questions regarding who they were and where they were going. As such, they were able to take me away from there with ease. Now, two days later, this was Kleo''s second time flying, and we had the Seculiar Forest within our sight. In half an hour or so, we would reach it. ¡°Are you ready?¡± Kataryna asked. ¡°We did the last checks this morning. Everything is in here.¡± I patted the [Purse] ring, which chant wasn''t all that easy to learn as I initially thought it would be. At least Kleo had a blast with my mistakes. ¡°I wasn''t talking about that... But here.¡± she then placed her hand on my chest. I nodded and smiled. ¡°Thanks to you, I was able to wake up... and I believe I did the right thing with Seryanna... Now all that''s left to do is become strong enough to wipe the dirt with Draejan.¡± I said with smirk. ¡°Good then.¡± she nodded. About twenty minutes later, we were finally above the forest. Indeed, flying was far better than using Khosinni. ¡°Why didn''t we do this in the first place?¡± I asked as I got ready to jump off.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°Because I didn''t want to hurt sister''s feelings... She''s unawakened, you know?¡± Kleo replied. ¡°Dragons, especially dragonesses are very mindful about who they carry on their back. Besides, you two never asked.¡± Kataryna replied and shrugged. ¡°I see... Makes sense...¡± I nodded. ¡°Oh, before you go.¡± Kataryna stopped and then pulled me towards her. She wrapped her arms around me and covered us with her wings. ¡°A little farewell gift.¡± she told me with a smile and then kissed me. I was surprised by this sudden ''attack'', but since it was her... I accepted it. When our lips parted, she pushed me off Kleo''s back. ¡°Come back strong, young whelp! Make me tingle with excitement the next time I see you!¡± she shouted. ¡°I will!¡± I made a thumbs up and then I fell through the trees similar to a cartoon character... ¡°Ouch! Omph! Ow! Ugh! Not the face! Ouch! Gah! Ouch! Omph! Ugh! Owie!¡± THUD! ¡°Are you alright?¡± Kleo asked a bit worried. I probably hit every single branch on the way down... ¡°I''m alright! My face dampened the impact with the ground!¡± I replied. [Kataryna''s point of view] ¡°Let''s fly away... He''ll be alright.¡± I told her. ¡°Are you sure? I''m a bit worried.¡± Kleo replied. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Besides, we two need to go train as well.¡± I told her. ¡°Huh?! Why do I need to train?¡± she asked surprised. ¡°Because the Third Princess needs every bit of fighting power she can get her hands on. Also, as long as you are still weak like you are now... Everyone will kick you around for being a black scale. You need to prove them that they can''t do that. After all, you are a Draketerus as well, right?¡± I replied. Kleo remained silent afterwards and continued to fly us back towards the capital. Now that Alkelios picked up his training seriously, I was thinking of training this little girl until he returned. Still, it made very curious to see how much he was going to rise in strength in the next several months. Show me something fun, Alkelios... I thought in my mind as I smirked. [Alkelios'' point of view] After I dusted my clothes, I changed into my newly acquired enchanted Draconitium Armor and equipped my enchanted Draconitium Sword. The stats on these things were ridiculous, but what I was about to do required this ridiculous factor... Taking a deep breath, I shouted at the top of my lungs: ¡°I WISH TO SURVIVE ALL THE DANGERS IN THIS FOREST! I WISH TO LEVEL UP AS FAST AS I POSSIBLY CAN BY KILLING MONSTERS AND CRAFTING ITEMS IN THIS FOREST! I WISH IN THE NEXT 9 MONTHS TO REACH AND GO PAST LEVEL 1000! YOU HEARD ME?! NOW COME AT ME! SEND YOUR WORST!¡± When I finished, I gulped and clenched the hilt of the sword. ¡°RAWR!¡± ¡°GRAWR!¡± ¡°KYAKAKA!¡± Countless roars were all of sudden raised to the sky. The ground trembled and the air stiffened around me. It was like the whole forest heard me and was now answering my wishes. In front of me... I saw a horde moving in... I gulped. ¡°Here they come...¡± I told myself and took a deep breath. [Seryanna''s point of view] One week after Alkelios left and Kleo started training with Kataryna, I was on my way to the Third Princess when Draejan suddenly called me out from behind. ¡°Sir Seryanna! A pleasure to see you after all this time!¡± he said, but I didn''t turn around. I stopped and looked down at the floor. Inside me there was a vengeful fire that wished to burn him to cinders, so I was doing my best to calm it down. With my Awakening in progress, I was a bit on the edge, and looking at this bastard''s face was the last thing I wanted to do. ¡°Sir Draejan, a pleasure it is not, I will assure you of this. Now, if you''ll excuse me, I need to be going.¡± I said in a slightly annoyed tone of voice. ¡°Wait a second.¡± he said and placed his hand on my shoulder. I froze on the spot and clenched my jaw. ¡°I''m just going to tell you this out of the goodness of my heart, but you should forget that worthless human. He''s nothing when compared to us. You are destined for a place by my side leading the great Brekkar Army and turning it into a gem of the Albeyater Kingdom. A human like him would have only brought you shame.¡± he spat. I closed my eyes for a moment and placed my hand over his. ¡°I was certain you would come to your senses... Ungh!¡± he said and then groaned. Of course it would hurt, I clenched his hand and applied heat on it. Turning around slowly, I looked back at him and saw what a worthless dragon he was. I can''t believe I was afraid of him... A rank higher mine? As if I care anymore... I thought. ¡°S-Sir Seryanna?¡± he blinked surprised as he looked at my red slit eyes. ¡°Draejan... I''m telling you this out of the ''kindness'' of my heart. If you dare to touch me again... I''m going to kill you.¡± I then let go of his hand and left. I was certain my sudden change was both a surprise and a shock to him, but I didn''t care. As long as I was within the Palace and had Kataryna as my friend, this dragon would not dare try anything foolish. [9 months and 1 day after Alkelios left the Palace] [Alkelios'' point of view] ¡°Its Bitsy BOOM!¡± I shouted at the top of my lungs as I unleashed the devastating attack from the top of the clouds. The sphere of about 3 meters in diameter of bright red fire flew out of my clawed hand and headed towards the center of the army I targeted on these barren lands. I was smirking when I unleashed it... It was one of my most powerful attacks, and also my most deadliest one yet. ¡°I''m quite curious to see what it will do...¡± I told myself. Too bad their armors and materials will turn to dust after the boom... I thought and slightly regretted it, but it wasn''t like I didn''t warn them. They were a bunch of insect-like creatures who arrived on the north shores of the continent all of a sudden. I knew this place was barren, but the monsters here were no joke. All of them were past level 700. Unfortunately, because I used this place to hunt for materials and tasty meats, I ended up almost wiping out the entire fauna... Thus, granting them a free passage to Albeyater. Oops! Anyway, when these monsters arrived, I first tried to negotiate with them. I flew over and had a little chat with their commander, who was speaking in a broken draconian dialect. I told them that beyond this place was the Seculiar Forest which belonged to Albeyater Kingdom. Continuing with their armies like that would only breach their borders... Apparently that was their intention... Bloody bastards tried to kill me afterwards. If I didn''t wear my armor, I would have been dead! Well... so much for their army, the whole 40000 of them. The attack I launched at the army was aimed at their center. Of course, I was outside of its 25 km range, to be more precise, I was flying through the air at about 2 km altitude and a distance of around 30 km away from their vanguard line. ¡°3... 2... 1...¡± I said as I counted down until the impact. BOOOM! The three containment domes were deployed instantly and the devastation caused by them could be seen quite clearly. It engulfed their whole army in the blink of a second and ravaged the barren lands, although... there wasn''t much that could be destroyed here anyway. To be noted, the blast also included the majority of their boats too, but the survivors would probably die out because of the radiation. Luckily for me, I was wearing lead underwear. It was extra precaution, but they were damn itchy against my scales. ¡°That was... awesome.¡± I said. I held no regret over wiping out the army of insects. If I didn''t do it, Seryanna and the rest would have engaged them, but until that happened, they would have reached Tomeron, where my friend Brekkar was currently living. The number of dead dragons as a result of this sudden attack would have certainly spelled out great losses for the kingdom. Now, from the great army of 40000 bugs, there wasn''t enough even to send out a scout force. I seriously doubted they could even return to their homeland, wherever that was. With a shrug, I was about to leave, when suddenly... ¡°Shiny?¡± I asked. Yup... The explosion revealed a hidden deposit of minerals. Several of them actually... ¡°SHINY!¡± I screamed and flew towards it. Of course, I changed armor mid-flight to the anti-radiation armor I had developed in my free time just in case I ever had to use this skill. I also took out a Draconitium-Dregaryum Alloy Pickaxe I had created with my blacksmithing skill. Well, there was no rush to get back to Drakaria. I could reach it in 4 to 5 days, depending on how much it would take me to pack all of my things, but until then... it was mining time! Yup! There was no shame in admitting the fact that I was a hoarder gamer... half-dragon! Side Story (2): Iolaus resolve [Iolaus'' point of view] The day I finally saw Tomeron town stretching on the fields before me, I let a smile form on my lips. It had been a long and difficult journey for me, especially after I had quite being part of the Paladin troops stationed in Pertiko. No doubt they would come to hate me. If I were to fail in my quest here, I would have nowhere to go, nowhere to return... nowhere to hide. After all, I chose to fall in love with a black-scaled dragoness who were usually the target of persecution for the Paladins. It was all in the name of Light, but after meeting Alkelios, my long buried doubts came forth and revealed themselves to me. Back then, in the dungeon, in front of a trembling, hurt, and crying Thraherkleyoseya, I chose to look once more at these doubts, and I was finally able to realize that killing her was never what I wanted... If I had chosen to slay her there, I doubt I would have lived to tell the tale. True, I might have been seen with praise by my peers, but not long afterwards, I would have drown in regret... Because deep inside, I never hated her... I said I did. I acted like I did. I forced myself to believe I did, but the truth was that I never did hate her. I couldn''t because... I loved and was always going to love the black-scaled dragoness Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus. Now, I found myself standing in the middle of the road and looking towards Tomeron. There was a peaceful, calming air surrounding it. There was no sense of danger or fear despite the fact that they were at an arm''s length away from one of the most dangerous locations in this kingdom, the Seculiar Forest. If anything, I would think this little town was no different than one of those found in the safest parts of the Embryger Empire. I enjoyed the view and contemplated my journey for a while before I decided to go and find Brekkar Draketerus, my fiance''s grandfather. He was the target of my journey. I hoped to train under him and gain the strength I needed to protect my loved ones in the future, just as I had promised her. One would say that the hard part had just begun because it was a well known fact that Brekkar was a stubborn dragon, but more so an unforgiving one when it came to the little family he had left. Last time I saw my beloved Thraherkleyoseya was when I was still in Pertiko village, before I resigned my duty as a Paladin, so right now I had no rank, I was just Iolaus von Striggnyark, the wandering adventurer. Of course, I still retained my nobility, but I didn''t have the courage to let my family know of my current predicament. Besides, I had a promise to keep first. I had to become strong enough to protect my future wife from all the injustice and hate the world might throw at her for being a black scale. My friend, Alkelios, made me realize that I had to stop running away and instead face my challenges head on. I had to fight for my lover no matter how difficult I thought it was going to be. Never give up and always push forward, that was going to be my new creed. I had him to thank for this. As such, I couldn''t just waste my time doing nothing, so as soon as I stepped into Tomeron, I asked around for directions towards the Draketerus Estate. The people here were kind with me and showed me the way. It was around a few hours past noon when I found myself standing in front of the big manor. It was similar to a small palace given its design and architecture, but it appeared as though they were still in the middle of fixing it. There were still signs of the fire that nearly ate the whole thing two months ago. The town people told me about it, but I didn''t know the exact details. What they did tell me, however, was that the young man brought by Seryanna played a crucial role in destroying the nearby bandit group called The Twin Daggers. He also healed the local lord, Brekkar, so there were only positive rumors about him flying around. Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward and knocked on the huge door. I struck the metal knock hard, letting it be known that someone was here, then I waited patiently. Not long afterwards, a maid opened the door. She appeared to be quite young, but I felt like she hid away a terrible amount of strength behind her polite smile. ¡°Good day, may I help you?¡± she asked. ¡°Good day, my name is Iolaus von Striggnyark. I came to see Sir Brekkar Draketerus. May I request an audience?¡± I stood straight and held a hand at my chest as I said these words. ¡°Hm? One moment please.¡± she said and then closed the door. I blinked surprised, but I waited patiently. A quarter of an hour later, the door opened again, and I saw the old dragon Brekkar standing there, wiping his sweat with a clean towel. He was wearing a pair of light baggy pants and a shirt on top. His stern gaze was intimidating as always, and I could feel the pressure of his presence. Despite his age and former illness, this dragon retained the strength of character he forged throughout his life as a warrior and general. I gulped. ¡°Good day, Sir Brekk... UGHO!¡± Before I could finish my words, he punched me in the face, and it was lights out for me. When I woke up, I was looking at the clear morning sky. The birds were chirping in the nearby trees, and a soft breeze brushed the grass around me. I blinked surprised and then got up. My cheek hurt a little, so I massaged it a bit. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked myself as I looked around to get a grip on my surroundings. I was in the middle of a field behind the Draketerus manor. My bags, armor, and weapon were all gone. I panicked for a moment, but as I got up on my feet, I remembered the last moment before I was knocked out. Sir Brekkar punched me... ¡°Those rumors were all a bunch of lies, he hasn''t weakened at all!¡± I complained as I dusted off my clothes. Currently, I wasn''t wearing my paladin armor anymore but only a pair of baggy pants and a simple linen shirt. I couldn''t help but wonder if I got robbed or something. It would have been a disgrace if that was so, but I was standing behind the Draketerus manor not in the middle of the forest or the road. I wasn''t plundered by thieves. ¡°Was this Sir Brekkar''s doing?¡± I wondered.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. I walked up to the manor, and there I saw the former general standing straight with both hands on the hilt of his great sword, pushing its tip into the ground. Although years had passed since he last stepped on a battlefield and rumors of him being on his deathbed spread throughout the entire kingdom, he didn''t appear to have lost his edge. Just by standing in front of him and looking at his imposing self, I felt a pressure on my shoulders that threatened to knock me on my back. The difference in strength between us was simply immense. It was quite clear to me that if I were to enter in combat against this dragon, I was going to be turned into dust with only one swing of his sword. Thus, I bowed. ¡°You are Iolaus, aren''t you?¡± he asked me in a tone of voice that gave off a terrible killing intent. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar.¡± I replied like an obedient soldier. ¡°Why have you come here?¡± he asked. My head was bowed, but I knew he was glaring at me. How couldn''t he be? After all, in my younger days, I cast off Thraherkleyoseya when I saw the difference in color between our scales. ¡°To train under you.¡± I replied. ¡°What for?¡± I he asked. At the sound of him lifting up his sword and coming closer to me, I gulped. ¡°Tell me the reason and if I don''t like it, I will kill you where you stand. In that outfit, I can not see you as a Paladin but a simple thief. If anyone were to ask, I just slew a thief who trespassed on my property.¡± he declared and then stopped at one step away from me. I gulped again. So this is why he knocked me out and took away all of my stuff... In this getup, anyone could easily mistake me for a thief or bandit. I thought. ¡°I wish to train under you because I want to become strong enough to protect the woman I love, your granddaughter, Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus!¡± I declared without hesitation. The reply I received was a boot to my face. He kicked me hard enough for me to get tossed back and roll several time on the grass. My lip was cut in my teeth, and I spat blood. My head was spinning, but I tried to get up. It was unsightly of me not to even try to do so. ¡°If you leave now, I''ll spare you.¡± he told me. Is he telling me to give up and run away? I thought. I gulped, but I knew that I couldn''t do this... I couldn''t betray her again. Going back to my kneeling position and bowing my head until my forehead touched the ground, I shouted ¡°I came all the way from Pertiko to train under you! I wish to become strong enough to protect Thraherkleyoseya! I don''t want to ever betray her again like I did in the past! I love her, and I wish to be there for her no matter what anyone else thinks! That''s why I need to be strong! Strong enough to survive against all those who would hate us. Strong enough to protect her and stay by her side no matter what!¡± My words were sincere, honest, and from the bottom of my heart. If this old dragon couldn''t forgive me for what I did in the past, then my fate was sealed... ¡°Hmph!¡± he snorted and then cut the ground in front of me. The slash was almost a palm deep, and it was so close, it nearly cut off my fingers. After this, the old dragon turned around and left. Maybe he didn''t believe me... Maybe he thought it was useless to train me because I was going to betray Thraherkleyoseya again.. I will never do that again to her... NEVER! I thought and refused to move from that spot. With my head bowed to the ground, in front of the slash he made into the ground, I waited for him to return and give me a reply. Sir Brekkar didn''t come back even after several hours had went by... Evening came and he still didn''t show up. The sky turned cloudy and soon enough, it started to rain, but I didn''t budge from my spot. It was cold, I was shivering, and both my muscles and joints were hurting so bad, I felt like crying, but I stubbornly refused to move. Night came and I was still bowing on the muddy ground while rain washed over my back. I didn''t even do a half-beast transformation to cover my body in white scales and spread my wings to protect my self of the rain. I was in my weakest form, kneeling on mud, bowing my head in the rain, all of this because I could not give up here... Not after I said those words to Thraherkleyoseya. When morning came, I was at my limits. My whole body was shivering, and I couldn''t even feel some parts of my body. I felt like was about to faint any moment now, but I still forced myself to stand there, bowing. ¡°Why do you want to train?¡± someone asked. My head was a bit dizzy, so I didn''t know if it was Brekkar or not. ¡°Because... I... I love Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus... I love her... from the bottom of my heart... I don''t want to make her sad again... I don''t want to make her cry... I want to stand by her side, to raise a family with her... I want to marry her...¡± I spoke a bit in a daze. Although I said a lot, I couldn''t remember even half of what I said. Afterwards, there was silence again. ¡°What if I tell you that I don''t wish to train you?¡± This time, I was sure it was Brekkar. ¡°Then... I will train by myself... I will do whatever I can to reach a Breakthrough and return to her... No matter how long or how hard it''s going to be...¡± I replied. ¡°Even if you die?¡± he asked. ¡°No, I will stay alive no matter what... If I die, then it will make her sad, and I don''t want that...¡± I said. A hand was placed on my shoulder and then I was lifted up. My whole body ached and all of my joints cracked from the sudden movement. ¡°If your resolve is this strong, then I won''t push you away, but be prepared for a lot of pain!¡± Brekkar said as he smirked. He was the one who pulled me up. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar...¡± I replied and made a small smile. ¡°Good! Now get some rest! We''ll start training as soon as you wake up and have a good meal!¡± he laughed. I didn''t reply, but hearing this made me happy and like a candle''s flame that was blown off, I blacked out. Later that day, I woke up in one of the spare room. I was cleaned up of all the dirt and mud I had gathered, and someone even changed me into a pair spare clean clothes. It was most likely one of the maids who did this. Next to a wall, I saw my armor, weapon and the rest of my stuff, but what caught my attention was the letter placed on top of my bag. With a groan escaping my lips, I walked up to it and picked it up. It was from Thraherkleyoseya and addressed to me. Dear Iolaus, If you are reading this, it means that you safely arrived at my grandfather''s house. Don''t be afraid of that old geezer. He sounds and looks tough, but he''s just a big softy inside! Buy him some sweets when you go to Tomeron or Andromeda, and you will certainly win his favor! Please stay safe and be healthy, Iolaus. Don''t do anything reckless or stupid like stand in the rain all day or something like that. Also, listen to everything my grandfather has to say and if you aren''t sure about something, just ask him, especially if it''s something about what you were thought in the Temple of Light. Although, I fear this may be asking a bit too much from you. I don''t wish to intrude on your faith. If you want to send me a letter just write one and give it to grandfather, he''ll make sure it will reach me. I love you, Iolaus, please stay safe and don''t forget your promise. Yours truly, Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus. PS: I can''t wait to (...) I let out a sigh. The rest of her letter was just a big chunk of sexual delusions covering another two pages. Although I knew from experience that she wasn''t really into that stuff, this was so like her to exaggerate things almost to the extreme so she could then turn it into a prank or tease. Inside, she was an innocent prankster and a bit of a horny one... ¡°I wonder if I unleashed something I shouldn''t have?¡± I said as I packed the letter nicely and then placed it in the drawer of the desk in this room. Tomorrow I planned to write a letter back to her. Still, this was it... the beginning of my training under Brekkar Draketerus, the one once called the Strongest General. Side Story (3): The memories of an old general [38 years ago in the Albeyater Kingdom] [Brekkar''s point of view] The journey was long and treacherous, but with my guidance and protection, we had nothing to fear! By the fall of night, we would reach Drakaria, the wonderful capital of our Albeyater Kingdom. Tomorrow was going to be a glorious day for our family, my granddaughter, Seryanna, was going to take the Royal Knight exam and most certainly pass! Why, I would be a dried up Merion if this wasn''t going to happen! I trained my granddaughter myself, and she had both the skill and wisdom to stand on the battlefield right by my side! This was something I often bragged about to that old lizard tail, Feryumstark! ¡°Grandfather? Why did you drag me along as well?¡± asked my my third youngest granddaughter, Thraherkleyoseya. My son was wise, but sometimes his naming sense felt like it got tossed off a rocky mountain and didn''t even try to avoid the jagged cliffs on the way down. ¡°Because your grandmother was not very pleased with your latest prank. What were you thinking catapulting the captain of the guards into the ladies bathroom like that? The maids nearly had a heart attack!¡± I ruffled her hair. ¡°Stop it, grandpa!¡± she pouted. I smirked proudly. This little prankster was never ill intended. We all knew this... Unfortunately, she awakened as a black-scale. They were some of the most hated dragons because of their affinity with the black arts. Although unbeatable as spies and assassins, theirs skills did very little in proving their worth outside of military and political plots. When she was younger, she wanted to be a shadow puppeteer, but after she had her heart broken by that lad, Iolaus, things went downwards for my little angel. To make it worse, he awakened as a white-scale, Thraherkleyoseya''s complete opposite in elements. And if that wasn''t enough, the stupid boy ended up recruited by the Temple of Light, which absolutely despised all black-scales because of some religious nonsense. Even with my fame and reputation as a general, there wasn''t much I could do about it. This was their fate, but if the gods would have it, I wanted to be offered the opportunity to give that boy a good thrashing! One that he would never forget! Indeed, I was determined to do this! Maybe the next time I saw him, I would punch him right in the face, no questions asked! ¡°Sister, it was your fault, you know? But you shouldn''t despair, we get to see Drakaria! It''s amazing!¡± Seryanna said with a bright smile. She was a cheerful girl, always filled with energy and the desire to help others. If I were to guess, she inherited this bright personality of hers from her mother, although, instead of becoming a refined lady, she took the path of war like her father. I let out a sigh and looked ahead at the big capital of Albeyater Kingdom, Drakaria. It was a marvelous city renowned for its resilience in the face of time and feared for the strength of its guards. And there, right at the heart of this city, my granddaughter was going to take her Royal Knight exam and then pledge her loyalty to the third daughter of that old lizard. [Two days later, after the exam] ¡°I think she will become a fine Knight once she awakens, Brekkar.¡± the old lizard remarked. ¡°I think she is already a fine Knight! Your daughter will be in safe hands, I promise this!¡± I replied with a smirk. The two of us were currently in the middle of a small sparring match. Sparks flew left and right as our sword collided. We didn''t use [Boost] or any other body enhancement spells besides those needed for defense. We also promised not to use any spells during the match. If we did, we might have accidentally blown up half of Drakaria. ¡°Still, I wonder... Aren''t you getting a bit rusty, you old fool?¡± the old lizard said with a smirk as he aimed his blade at my neck. The sharp edge was avoided by a scale''s length, and I pushed forward, slamming my shoulder in his chest. He was thrown back by two steps and let out a cough. ¡°Nah! I feel just fine! Always ready to kick your scaly behind on the field! You might be the King, my friend, but your crown can''t save you from getting your ass whooped by me!¡± I declared with a broad smile. ¡°Nonsense! It will be you who will end up picking dirt from between your teeth by the end of this round!¡± the old lizard bragged and took his battle stance. Well, I might call him an old lizard, but he didn''t look aged at all. The Albeyater Kingdom''s King was at the peak of his strength just as he was centuries ago, maybe he was stronger. We both were, but in our little spars, we were close to equals... Well, sort off... I felt like the old fool was hiding his true strength because he feared I would stop sparring with him if I knew he was far stronger than me. Just as we were about to cross swords again, a messenger arrived. ¡°My liege! My liege! Urgent news from the West!¡± he said and then stopped at the edge of the training field to take his breath. ¡°The West? Is it from my domain?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar...¡± he replied, but I didn''t like the look on his face. So he brings bad news, eh? I thought, but not even I could suspect how terrible the news actually were. ¡°Speak, dragon!¡± the King declared. ¡°Yes, your Majesty!¡± he saluted and stood straight. ¡°The Brekkar Plains have come under attack by an invading human army. Our scouts found out they are being led by a human Breakthrough-er. The fortresses Sendra, Callus, and Thorn have fallen and the army is currently settling in on the territory. The attack was swift and didn''t last more than three days. This happened one day ago...¡± he stopped and then gulped. I clenched my jaw and squeezed the hilt of the sword so hard it felt like the metal deformed in my grasp. My whole family was settled in those three fortresses. The King''s adoptive son, Coshun, was there as well last I remembered. If they had been conquered already, then... what about them? Are they still alive? I asked myself, but if anything, I knew I was praying for too much. ¡°Why is the news of an invading army four days late?¡± the King asked with a glare. The messengers in the Dragon Kingdoms were dragons who were known to be among the fastest in flight. From The Brekkar Plains all the way to Drakaria, it shouldn''t have taken him more than a day. ¡°They killed off all the messengers as soon as they took flight. Groups of adventurers hidden in the forests took them out. I had to take the ground route until I was far enough to assume beast form.¡± he replied. ¡°Such a thing... How was it possible?¡± the King asked in anger. I placed my hand on the shoulder of the old lizard and then told him ¡°Let me have my revenge.¡± I requested. I didn''t need to ask again. My old friend would have flown himself on the battlefield if needed be, but considering the situation, I couldn''t allow him to take such a risk. There were many other ways a King like him could help me without facing the heat of the battle by my side. Still... How was I supposed to break the news to my granddaughters? [A few hours later] The Brekkar Army, what was left of it anyway, was assembling on the outskirts of Drakaria. Messengers flew in all directions to send word to my troops of the upcoming battle. They all either rushed here or headed towards a place where they might meet us. I planned not to waste even a single second idling about while waiting for the army to gather to its full strength. Besides, on the order of the King, the other general lent me several of their troops as well. My army''s battle power once we reached The Brekkar Plains was going to be of 27000 strong dragons. Half of the Brekkar Army''s original strength, but with me at the front, it was worth more than a 70000 strong one. ¡°Grandfather... mother... father..¡± Seryanna said with tears in her eyes while clenching her fists. I let out a sigh and gently patted her head. ¡°You are to stay here, young whelp. Your battle is not this one to fight. As a Royal Knight, you have the responsibility of standing by your lord''s side and shielding her from all those who bear her harm will. Do you understand, Sir Seryanna?¡± I asked, letting my intent be known. The child nodded her head, but the tears didn''t stop. Seeing her angry expression made me realize just how much I treasured her innocent smile. It was unfortunate that she would have to go through something like this, but such was the fate of the gods... Maybe the fact that these two children were spared was also their will? Alas, I was old enough to know how to hide my own anger... I closed my eyes and thought Sendra... I''m sorry I wasn''t by your side. I pray that you escaped the fires of war and that we will meet safely somewhere... I opened my eyes and then donned my plated armor. General Brekkar Draketerus was about to step on the battlefield once more, but this time... the blood of humans would turn the ground red! [Two days later, after conquering Thorn] The horns of victory sounded over the black battlefield, yet I was deaf to it. Dragons cheered for they had won and raised their arms to the sky as if to praise the gods above, while the bodies of humans littered the grounds around them. All of them had either been chopped in half, ripped apart, burnt to a cinder, frozen and shattered, slashed by swords, cut by light, smashed by blunt weapons, or faced some sort of other horrible way to die. Even I held in my right hand the ripped out spine of the general who claimed this fortress. My own body was drenched in my enemy''s blood. My sword had ended the lives of countless humans, yet I felt nothing for them. Neither rage, hate, or anger was in my heart. There was nothing there... Or maybe it was better to say that I had felt despair to the point where my emotions had shattered to pieces and made me unable to feel anything. How could I? No, what was I supposed to feel when looking at the bodies of my beloved children and grandchildren? What was I supposed to feel when I saw nothing but... pain? Tears tried to form in the corners of my eyes, but nothing poured down on my cheeks. I gulped, yet I couldn''t feel the spit in my mouth. The bastards... they murdered them then hung them on the walls like criminals. With a single glance, I could see that their end was not a pleasant one. They suffered. They were tortured for the sake of it... for fun. These humans... they were worse than monsters... worse than animals. This was why, we, The Brekkar Army, murdered them all in cold blood. We left none escape our scaly grasp. ¡°Was I too late?¡± I dared ask in the end. ¡°No, Sir Brekkar, they had been dead for almost three days now. They never intended to keep them alive.¡± Decizor, an honorable commander, replied as he came forth with a towel, so that I may wipe off the blood of my enemies. The dragon was in half-beast form, wearing his coat of brown scales and looking back at me with respectful black eyes. ¡°I see... Any survivors?¡± I asked. ¡°None.¡± came his reply. The dragon closed his eyes and lowered his head. ¡°My condolences, Sir Brekkar.¡± he said. ¡°Yes...¡± I mumbled then looked back at the hanging bodies of my children. Could a father feel a pain more horrible than this one? It was a question which answer I did not wish to hear... [One day later, after conquering Callus] ¡°Two down, one to go...¡± I said as I looked at the captured human commander. ¡°You will not win! Humanity had yet to show its might!¡± the pitiful fool glared at me. He spoke in the human language of his kingdom. ¡°Is that so?¡± I spoke in the same language. There wasn''t even a drop of energy in the tone of my voice. It was as if I was speaking while being locked up in a very boring dream. I approached him and then I grasped his left arm and shoulder. ¡°W-What are you doing?¡± he asked, fear showing up on his face. ¡°Me? Nothing? Just... this...¡± I said and then I brutally ripped out his left arm right out of its socket.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. I tossed the limb to the combat pet belonging to Decizor while ignoring the man''s screams. The beast ate the fresh meat, slurping up the blood. It was a large Dayuk of the Ice Element. A powerful beast, but not one that was easy to tame. ¡°You are noisy.¡± I slapped his jaw, dislocating it, then I punched his stomach, making him puke out his last meal. ¡°What shall we do with him?¡± asked the soldier in charge of him. ¡°Kill him.¡± I replied calmly, then I looked to the rest of the captured human soldiers. They were all trembling and looking at me with fear in their eyes. ¡°This is the human army? Pathetic...¡± I spoke in the human tongue. They showed no mercy to the civilians, so I had no intention of showing any mercy to them. I took a deep breath and then unleashed a fiendish fire over them. It was just your average [Fire Breath] spell cast without a chant. Since they had no means of defending themselves against it, they all burst out into flames and died while screaming in pain. I watched the entire scene, letting their suffering quench the thirst of my revenge. [Two hours later] Decizor walked up to me in a hurry and stopped me from marching forward. Fortress Sendra was next. ¡°Sir Brekkar! We found something!¡± he said. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°This...¡± he showed me an unfinished letter. I took it and furrowed my brow at it. The letter was written in the human tongue. Which one was this? Erm... Nocturn? No... Majin? No... Opharya? Ah! The language of the Ten Swords Kingdom! I thought after I managed to figure it out. Knowing the enemy''s language was an important skill all the dragon generals acquired over time. ¡°What is this? Is this true?¡± I asked as I looked back at Decizor. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar.¡± he nodded. ¡°Then... this will sadden his Majesty... Send a messenger back to Drakaria and tell him to take this letter as well. Have the men scour the fields and search for Prince Coshun''s body.¡± I ordered. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar. But... shouldn''t the troops get some rest before marching forward?¡± he asked. I glared back at him. For a moment, I was about to shout in anger at him. Only the sight of the tired soldiers leaning on the wall far behind him stopped me from doing so. It was then when I realized that I had marched them for three days straight. If they weren''t dragons, they would have certainly died or collapsed of fatigue already. I''m losing myself to my own emotions... I thought and shook my head. Letting out another sigh, I pressed at the center of my forehead with the back of my clawed finger. Even I was feeling tired, but not as much as they did. Sometimes, I forgot that Breakthrough Awakened dragons were far more resilient than simple Awakened ones. There was enough energy in these old bones of mine to conquer ten more fortresses! Well, I thought of myself as old, but truth be told, I looked rather young, just like that old lizard tail on the throne of this kingdom. It was the advantage of a Breakthrough Awakened. Unfortunately, my beloved Sendra was only an Awakened, and time was slowly catching up to her. The wrinkles of old age and the pains in her bones started to show up lately. Well, I still loved her just as much as I did back when we were young, so I was also partially to blame for this. I guess... I''ll never get the chance to hold her in my arms again... I thought and the pain of losing her spread through my chest. [The following morning] I woke up with tears pouring down my cheeks. It was the first time I cried since I heard about the invading human army. For a moment, I wished it was all just a bad dream, but I had no such luck. The horrible truth was in front of me... From my window, I could see the freshly made graves of the victims that fell prey to this invasion. Their bodies had been turned to ash to prevent them from returning as undead, and all that remained was a wooden pole with the name of the deceased inscribed on it, if they had been identified. Those who haven''t were left as ''unknown victim''. Of course, I went through the painful process of identifying everyone I could. Friends, family, or simple acquaintances were all there. All of them were there, none had survived. A knock at my door forced me to stop my tears and straighten myself. Such a face was not one the general of an army was supposed to have. ¡°Come in!¡± I ordered. Decizor entered and saluted. I was standing in front of the window. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°We found some survivors... but...¡± he stopped and gulped ¡°There''s a human among them...¡± His words made me knit my brows in confusion. ¡°What do you mean a human?¡± I asked. ¡°You should speak with him, yourself, Sir Brekkar. The dragons claim he saved them...¡± Decizor replied. ¡°That''s not possible...¡± I thought and shook my head ¡°Where are they?¡± I asked. ¡°In the barracks. The soldiers are keeping an eye on them. They were able to hide in a hidden room under the floor at the back of the building. One of our soldiers happened to find them by chance.¡± he replied. ¡°I see...¡± I closed my eyes for a moment ¡°Wait for me there. I will change and then join you.¡± I told him. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar!¡± he saluted and walked out of my room. After he was gone, I shook my head. I could guess this human was up to no good... Maybe he was one of the adventurers who took down the messengers? Still, I had yet to find out how their bunch managed to infiltrate the kingdom so easily. My guess was that they used a more remote part of the shore, or perhaps they climbed the steep cliff side. If one had the strength and the means, it wasn''t impossible. When I reached the barracks, I found the human sharing a cup of warm soup together with a dragoness. It was a rather odd scene, but once I made myself present, they stopped their meal. This human does not fear me or hate me... I thought as I looked at him and then I turned my gaze to the dragoness She''s worried... for his safety? The signs were clearly there, but it didn''t make any sense. I knew all humans weren''t all bad just as all dragons weren''t all good, but... this... I found odd. ¡°They say you saved the dragons here... Is that true?¡± I asked while glaring at him. He gulped. First sign of fear. I thought. ¡°Yes, Sir Brekkar.¡± he nodded. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°They were my friends, and I''m sorry I couldn''t save any more...¡± he bowed his head to the ground. No, he knelt in front of me... Is he shedding tears? Why? I thought. ¡°You there. Speak. Is this true?¡± I ordered the dragoness next to him. ¡°Yes, my husband speaks the truth, my lord.¡± she knelt in front of me as well. Husband? What? my mind stopped at this word. What she said made not only me, but the dragon soldiers around me as well both confused and surprised at the same time. I did not view this as treason, but more as an impossible fact. Yet, I had to admit, even I heard the remote rumors of dragon-human or dragon-elf couple living on the outskirts of the kingdom. To see one was... unexpected. ¡°You married a human? Why?¡± I asked confused. ¡°Out of love, my lord.¡± she spoke. ¡°You love this human?¡± I asked again. ¡°Yes.¡± she replied without hesitation. ¡°I love her as well, that''s why I did not hesitate to betray my own kind for her.¡± the man replied without hesitation. What is this? Some kind of joke? I wanted to ask, but I left these questions only for my mind to hear. Looking back at the survivors, I saw dragons of various ages, both men and women, as well as children. They were all civilians, dragons that did not know how to hold a sword and never did hold one. Yet, how did they enter the barracks? I wondered. This was a question I didn''t hold for myself. ¡°My father is... was a noble who worked at the fortress for the Draketerus family. When I was young, he told me of a secret room in the back of the barracks. When the battle started, we took refuge there, while the other civilian groups hid inside the fortress.¡± the dragoness replied. ¡°She speaks the truth, my lord.¡± one of the old dragons here vouched for her. Several others followed suit. ¡°I understand... And how were you not found?¡± I asked. ¡°The soldier who came to check this place... I killed him and then I wore his armor in order to distract the others from finding this place. When your army came, I took refuge with my wife again...¡± the human replied. ¡°Where is the armor and the body of the human?¡± I asked. ¡°The armor is on that table.¡± he pointed at it. ¡°And the body is in the barrel over there.¡± he moved his hand to the left. I looked there and then gestured one of my soldiers to check it out. The dragon walked over to it and opened the lid. He grimaced at the stench. ¡°This is definitely the body of a human... It stinks.¡± he said. I nodded. ¡°Very well. You may live human.¡± I said. ¡°Thank you, my lord!¡± he bowed his head, and so did his wife. A human-dragon couple... I never thought I would see one... I shook my head and then left. This event thought me that maybe... not all humans were bad? [At the end of the battle for Sendra] The fortress that bared the name of my beloved wife also held her maimed body hanged on the castle walls. In my fury and rage, I sought nothing but the desire to find and kill those responsible for this. My body burned with energy as I fought against the human who achieved a Breakthrough. After massacring half of his army on my own, I finally faced him and let my power rage on the scorched battlefield. The battle was merciless and took far longer than I had initially planned. The coward constantly used his own men to stave off my attacks, dodging whenever he had the chance, retreating rather than attacking. Maybe I was too enraged, but I constantly pushed myself without caring what sort of damage it would inflict on my body. To be honest, I wasn''t even aware of it until it was already too late to do anything about it. Thus, our battle continued and spread over the whole Brekkar Plains... well, now it was nothing more than a scarred battlefield. Bodies of both humans and dragons littered the place, the grass was all burnt, and I highly doubted anything would grow here for many years to come. My home now carried the scars of my loss and the punishment of my unleashed wrath... In the end, I won... The Breakthrough-er was killed... smashed by my fists. In the end, I was unable to save my beloved family, but... I managed to get my revenge. I was at peace, so I let myself wither right there... I fainted from the pain. [Several days later] I woke up on a bed in Drakaria. My army finished the job and returned to the capital victorious. Several squads were left to handle the remnants of the human invasion, but overall, it was our win. As it turned out, not all the human soldiers were compliant with the way the human kingdoms acted in this battle, so they deserted the armies or saved some dragons themselves. My men were certainly surprised when they found them. The reports were... hard to believe if I had not met that human-dragon couple. Later that day, after I received the reports, my granddaughters came to visit me. The first one I saw was Seryanna. She was angry and not smiling at all. There were signs of her crying for a long time. Those beautiful eyes of hers responded to the pain in her heart, and this... saddened me. Maybe it was a bit shameful for me to speak of this, but I did not wish Seryanna to take within her the same anger I had felt. It was better for her to be strong and wise, not be driven by hate and anger. A knight with such feelings in his heart would always end up evil and corrupted... I didn''t wish this of her... After all, for that old lizard, I had slain my fare share of them in order to cleanse this kingdom several times. ¡°Seryanna...¡± I spoke out to her, but I couldn''t move even a finger. My whole body hurt as if it had been used as an anvil by a furious blacksmith. ¡°Grandfather... don''t try to move. The healers say you are sick... A disease of some sorts...¡± she said and clenched her jaw and fists. She''s angry... I thought. ¡°Don''t worry... I''ll Awaken and then I''ll reach a Breakthrough, and... and I''ll kill all of those humans who killed my family! I''ll kill them all!¡± she spoke with rage. The young dragoness who smiled so brightly had vanished from my sight and instead was replaced by a blood-thirsty monster... Should I be proud or angry? I wondered. Although I wanted my granddaughter to carry on my fight, since she and her sister were the last of my family, I found myself unable to wish for them to carry such a sad future on their shoulders. Thus, I showed her a gentle smile and said ¡°Please, don''t do that...¡± ¡°W-What? Why grandpa?! They killed mother! They killed father! They killed everyone in cold blood! WHY SHOULD I LET THE HUMANS LIVE! YOU should be the one to ORDER me to KILL THEM ALL!¡± she shouted at me while letting tears flow down her cheeks in rivers. It hurt to see her like this. I didn''t want my granddaughter who was always smiling and acting cheerful to show me such a hate-filled gaze. ¡°Just as there are bad draconians, there are also bad humans, even if those represent the majority of their species. As such, there are good ones too...¡± I said. ¡°I don''t understand grandpa... You want me not to kill humans?¡± she asked as she sniffled. ¡°No... Just the bad ones...¡± I said. ¡°NO! I should kill them all! Why should I let the others live? Why should I let any of them live after what they did to our family?!¡± she asked in anger. ¡°If you think there''s one worth sparing, then you should... After all, those types are of the rare kind.¡± I smiled. ¡°You''re not making any senses...¡± she shook her head. ¡°My granddaughter... you want to be a knight, correct?¡± I asked. ¡°I AM a knight! I passed the exam!¡± she declared. ¡°That''s just the first step... You see, a knight should be able to tell good from wrong. They should act not with a heart filled with vengeance but one with justice. They should be understanding and wise... not violent, savage, and merciless.¡± I told her. ¡°Well... that''s normal, isn''t it?¡± she asked tilting her head in confusion. ¡°Yes... but you who wishes to go on the path of an indiscriminate slayer of humans can''t became such a knight. One who holds such thoughts in his heart will sooner or later be struck down by the gods... I mean, look at me... Your grandfather lost it because of the pain and wished for vengeance from the bottom of his heart. True, I spared some humans, but they were special. Even so, I shouldn''t have fought like that...¡± I shook my head in regret. It was a bit of a far stretched truth, but it held the bitter lesson my granddaughter needed to learn as a knight. I wished for her to have a wonderful future, one in which she would be able to smile again, not one filled with plots and desires to conquer and kill another species... Those sort were not needed in Albeyater, and I was certain that old lizard would strike down even my granddaughter if he found her at fault. ¡°I don''t understand grandfather... What human could you have even spared?¡± she asked with tears in her eyes. ¡°One who fell in love with a dragoness... and betrayed his own kind to be with her.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°That''s a lie! Humans are too selfish, too ignorant, too stupid to do something so noble!¡± she refused to listen. I let out a sigh. ¡°It''s fine if you believe this, but at the very least, promise me that you won''t spend your life trying to bring about the extermination of a species. You may end the lives of those you find bad and evil, but please... try to find it in you to forgive those few who don''t act like the rest. Promise me that you won''t seek revenge for your parents... that you wont seek revenge for our family and friends. I did it in your stead, my beloved granddaughter... It''s enough like this...¡± I spoke to her in a calm and gentle tone of voice. ¡°B-But... they killed mother... they killed father... I don''t think I can forgive them... I can''t...¡± she whimpered. ¡°You don''t need to now... You have many years ahead of you... Just don''t live based on such thoughts and feelings unbecoming of a knight, alright?¡± I smiled. ¡°I''m not going to promise anything... I''m not...¡± she clenched her fists and looked down. ¡°It''s alright... as long as you at least try...¡± I told her. ¡°I won''t...¡± she replied. [Present time. During Iolaus'' hellish training] While reading the letter I received from my granddaughter, Seryanna, I found myself remembering that painful tale... Who knew that after all these years, it was going to be a human who saved both me and her. Not only that, but it appeared as though that human even offered that girl her smile back as well as the chance to Awaken... ¡°Fate is a weird thing, isn''t it, Alkelios?¡± I spoke to myself as I looked out the window at a poor dragon who was running around chased by our pet squirrel. Back then, if my beloved Sendra hadn''t convinced me to escort those two girls all the way to Drakaria, would I have been able to win against the invading human force? Hm... Probably not... Thanks to their swift attack, they scattered their main force into three, and I was able to win against them. And as much as I like to brag, that Breakthrough-er was mighty powerful for a human. If I didn''t stop him, his Majesty would have been forced to take up his sword against him. I thought and then let out a sigh. A simple mind would not see the detriment in this, but one may need to wonder if those few lives we saved could have been saved in the end? How many more villages and cities would have fallen to the sword by the time the remaining armies clashed with them again? And when we won, would the neighboring countries have left us to lick our wounds or would they have launched a swift attack to conquer us when we could barely stand? Both me and that old lizard feared for the latter and were thankful that it never came to be... I folded the letter and placed it down on the desk. ¡°I wonder... was it their Luck or Fate that brought these youngsters together?¡± I said as I patted the letter once and then left to resume my training. Maybe I would never know, but I was at least happy to know that 38 years-long wound had finally healed itself... All this thanks to a silly human. Chapter 52: Nine months and an egg [Seryanna''s point of view] Now, when the time for my beloved Alkelios to return was just around the corner, I found myself holding Collentra''s hand while witnessing the miracle of life. ¡°Come on, just a little more and the egg will be out! You can do it!¡± Kataryna cheered as she was holding a clean towel in her hand. ¡°I don''t know if I should be amazed or terrified...¡± Kleo said. ¡°Don''t be rude. Giving birth is no easy matter for either of us!¡± I said, tossing a glare at her. ¡°Just as the red scale here said, if you keep sneaking into Iolaus'' room night after night like that, one day you are bound to end up heavy as well!¡± Kataryna teased. ¡°W-What? H-How do you know... No, why do you think that I... No, do you really think I can get pregnant?¡± Kleo asked. The dragoness was a bit confused about what question to ask first, but she didn''t seem that against the idea. Maybe I would end up an aunt soon? Or maybe she will? ¡°Stop daydreaming you two! It''s about to come out!¡± Kataryna shouted at us. ¡°Stop yelling... OR I WILL STRANGLE YOU ALL!¡± shouted Collentra. ¡°My dear... are you alright?¡± Bayuk asked. He was standing in the corner of the room, holding a big round shield in his hands and wearing a helmet on his head. ¡°NO!¡± she screamed and spat a breath of fire at him. ¡°Ah! Don''t burn me!¡± he cried out as he hid behind the shield. The purpose of his gear was to avoid the sudden attacks from his wife. During such times, men were absolutely useless... ¡°THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!¡± she screamed. ¡°Yours too, actually.¡± I told her. She glared at me, and I looked away. After a few more pushes, the egg was finally out. Collentra let out a sigh of relief and Kataryna cleaned it up. Kleo was looking down at her hips and shaking her head, repeating the word ''impossible'' in a small whisper. ¡°It''s a big and healthy one!¡± the silver-scaled dragoness declared. Bayuk got rid of his shield and helmet and approached us. She passed it on to me, and I carefully held it in my hands. ¡°You don''t look that bad as a mother.¡± Collentra giggled as she looked at me. ¡°Maybe...¡± I said with a soft smile as I approached her bedside and then placed it carefully in her arms. ¡°But it''s your egg, not mine.¡± I shook my head and moved aside to let Bayuk look at it better. ¡°It''s beautiful, I''m proud of you, my dear.¡± the dragon said as he shed a tear of happiness. ¡°Yes... I wonder if our baby will be a boy or a girl?¡± she wondered. ¡°You''ll see in two months when he hatches.¡± Kataryna told them. We all looked at the happy couple as they held their newly laid egg. They were quite happy and couldn''t wait to see their baby come out of it. Until then, the little one would continue to grow and absorb Magic Energy from the air around him. Dragons, unlike humans, laid eggs, which then hatched into babies. Depending on how many the mother carried, she would assume either a half-beast form or a full-beast form for the duration of the pregnancy. A dragoness was known to lay from one to as many as ten eggs. From what I learned these past few days, the eggshell was there only to help the baby absorb Magic Energy and protect him from possible predators or diseases. It can survive a furnace'' heat and a drop from over 100 meters in height because it''s infused with powerful Defensive Magic. On the day when the baby''s about to hatch, the spell vanishes and the eggshell becomes as fragile as a thin sheet of ice. A mother usually knows instinctively when it''s time for the baby to come out. Despite this happy moment when I witnessed for the first time the laying of an egg, I found myself holding a drop of worry in my heart, both for myself and those around me. Nine months had passed since Alkelios left to train in the Seculiar Forest. Although I knew he was alive and well, I missed him very much indeed. Lately, no day would pass without me sending a thought towards him, and I was even a bit envious of my little sister who often sent letters to her beloved in Tomeron. Of course, this was before they came here in the capital at the request of the King. From what Kleo told me, both Iolaus and grandfather were advancing splendidly with their training, growing in strength with each passing day. But this was also mainly due to both of them being friends with Alkelios and sharing the benefits of his [Dragon Tamer] skill. Meanwhile, I changed as well. I had finally Awakened, and it was all due to my beloved. Who knew that I would have to meet such weird requirements in order to be able to achieve my power? Kataryna once mentioned that it was incredibly rare for someone of a High Element to achieve Awakening. This was due because of its increased difficulty as well as the plots aimed at them. My parents and grandfather did well to keep my element hidden from me, but once I had Awakened, I became aware of it. Casting and controlling fire became like second nature to me. I could do it without chanting, and every spell I cast was far more powerful than a regular one. I was happy, and I honestly looked at my Awakening as a gift of sorts from the human I fell in love with. With it, the attitudes of those around me had changed, and there weren''t many who dared speak to me as though I was still a child. It didn''t mean I had forgotten their previous stuck-up attitudes, but I wasn''t one to take my revenge upon them either. Fools should be left with their own foolishness, unless they dare try to bite. At that time, those fools would need to learn how to walk without a head on their shoulders.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. While I changed for the better, many others did as well. The King came forth from his room and stood on his throne again, although, it was only for a brief time during two different days. Many feared he was finally resigning himself to the idea that he may lose his Queen, while others believed that she may be feeling better. During his first appearance, his Majesty sent forth a messenger to Tomeron through which he requested his presence at the capital sometime later this year. He did not specify an exact date, merely ordered him to be here just in case he decided to come out of his room again. As such, at the end of the ninth month after Alkelios'' departure, he finally arrived in Drakaria, bringing with him all of his trusted servants as well as his disciple, Iolaus. Their arrival was not met with much enthusiasm by the nobles in the capital, and many of them tossed him a gaze of pity. Little did they knew that grandfather was quickly regaining his former strength. For now, he waited for the King''s summon in his own private room in the palace. He spent most of his time either training or chatting with the Third Princess. As for Iolaus, Kleo kidnapped him that day, and no one heard or seen them for a couple of days. When this happened, I remembered Kleo snorting and then rushing over to Iolaus the moment she saw him. She didn''t even bothered to kiss him or anything. She grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out of there while he was pleading for help. We offered him a silent prayer, for his sacrifice would appease the little demon. Upon their return, Iolaus was as pale as a ghost and could barely walk. He hadn''t slept a wink during those days. Meanwhile, Kleo was all giggles and smiles. Thanks to Kataryna''s presence, there weren''t any fools who dared try to get close to us with ill intentions, but there were a few who did not acknowledge her and challenged her to a battle. That day, the Prime Minister Elovius fainted after seeing the bill to the repair cost of the south wall. The dragoness did not go easy on them, especially after one of them had the guts to compare her to a prostitute. His friends needed three months to get him out of that ice block. Still, the most important change that occurred during this period of time was probably the way Sir Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya began to act lately. The former Brekkar Army had continued to gather soldiers, reaching double the size it had back when my grandfather led it, but almost all of them were pardoned thieves and scoundrels. There were also rumors of a strange shadowy figure working for Draejan in order to amass such an impressive number. Nobody knew his name, just the fact that he was often spotted around the noble draconian or handed out orders to the army''s commanders. With an increased army, the parties among nobles began to change as well. Many were backing up the young promising draconian, many others were thinking of joining, while almost all of them were spreading bad rumors about the Third Princess and the other royals. With this, Kleo had been very helpful. Her ability with the shadows allowed her to listen to them without being detected and if by chance she found someone with ill intent, she could immediately inform Kataryna about it. The silver-scaled dragoness was seen as a symbol of fear on the court. Three months after Alkelios left, several nobles of Marquise and Viscount ranks belonging to Draejan''s party tried to threaten the dragoness and convince her to lean towards their side. The result was an impressive ice sculpture placed in the middle of the front garden of the palace, where everyone could see it. Underneath, she wrote: Who''s going to be next? Since then, everyone avoids her gaze and the nobles acted more stealthily. As for my relationship with Draejan, it didn''t change. I always stared cold daggers at him whenever he walked by. If he dared approach me, I raised the heat to the point it got uncomfortable. If Kataryna was with me, she usually unsheathed her sword or created an ice spike in her hand, causing him to back away immediately. I didn''t reply to his words nor did I offer him the pleasure of hearing my voice. It was unfortunate that I couldn''t beat him up myself, I was still far too weak when compared to him, but far stronger when compared to the time when I had yet to Awaken. ¡°Everything alright, Seryanna?¡± Kataryna asked. I blinked surprised and looked at her. ¡°Yes?¡± I replied tilting my head a little to the left. ¡°You were spacing out over there.¡± she furrowed her brow. ¡°I apologize... I was just thinking about something...¡± I smiled wryly. ¡°Don''t worry, dear. I''m sure he''ll be back soon.¡± Collentra told me with a soft smile. I nodded in reply. True, I missed him... I missed Alkelios very much, but I had to wait... If everything was to go as he planned, then I had to patiently wait for him and pray in my heart for his safe return... [Feryumstark''s point of view] ¡°The time of that man''s return is upon us...¡± I spoke as I let out a heavy sigh. ¡°Are you worried?¡± Elliessara, my Queen, spoke in a soft tone of voice while showing me a gentle smile. ¡°No. He promised to return tomorrow. I trust him even if he is a human.¡± I closed my eyes and remembered how we first met. Alkelios Yatagai, a human with a dragon lover, holding the proofs of trust from that woman, my good friend Brekkar, and my own daughter. Even one of those would have been enough to make me grant him an audience, but with three, I had no need to doubt his words. Although, I found it odd he didn''t request an audience with my son, Elovius, but knowing the contents of what we discussed afterwards, maybe it was for the best. ¡°Of course you trust him.¡± Elliessara said and giggled ¡°If it wasn''t for him, I would have been dead by now. To think that a human of all would be the one to allow me to spend more time by your side.¡± ¡°His words spoke the truth, and I alone would have never uncovered the trace of such a plot... To think someone had the audacity to spike your medical tea.¡± I said with a tone of rising anger. ¡°Alkelios promised us he was going to find a cure for me... I wonder if he was able to do it.¡± Elliessara said as he let out a soft sigh. When I heard the details of the poison used to kill my wife, I could feel all hope leaving my heart. It was too powerful, without a cure, or so it was said. Alkelios was the one who shattered this nightmare. There was a cure, but he had no idea how to make it. The reason for that was... ¡°What a fearsome thing to require a Grand Godlike Alchemist to make the cure...¡± I said. ¡°He''ll do it...¡± Elliessara said. ¡°I hope so, but until then, I have to go and meet him in our grand theatrical play, just as we decided upon back then.¡± I smirked. It was a rather cunning and ridiculous plan. A high risk high reward type that put all of us in danger, but brought everyone to the point where they would reveal their true colors. It was for this reason that I sent out a summon to all of the important nobles in the kingdom at my court tomorrow. If Alkelios proved to be a monster, a traitor, an assassin of the humans, then tomorrow Albeyater Kingdom would cease to exist, but for this to happen, it would mean that not only that silver-scaled dragoness, but also Brekkar and my daughter were wrong about him... My daughter, maybe... Brekkar, I highly doubted it. That old snake was better at catching a rat than any of us. As for Kataryna Greorg, that old dragoness who could slay an entire army by herself, she was far more cunning than she let out to be and far too vengeful for anyone to dare double-cross her. [Draejan''s point of view] Tomorrow was going to be a big day! I had a feeling King Feryumstark summoned all of us with the intent of proclaiming me as the new general of the Brekkar Army and finally allowing me to ascend to my rightful place! There were so many things I planned on doing as soon as I received this authority, although, at this point, this was merely a formality. The Brekkar Army, if only in name, was already under my control. Each and every one of those soldiers were contracted to obey me and not anyone else, including the royal family. I had great plans for this kingdom! And tomorrow... was going to be the day when I would make the first step into bringing them up to light and making them come true. ¡°Who knew that a random meeting with a human adventurer when I was young was going to bring me so close to controlling this... kingdom.¡± I smirked as I looked out the window at the sleeping Drakaria. At this point, not even Kataryna was going to powerful enough to stop me, as for Seryanna... she was going to be merely a decoration until I held everything in my grasp. Chapter 53: The return of the Human Hero [Alkelios'' point of view] Flying through the open sky was the best! I could feel the wind as it flowed around my wings, giving me lift into the air, and it was fun to control the direction I was heading into with a simple movement of my wing muscles and tail. Although a dragon wasn''t the most aerodynamic species of them all, having a lot of Magic Energy to help sustain their mass was an important factor in keeping them up in the air. In my case, I needed to consume a lot more since I was flying with the help of spells in my half dragon form. Unlike Kataryna and the rest, I couldn''t take the full-beast form as the natives of this world called it. When I first changed into this shape back when I first entered the forest, I had no idea what I was to expect. I feared the possibility of not being able to change back and also the fact that I might not be able to properly use my new body from the very first go. It was indeed like that, I had to stay in that shape for two weeks until I got used to it enough. Flying was another matter though. It was only until two months ago that I was finally able to get the hang of it, afterwards, the process went smoothly. Sailing through the sky became my main form of transportation only because I enjoyed the feeling it gave me. It completely relaxed me. Anyway, at this moment, I was heading towards Drakaria. Today was the appointed day of my reunion with the King as well as my friends. I was past Pertiko village and approaching Toros. The time was maybe somewhere around 9 or 10 AM, meaning that I would reach Drakaria around noon. I couldn''t wait to meet Seryanna again! Speaking of her, I was currently using the red dragoness as the beacon to guide me with my [Dragon Tamer] skill. If I didn''t have this handy function, I would have been forced to either travel by road or leave earlier in order to get my bearings straight. The way I was doing it now required me only to follow the green arrow visible only to me and enjoy my morning flight. In this shape I was quite fast. Surprisingly, faster or maybe just as fast as Gragh''jaggar, the armored giant chicken, which ground speed could reach way past 100km/h. It was an insane speed for this world, but a nightmare for a passenger seeing how this world''s roads weren''t that great. Only after using that mount several times did I realize that the why mankind on Earth was able to reach such high speeds with ease was mostly thanks to the smooth roads and good springs. Shock absorption was the one thing I missed the most when traveling on the ground. Basically, it was like traveling with an indestructible fast sports car that had no springs or seat belt on a country road stacked with boulders. ¡°Hm? That must be Toros.¡± I said as I spotted the fortress town at the edge of the Great Chasm. Seen from above, it didn''t look very big, but the roads were a jumbled up mess. That pattern was intentional though. It wasn''t like the builders had no idea what a straight line was, but in case of an attack, the twisted roads familiar to the inside troops and foreign to the enemy would give them the field advantage. Honestly speaking, when I was still human and living in Romania, I often thought that construction engineers were dimwits who had no idea how to build in a straight line, but as I traveled through Albeyater, and I grew a few more neurons between my ears, I understood that it had to do with both the history and the ''feel'' of the city. It wasn''t that hard to build straight roads, but every single city in Europe, unlike the USA, had a history of war that spanned over centuries. There weren''t that many which were spared from the bloodshed. As such, they were initially built with the intent to confuse the enemy, then as technology and civilization evolved, the new buildings were built as a continuation of the old ones, keeping the same pattern. If it was an instinct of the local people to do so or not, I had no idea, but in this new world I was living in, it all made sense. After all, war was always knocking on the kingdom''s door and many dragons feared a second human invasion. Flying over the Great Chasm was an interesting experience as well. I felt like I was getting sucked into the darkness, but at the same time, I was completely untouched by it because of the simple fact that I was up in the air. It was incredible, and I suspected that in the future it was going to be a great tourist attraction. It was the Grand Canyon of this Kingdom. When I crossed over, I saw the inn where we reunited with Kataryna and Kleo after we left Toros. That town was also home to an embarrassing memory. From up in the air, I could see many dragons traveling towards the capital or the nearby villages. Back then, I wasn''t able to see it, but across these plains, there were many small villages spread out. Even when flying here from the Seculiar Forest, I could see smoke rising left and right, and my keen eyesight caught the shape of the simple buildings. It was a shame I didn''t notice them back when I was flying with Kleo and Kataryna. Lately, I''ve grown the desire to go out and experience this world as it was. There were many things I had yet to see and being stuck in Albeyater felt like such a shame. I also wanted to meet some fellow human heroes who were trying to make this world a better place rather than attempt to subjugate it. Maybe once I''m done with my job in Drakaria and everything settles down, I can go and look around the world. After all, I''m more or less immortal now. I thought to myself. Being a half dragon granted me a similar life span as a normal dragon. If I didn''t reach a Breakthrough, I would have probably lived about just as much as Seryanna did, which wasn''t such a bad deal. With me reaching a Breakthrough, however, I gained immortality, just as Kataryna once did. I wasn''t going to age any more than this, meaning that I was going to be forever a 19 years old man. Grooming an awesome beard was now nothing more than fleeting dream... Then, as I flew closer to Drakaria, I began to see certain differences from when I last saw it. The city was vast as usual, beautifully built like a white marble sculpture. It was a symbol of Albeyater''s greatness, its determination, its power. But around it was the stain called the Brekkar Army. I stopped mid-flight and looked down at the countless tents spreading on the plains. It was two, maybe three times larger than it was nine months ago. The feeling it gave off wasn''t a welcoming one. If so I desired, I could wipe them out now, but all of these were dragons employed as a soldiers in an official army. Any act of violence against them was treated as an act of violence against the Kingdom itself, although, I had a feeling Breakthrough-ers were an exception to this rule. ¡°This might be a problem...¡± I said to myself when I noticed the big line at the entrance to the city. They were checking everyone thoroughly, and there were many that wished to enter. They didn''t look like refugees, but it made me wonder why the security tightened up like this. As for why it was going to be a problem, well... It was a long line... a very long line. ¡°Meh, I''ll just go stealth mode and fly over.¡± I shrugged and then moved on. I was a Breakthrough-er myself, and I had a meeting with the King, there was no way in Hell I was going to wait patiently at a line like that. So without further ado, I wished for no dragon to spot me as I made my way into the city, and at the same time, I used a spell that camouflaged me with my surroundings, in this case, the sky. I payed close attention to everyone on the ground and in the air, then I picked a spot behind an old building where I wanted to land. Once I did, I folded my wings and looked around to see if anyone spotted me. I''m safe. I thought and let out a sigh of relief. Walking through the city in my half beast form didn''t pose any threat, I had an anthropomorphic body, but the main problem were my scales. Gold was a sign of royalty in this Kingdom, and I had a mix of Red, Gold, Black, and White, forming streak patterns, which I found gave me both an imposing and awesome look. It was as though I was designed for glorious battles. Luckily, the color of my scales didn''t represent my elemental affinity. The moment I changed, I literally gained ALL elemental affinity. There was no spell I couldn''t use. I was like a version 2.0 of a Jack of All Trades, good at everything, master of everything. Speaking of which, that camouflage spell was also a spell of my own design, not something I had gained through my cheat abilities. This also meant that it wasn''t easy to develop. It was hard... painstakingly hard, but when you had a heard of man-eating giant sheep hot on your tail, you tended to learn fast. Thus, I switched to my human form, which was no different from before. I had no scales on my body, and my eyes were the same as before. I looked a little bit older, as much as a growth spurt of a few months allowed, but that was about it. I didn''t need to change my clothes, seeing how they stretched back to accommodate my new size. It was an armor I had enchanted myself with my ability [Pony Power]. The name, unfortunately, wasn''t something I could change, but every time I used this skill, I had to shout it out. I, a powerful anthropomorphic dragon, while making my armor in the heat of fire and under the powerful strikes of my hammer, had to scream ''Pony Power!'' every single time I had to enchant it with my desired spells. This was definitely the work of that blasted no good God-like with a naming sense so bad even the God of Bad Naming Sense would cringe upon hearing it! As a result, my annoyance and embarrassment when enchanting were at their very peak... I also had other neat crafting abilities that allowed me to make the best of armors and weapons. Of course, all of them were at Level 5 upgrade, and I had plenty of other combat skills as well. The only one I couldn''t find was one that could help me with learning other languages besides Albeyater draconian. Most likely someone else took it, so I only ended up with a third rate skill that allowed me to learn the language faster, but not insanely fast.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. I also had a lot of spare points I didn''t use. The reason was quite simple. I had the most important ones: close combat, ranged combat, magic combat, crafting, gathering, tracking, and item storage. The last one was one of the first ones I had acquired. I desperately needed it. After all, my [Purse] ring was getting full, and I didn''t know how to make one. Although it was convenient, but each use consumed a lot of Magic Energy, going from anywhere around 10 Magic Energy Points to 100 if I pulled out an alchemy lab. Compared to this, the [Purse] ring was insanely convenient as it didn''t require any Magic Energy to activate. I only had to recharge it now and then, while my skill ate my Magic Energy like some starved sheep. Speaking of which, the armor I was currently wearing was probably on par if not better than the one Seryanna used. It was one of my weakest ones though. If I pulled out my latest combat armor, that thing was a monster... As for weapons, I carried a short sword and a wide blade longsword. In half-beast form, they were the equivalent of a short sword and a dagger. Enchants on them allowed them to be incredibly durable and impossible to steal. They also could amplify my elements and allow me to cast a spell by pointing the tip at my target. The longsword was especially made to give physical boosts and increase its sharpness, while the short sword was focused more on spell casting. In other words, the big one was for melee combat, while the small one was for ranged combat. I had yet to try a bow. ¡°The palace should be... that way!¡± I said as I pointed left and started walking. Thus, I reached the outer wall. ¡°It was the other way, wasn''t it?¡± I told myself and let out a sigh. When not using Luck actively, I tended to get lost... quite often. I never had this predicament when I was a human, but my senses changed after achieving a Breakthrough. Just as Kataryna said, I saw the world with different eyes, or rather... I had clearer view than I did before. Worries and fears I used to hold in my heart all seemed to have vanished. It wasn''t overconfidence or anything, just the simple fact that I saw what laid behind them and what would happen if I kept letting them have a hold over my heart. It was a True Breakthrough, just as Kataryna had, and to be fair, I achieved it long before I reached Level 1000. Speaking of which, as soon as I turned into a half dragon, my Level reset to 1, but luckily, I kept my abilities. I was so surprised by this, I lost one whole day just staring at my status and wondering if I had ate some poisonous mushroom that made me see things. It wasn''t so ghastly dangerous though, My base stats were far higher when compared to when I was still a human Level 1. Strength alone was in the 300 points range, so overall, I was far stronger than when I had first stepped into the Seculiar Forest. Afterwards, I entered a mode which could only be seen as a grind fest by someone familiar with hack and slash games. All I did was level up, raise my skill, eat, and sleep. It didn''t take me too long to reach the main street after making an inner wish, but even inside the great capital, the air had definitely changed from the last time I was here. It was heavy, and everyone was looking out with caution. The number of soldiers was incredibly high as well, almost all of them were from the Brekkar Army. Their armors and shields displayed the respective emblem: two swords crossed over a river. Curious about it, I approached a nearby food store and bought something from it. I payed with some of the coins Kataryna gave me nine months ago. The debt I was amassing with that dragoness was no joke... ¡°Hey, do you have any idea what''s up with all of these soldiers lately?¡± I asked casually as I cleaned up one of the apples I bought and then bit into it. ¡°Oh! This juicy!¡± I remarked. ¡°It is isn''t it? My apples are grown with the best nourishment magic out there! It''s guaranteed to be free of pest and taste deliciously!¡± the vendor bragged. Is he ignoring my question? I wondered and then took another bite. ¡°Mister, you''re new in town, aren''t you?¡± he asked after a while. ¡°Mhm! I came here not too long ago hoping to get accepted into the Adventurers Guild.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°Is that so? Aren''t you a bit too young for that, though?¡± he asked with a wry smile. ¡°No, mister. Father said it''s best to start young to get the hang of things by the time I Awakened!¡± I showed him a childish smile after lying through my teeth. ¡°Ah, is that so? True. True.¡± the vendor crossed his arms at his chest and nodded. ¡°About my previous question...¡± I asked him. ¡°Well, I don''t know much about it myself, but apparently that new dragon that''s going to be the general of the Brekkar Army already took matters into his own hands and started reorganizing it. Many lads I saw today wanted to join it, but with all due respect... they all looked like ruffians.¡± he shook his head. ¡°So, it''s bad?¡± I asked. ¡°No, not exactly... Well, it depends on what the new general will do once he is officially in charge, but right now, people are a bit wary of his troops. They''re not the best of lot. I even heard some of them committed some crimes like rape and thievery, but they never got punished for it.¡± he let out a heavy sigh. ¡°How can that be? Isn''t that wrong? What''s that palace doing about it?¡± I inquired as I took another bite of my apple. ¡°Nothing really...¡± he shrugged ¡°The officials keep saying that it''s to be expected for one or two soldiers to get out of line. Well, the only ones that do something about it are those three under the Third Princess.¡± he nodded. ¡°Those three?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Sir Kataryna Greorg, Sir Seryanna Draketerus, Sir Thaaraer... Thrakea... Ahem! Sir Seryanna''s sister.¡± he said. ¡°What did they do or do exactly?¡± ¡°Well, they are the only ones who don''t mind breaking several of their bones or downright killing one or two. Lately, when they are walking down the street, the soldiers make way or hide from them. They scared them stiff, and there''s a rumor going on that unless it''s an order from the King or the Third Princess, they are unlikely to listen to any noble''s commands, which is a good thing for us commoners.¡± he nodded and smiled. ¡°Is that so, they did that huh? Well... it should be more or less expected of them, but even Kleo?¡± I muttered to myself. ¡°What was that?¡± the man asked since he didn''t hear me. ¡°Nothing, I was just talking to myself, but thank you for the information and the delicious apples!¡± I smiled and then left. ¡°You''re welcome! Come again!¡± I tossed the remaining apples inside my [Purse] ring and took out a cooked seasoned strip of jerky from my storage skill. Cooking was something I had to learn on my own. I didn''t want to lose points on something like this. Now it was time to make my way to the palace, but just as I was about to take a turn, two soldiers blocked my way. They were smirking and looking down at me. One of them was a blue scale and the other a green scale. Both of them were in their anthropomorphic form. ¡°You there! Are you new in the city?¡± the one on the right asked, causing many eyes to turn towards us. ¡°Erm, sort of...¡± I shrugged. ¡°Show us your identification plate.¡± he requested. I raised an eyebrow. ¡°A what now?¡± ¡°Oh? You don''t have one? Are you someone who sneaked inside then?¡± he questioned. ¡°Yes.¡± I shrugged. ¡°What?¡± he blinked surprised. I''m guessing they weren''t expecting me to be blunt about it. ¡°Oi! Oi! Are you serious?¡± the other asked. ¡°I don''t need one.¡± I shrugged. ¡°What do you mean you don''t need one? Huh? Are you making fun of us?¡± the blue scaled asked as he unsheathed his sword. ¡°He''s definitely making fun of us! He doesn''t have an identification plate, so we HAVE to take him down now, don''t we?¡± he smirked. ¡°Hm? What is this? Some sort of an intimidation game?¡± I asked. ¡°Boy! Don''t get cocky with us!¡± he tried to grab my collar. I grabbed his hand and then... I broke it. The snap made everyone around me silent. ¡°AAARGH! MY HAND!¡± he screamed. ¡°That''s it! You''re going down!¡± the other threatened and tried to slash at me with his sword. I stopped it with two fingers, grabbing onto the blade, then I pulled it out of his hand. ¡°What''s this? A toothpick?¡± I questioned and then easily snapped it in half. The dragon went pale. ¡°Hm... Can you fly?¡± I asked him with an innocent smile. He gulped ¡°No... I have no wings...¡± he pointed out. ¡°Grow some.¡± I smiled and then grabbed him by the neck and tossed him into the air. ¡°GYAAA!¡± he screamed before landing somewhere outside of the city. ¡°Please! I''m sorry! I give up!¡± the other soldier begged as he tried to run away. ¡°You need to fly too!¡± I smiled and grabbed him by his tail and tossed him in the air after his friend. This guy had wings, so maybe he wasn''t going to end up heavily injured. They were both past level 100, so it was unlikely they would die from the fall, but I couldn''t guarantee no broken bones. ¡°Well, that was that with taking out the garbage!¡± I said with a smile as I made my way to the palace. It would be a lie to say I didn''t wish for such a stereotypical event to happen. I practically begged for the cannon fodder to appear, but it was fun. It was past noon, and the arrow was directing me towards the castle. The reason I wasn''t following it was because of the complicated mess of roads here. Also, the arrow didn''t point me at the entrance to the palace grounds. If I followed it, I would reach the wall or a dead end. While I was heading there, the King was probably handling his part of the bargain and gathering everyone there at this very moment. The reunion was going to be a fun one, and I hoped my acting was going to be enjoyable both for him and Kataryna. I was also 100% sure Seryanna was either going to scold me afterwards or drag me to her room. [Feryumstark''s point of view] At noon, I gathered the nobles of my Kingdom in the throne room for a special announcement. The son of the Doesya Duke was also here together with his father. There were several barons and marquis from the outskirts of the Kingdom, especially around the Scar Battlefield. My third daughter, Elleyzabelle was here as well together with her aides, Seryanna Draketerus, Kataryna Greorg, and Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus. Brekkar was present as well, standing at my right side, wearing his old armor and looking as lively as ever. Many of them were wondering why an old general like him was at this gathering as well as why he looked as though he had not been touched by disease, only by age. I knew the answer to this question, but so far I had yet to properly talk with him about the Alkelios matter. Apparently, his apprentice, former Paladin Iolaus von Striggnyark was also here. The lad made me curious about why he gave up his position, but seeing how he was the fiance of the black-scaled granddaughter of Brekkar, I had a feeling Alkelios was behind it as well. Both of that dragon''s grandchildren were meant for greatness, and they weren''t the type to look weak either. I could bet my scales on the fact that they were strong enough to stand as commanders on a battlefield. ¡°Fa... Your majesty, are you feeling well?¡± my son, Elovius asked. He almost had a slip of tongue there. I nodded. The boy was always worried about me and his mother. Ever since Elliessara was poisoned, he showed a remarkably strong character as well as rigid and strict demeanour to hide any potential weakness or flaw. He was putting on a show because among my children, he was the most worried about us. ¡°I wonder what''s the hold up.¡± Kataryna asked as she let out a bored sigh. This one was a dangerous fellow. She would leave this place if she felt it didn''t matter for her, so I tossed her a gaze and showed her a smirk. The dragoness blinked surprised and then smirked back. ¡°Maybe I''ll stay for a bit longer.¡± she said and crossed her arms at her chest. Among those like us, there was no need for words in order to speak up our intentions. Now, all that''s left is to wait for Alkelios to show up... I wonder what he''s going to show us. I thought and then aimed my gaze at the doors in front of me. Chapter 54: Let the games begin! [Alkelios'' point of view] I arrived at the castle''s gates while calmly munching down on my apple. Instead of seeing the usual two dragons, there were six here. All of them looked rather fierce and wore powerful-looking armors. As weapons, two of them carried spears and shields, while the others swords and shields. It was an interesting combination, but I would have added a pair of archers behind the gates as well. This way, the enemy would need to dodge arrows while making sure not to get poked by spears or get cut by the swords. ¡°G''morning!¡± I said with a cheerful expression on my face. They replied with a glare. ¡°Stop right there! Who be you?¡± one asked. ¡°Be?¡± I blinked surprised when I heard the wrong verb used in his sentence. ¡°Who be you?¡± he asked again. ¡°I AM a human... or was. Sort of, I''m neither a human nor a dragon right now. But then again, can you really say who you really are when the mysteries of this universe had yet to be uncovered and the wonders of the gods still bless our world?¡± I quite honestly replied with a nonsensical thing. ¡°Huh? Human? In Drakaria?¡± he said and then looking at his friend, they all burst out into a loud laughter. ¡°Don''t be joking around, whelp! Get away from here or else we''ll poke ya good!¡± the one with the spear threatened me. Hm, since when are the guards of the palace such morons? I wondered as I cast my gaze over all of them. The ones from nine months ago were a bit more strict and careful both with the words they spoke and the way they acted, but these guys, on the other hand, were full of openings and reminded me of the moronic soldiers from the current Brekkar Army. Is it possible that... Hm, I wonder? I thought and then I asked ¡°Are you answering directly to that idiot Draejan?¡± ¡°Yes. Huh? Wait! Did you just call our boss an idiot?¡± one of them replied and noticed my ''uncanny'' insult. ¡°We can''t just let you off like that after insulting the duke''s son.¡± another said as he unsheathed his sword. They were all taking an aggressive stance, seemingly forgetting the fact that they were guards here who should not answer back to any type of insult or taunt. ¡°Morons...¡± I said and shook my head. The one with the spear was the first to attack. I could see all of their movements in slow motion because I had the ability to react much faster than them. My speed wasn''t something to laugh at. Catching the spear with my left hand, I pulled and then pushed, dislodging it from his grip. With it, I swiped left and struck two of them, sending them rolling on the ground. The pole broke as a result, but I used the remaining tip as a projectile weapon to stab it in the other spear user''s leg. I avoided the sword slash of another and parried with my gauntlet the one coming from the opposite direction. Kicking the ground, I jumped forward and tackled the unarmed dragon, who I slammed into the wall. Grabbing his shield, I then tossed it at the sword user on the left and ran towards the other on the right. My throw was very effective and knocked the daylights out of him. As for the last one standing, he saw me coming and tried to defend himself with the shield, but I punched it right in the middle. The strength behind my fit wasn''t a joke, and he was sent flying into the street with his shield cracked in pieces. ¡°Weak...¡± I muttered. Brushing the dust off my armor, I proceeded to enter the palace as though I was returning home from a long absence, at a calm and relaxed pace. Meanwhile, the witnesses of the earlier battle couldn''t believe their eyes. It was normal. After all, by their standards the guards were strong, maybe close to Emperor Rank when compared to adventurers, but I had the power of a Breakthrough-er. It was a joke to even consider the possibility of them being able to land a punch on me, let alone defeat me. As soon as I stepped through the gates, I was welcomed by a group of ten dragons who guarded the palace. The intruder alarm must have sounded off as a result of the commotion at the gate. Well, not like it mattered. Getting in after Draejan banned me was quite impossible unless I used stealth or brute force. I chose the latter because it was more fun and also more noisy. ¡°Good! More cannon fodder!¡± I said with a cheer as I cracked my knuckles. The guards were approaching me with the intent to kill me on the spot, but that wasn''t going to happen, was it? With a grin, I dashed towards them and began my massacre. Of course, I made sure not to kill them, just break a few arms and legs, give them a good bruise to remember me by. In regards to armor, although mine looked like a chainmail with hard leather padding, it was far more sturdy and powerful than it looked. Theirs, on the other hand, looked better than mine, but their enchants didn''t even match mine. [Pony Power] had a joke of a name, but it was the equivalent of [Bartender] for alchemy, the ultimate crafting skill for that specific craft. My entrance in the King''s throne room was going to be GRAND! [Feryumstark''s point of view] That day, while sitting on my throne, I watched the raptors dressed as fat noble dragons as they whispered among themselves about what was to happen to day. What sort of decree was I to give or whom was I supposed to call out before me? So many had gathered, so it was clear that I had an important announcement to make. Some of these fools even believed I was here because my beloved wife had finally succumbed to effects of the poison in her system. Little did they know that this was far from it. On the other hand, even my own children appeared to be anxious and worried. Elleyzabelle, no matter how much she tried to hide it, she could never hide away such things from her father''s eyes. As for Elovius, he was as stiff as a dwarf ready to propose and as serious as an elf talking about the importance of a forest. Only these two were present today, the others had other matters to attend to. Among the retainers brought by the nobles, I noticed several of them who made an impression during the last war. Among them, I also saw my daughter''s knight, Seryanna. She had grown into a beautiful red scale dragoness and was among the few to show neither fear nor worry. By her side was Thraherkleyoseya, the always energetic prankster praised by my late son, Coshun, as being one with great potential for war and politics. Kataryna was curious and maybe a bit impatient, but that was how Breakthrough-ers were. Elleyzabelle was the only one who brought all three of her retainers. Kataryna wasn''t one who could be stopped, and I also wished to see both of Brekkar''s grandchildren. Speaking of which, that old fool was standing to my left, right next to Elovius. He also brought a retainer, his young apprentice Iolaus. I never got the chance to talk with this old dragon ever since that day when he chose to depart for Tomeron, but if things went well today, I planned on inviting him over for a drink. Looking to my right, I saw Draejan and his black-hooded follower, who stood in the far back, next to the guards. He wasn''t one with noble status in this kingdom, a commoner at best, thus not allowed to get within a certain distance of me. The same went for everyone else who each was a retainer of one of the nobles here but they weren''t nobles themselves.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. No one was allowed within a three meters area around my throne except for those I called over. In front of me, the nobility was strategically placed in two sides to the left and right, while all retainers without noble rank were in the far back. I ordered it to be so to both induce certain individuals into error and have a strong arm on both sides through Kataryna and Brekkar. Once the scum attempted to flee, I was going be quick to wring them up by the neck and crush them completely. Still, a stranger would dare to ask: why were all these retainers here in the first place? Well, this was because a noble when summoned before me was allowed to bring only one with him. If by chance I were to execute them, the dragon they brought was supposed to bring back their soulless remains to their family and announce my decree. On the other hand, if I were to promote or congratulate them in any manner, they could order them to head back to their fief and announce this great honor. Unfortunately, these days, most of them were brought merely as a clothes hanger or baggage handler. I sometimes felt pity for the poor chaps. However, today was going to be neither a day of promotions or demotions. It was going to be a day of... culling. ¡°Your highness! We have an intruder!¡± a guard entered the room and announced. Everyone immediately began to worry and looked around restlessly. Words of assassination and whatnot began to fly throughout the room. ¡°SILENCE!¡± I roared. They made quiet once more and gulped while looking back at me. ¡°Your highness, we have to do something.¡± one of the more skinny nobles dared to ask. I gave him a death stare, and he shrunk back. ¡°If any of you dare to move, I''ll rip off your head myself.¡± I warned them as I closed my eyes and leaned back on my chair. The weak ones gulped, while the strong ones tensed up. Kataryna was tying to withhold her laughter, so I ignored her. The only one among them who had a different reaction was Brekkar. He let out a sigh and shook his head. Even he didn''t know why he was summoned here, but he knew better than to try question me. Thus, we waited... Not long afterwards, the doors flew open and two royal guards came flying through the air, falling on the floor and rolling a few times until they stopped. Groans of pain could be heard coming from them, and we all looked at the doors. ¡°Sorry! Sorry! Am I late for the party?¡± Alkelios asked with a bright smile as he stepped inside the audience room, dragging a groaning guard by the back of his neck. The moment I saw him, I knew that he had changed. The air around him was different. The weakness inside him was gone. This man was not one to be trifled with, and my instincts told me he was dangerous. He wasn''t joking when he said he would return stronger than ever... But how powerful are you now, Alkelios? I thought and then allowed a small smirk to appear on my lips, but only for a fraction of a second. Truth be told, I wanted to have a spar with him now... a bloody spar through which I could test out his limits. ¡°Who are you?! How dare you enter this chamber!¡± a noble shouted. I believe he was a Marquise from the south. ¡°Hm? I''m Alkelios Yatagai, former human. Here, a present.¡± he introduced himself and then tossed the guard he was dragging at him. ¡°AAA!¡± the two dragons screamed before they collided and fell on the floor. Brushing off his hands, he approached me through the crowd of nobles and retainers, uncaring who glared or who had their hands on their swords. ¡°Your highness, allow me to kill this pest. It seems he didn''t learn his lesson the last time.¡± Draejan said as he reached for his sword. ¡°I thought I ordered all of you to shut up.¡± I tossed him a glare. The dragon flinched and gulped. Looking back at Alkelios, I watched him as he stopped at about five meters away from me. Only one jump was needed to reach me. ¡°Indeed, I do have some unfinished business with that idiot over there, but for now, I have more important matters to attend to. So, ladies and gentlemen, if I may have your attention please!¡± he shouted and made a spin on the spot. The nobles who could not read his strength scoffed and took him for a fool soon to be dead. In our society, he committed several sins upon arriving here. Among all, breaking the promise in a duel was the worst of them all. But all of this was according to his plan as well... After all, I needed some conditions to be fulfilled in order to be able to both pardon him and have the more influential nobles in this kingdom accept it, and he had just the way to make it happen, but this whole thing had to be real... as real as it could get. ¡°You are all looking? Good!¡± he smiled and then turned towards me. ¡°What is the meaning of this... joke?¡± I asked with a growl. ¡°Oh, how scawy! Big dragon is going to bite me?¡± he laughed. Insulting and mocking the top royalty in a country was an insane move, but it was all for the better. While nobles were spewing curses, Kataryna''s tail was wagging in the air, revealing her excitement. ¡°This man is nuts! Someone behead him and take him out immediately!¡± a baron from the east called out. ¡°Hm? Really? But I haven''t gotten to the good part yet, Kataryna will you let that happen?¡± he asked and then winked at the dragoness. This was the first time in centuries that I saw this ice cold dragoness blush. I thought for a moment that I was seeing things. ¡°Huhuhu! If anyone dares to touch him, I''ll skewer him!¡± she growled. Looking around, I saw that Brekkar was smiling up to his ears, Iolaus was sighing and shaking his head as if he saw something impossible again, Seryanna was smiling with her cheeks turned pink, and Kleo was grinning. They knew this was part of this comeback, but not all of us knew the play, especially Kataryna. ¡°Thank you!¡± Alkelios said. He turned around and looked me straight in the eyes. ¡°Now then! I believe we have something to talk about! But first, let me take a selfie!¡± he grinned. ¡°A what?¡± several of us asked. The black hooded man brought by Draejan was the only one to react by raising his head. I took notice of this. ¡°Sigh, never mind. The joke is too new for any of you to get, but anyway, as I was saying. Before we begin to talk, I want to make sure that your highness won''t do something stupid.¡± he said. ¡°Hm. Who knows?¡± I shrugged. ¡°Good! Here''s my ''guarantee not to be attacked'' card!¡± Alkelios said and raised his hand up ¡°[Itsy Bitsy BOOM!]¡± Above his hand, a big red, magma-like sphere appeared. It was three meters in diameter and even sent ME the shivers. That thing was without a doubt... dangerous. I thought he was joking when he told me how powerful this attack is... I thought. ¡°Now, I have yet to launch this attack, but it can easily wipe out this entire city and poison off the entire area making everything unable to live here for several centuries. You can''t see the poison. You can''t detect it with your knowledge. You can''t do anything about it. It will slowly kill you. It will horribly mutate your future offspring if you get hit by it and survive. This is not a joke. This is not a drill. Brekkar and Kataryna here can confirm for you, your majesty, if I''m joking or not.¡± he told us. I already knew he wasn''t. I knew this was real. Even I let out a gulp when I saw it. ¡°He''s telling the truth... a frightening cold truth...¡± Kataryna said with a smirk. ¡°Indeed.¡± Brekkar nodded and crossed his arms at his chest. At this point, this couldn''t be see as anything less than a direct attack on the royalty. Even if he backed down now, I would be forced to send out the entire army after him and kill him off. I guess this was why Draejan was smirking... He was foreseeing this outcome. Fortunately, he didn''t have all the puzzle pieces he required to make a true prediction. Just like all the other nobles here, he believed Alkelios was just a madman with no chance of escaping or surviving after this stunt. ¡°Now, I''m going to tell what you can''t do. First of all, if you attack me physically, magically, or with mental spells and abilities, I will detonate this spell. If you annoy me, I will detonate this spell. If you try to act smart or self-important, I will detonate this spell. If you try to lie to me, I will detonate this spell. If you try to kill me or do manage to kill me, this spell with automatically detonate. If you try to encase this spell in a shield bubble, it will detonate before you can do that. If you try to cancel or disrupt this spell, it will detonate. If it does, everyone in this castle and its immediate surroundings will be turned to dust, quite literally. Did I make myself understood?¡± Alkelios asked as he squinted his eyes at me. I nodded. ¡°Yes. I hereby order all those present here not to raise a single finger against this man... for now.¡± I''m sad to say it, but this display of brute power and mercilessness is the best way to get through to the stuck up noble idiots who are often way too eager to lie, cheat, or take advantage of one another. Sometimes, to gain respect, you had to punch them in the face until they gave it to you. Only then could they acknowledge you and not dare act stupid. I thought as I remembered how in my younger days, I used to do similar reckless things... It was unfortunate that we couldn''t settle thing with words, but there were too many idiots around the throne, and too many who refused to acknowledge it. Years of neglecting the crown would do that to any king or emperor no matter how mighty he once was. On the bright side of things, once this was over, the neighboring countries would have something extra to worry about besides my non-existing weakness. Chapter 55: Nine months ago [Alkelios'' point of view] I was currently standing in the middle of the throne room of the king of Albeyater Kingdom, holding a nuclear bomb above my head and threatening to wipe out the entire capital alongside my fiance and friends. Was I insane? That was a mild way of putting it. This whole charade started back when I met the dragon sitting on the throne in front of me for the first time nine months ago... Feryumstark Seyendraugher was an imposing man by many standards. He was a just ruler with an iron grip over all those who thought of going against him, but lately, he was a bit out of it. The main reason was his wife, Elliessara, who had been poisoned 38 years ago by a presumed human ambassador. Normally, one would think that his rage and anger against my species was going to have reached insurmountable heights, but this wasn''t the case as I would come to learn. Just by sitting in front of him, I came to remember what happened that night... [Nine months ago] I was standing in front of the king of Albeyater Kingdom, Feryumstark Seyendraugher, and behind him was his beloved ill wife. The dragon was reading the letters he received from Brekkar and his daughter, Elleyzabelle. Meanwhile, I was waiting at the window, praying in my head not to get killed. I was afraid, deadly afraid because this dragon far surpassed my imagination. He wasn''t just powerful-looking, he was indeed a real life monster with unfathomable strength. To be honest, I couldn''t even see Kataryna winning against him, and this dragon had yet to show his medal in battle. At the same time, I, a human hero, was standing in front of him, waiting... ¡°These are genuine.¡± he said as he calmed down a bit. The blood lust in the air faded away, and I could feel my tensed body starting to relax. ¡°I know... But that was still scary.¡± I complained. ¡°My apologies. The last human I trusted... didn''t end up being too honest about it.¡± as he said this, he turned around and looked at his sleeping wife. ¡°To be honest, that''s a wise move to make no matter the species.¡± I showed him a wry smile. ¡°True. The letter from Brekkar told me something interesting... You are not of this world it seems?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Ah, yes. Do you want to hear my tale? It might take a while.¡± I smiled. ¡°I would very much like to. Have a seat. I''ll go tell the maids to bring us some snacks and tea.¡± he then pointed at a chair next to me. ¡°I appreciate it, thank you.¡± I nodded and smiled. ¡°Honest... I like that.¡± he smirked. His words confused me a bit. After I sat down, the king went to the door and without opening it, he ordered the servant on the other side to bring us tea and snacks. When he heard the confirmation reply, Feryumstark walked up to me and pulled a chair in front of me, on which he sat down. ¡°So where should I start? Ah yes! Earth!¡± I said with a smile. I then began to tell him of how I got sent to this world, how I met up with Seryanna, Kleo, Brekkar, then Kataryna and Iolaus. I told him how I met the merchant in Toros, and even how I ended up meeting Draejan. I didn''t forget to tell him about the event in Pertiko and how I met another one of my people, but I left all the intimate and personal details out of the story. Somehow, I doubted he wanted to know how good of a kisser Seryanna was. Basically, I didn''t tell him a single lie and told him only the truth. Some might say that it was a stupid move to do. Even I would have told myself that. Information in this world could mean the difference between life and death, however, was I really in such a position where I could withhold it? I was in front of the most powerful dragon in Albeyater Kingdom, whose wife had been poisoned by a cunning and lying human. If I wanted to have even a spec of a chance to receive help from him or prove that I was on his side, I had to let him know of the truth, the whole truth. ¡°And then I finally decided that I spent enough time waiting. I tossed aside all worries and fears, sneaked inside the palace and went to meet with Seryanna. After a bit of talking, I proposed to her. This was several hours ago. Right after I left her room, I came here.¡± I nodded as I finished my tale. ¡°So it''s her scent that''s lingering on you.¡± he smirked. ¡°Quite so.¡± I nodded. ¡°How do you feel about the prospect of marrying a dragoness?¡± he asked me. ¡°I''m feeling quite excited and happy, to be honest. I love Seryanna, that''s why I want to stand by her side for as long as I am still alive.¡± I nodded. ¡°What if the humans heroes or kings of this world ask you to betray her?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Then I hope they already reserved a place in the graveyard for themselves because there''s no way in Hell I''m going to do that! I rather be a traitor to mankind and embrace the woman of my life than to lose her and gain some points with some unknown king or human hero.¡± I clenched my fist and unknowingly released a bit of my killing intent. When I realized this, I calmed down and apologized. ¡°I like your reaction, Alkelios. If you had lied just now or showed hesitation, I might have been more wary of you, but I can see that your heart and head are in the right place. Seryanna found a good mate in you.¡± he smirked. ¡°Mate is a bit weird of putting it, husband maybe?¡± I laughed. ¡°For dragons its the same thing, so don''t take it as an offense, young one.¡± he told me. ¡°Alright, I''ll remember that.¡± I nodded. ¡°Now, you said you cured Brekkar, and his letter confirms this. Although it''s hard for me to believe it... but if that''s so, then you are one of the best alchemists in this kingdom. No, you might be one of the best on this continent.¡± he crossed his arms at his chest and looked down, pondering about something. ¡°How about I try and see if I can cure the Queen as well?¡± I asked with a shrug. The king raised his head and looked back at me surprised. ¡°Just like that? What do you want in return?¡± he asked. ¡°Nothing really.¡± I shrugged. He titled his head confused. ¡°Hm, but I guess not asking for anything would be rude. Still, it''s the truth that there''s nothing in particular I want as a reward for this. Not now, at least, maybe later or maybe never, but what I do know is that by curing her, I''ll help both you and this kingdom. This kingdom is loved and protected by Seryanna and Brekkar, who''s my friend. If I can help them, I will.¡± I nodded. ¡°That''s mighty generous of you.¡± he smirked. ¡°What I do want, not connected to this matter, is if you could solve the issue with Draejan.¡± I told him with a wry smile. ¡°Hm... I can''t do that.¡± he returned to his thinking position. ¡°Why not? Care to explain?¡± I asked. ¡°You are a human of Earth, so you don''t know the way things work around here. Legally speaking, he didn''t go against my word nor did he abuse his power by dragon standards. On the other hand, you lost a duel against him, broke the promise made during the duel and even took the chastity of his legal fiance. On top of this, you are a human with no demeaning noble status, while he is the son of a Duke and also my grandson. In a matter of speaking, he has a right to sit on my throne just as much as Princess Elleyzabelle does. Politically speaking, you are an intruder in this kingdom as well as a human, a species that''s currently at war with mine, while HE is a dragon with royal blood flowing through his veins and a respected member of the nobility of this kingdom. Basically speaking, you have absolutely no standpoint on which I can dissolve his engagement with Seryanna, no matter how it came to be. At the same time, if not for your draconic friends, especially Kataryna and Brekkar, I would be forced to take you into custody and drop you in prison for trespassing.¡± he explained in a calm yet cold tone of voice. Everything he said was absolutely correct. I had nothing to stand on in this kingdom, and by meeting with Seryanna I broke more rules than I could count. Maybe tossing me behind bars was the most lenient of punishments he could give me. ¡°Isn''t there any way I can just make all of that... disappear?¡± I asked. ¡°If you asked this of me as a reward for saving my wife, maybe. I would come out as having been forced to give it, but your standing among the nobles as well as my daughter''s would fall as a result. You would be no different than any other human out there in their eyes.¡± he said shaking his head. ¡°That, I would like to avoid.¡± I let out a heavy sigh. Hearing this made me feel rather disheartened. ¡°Usually, in such a situation... to make things one had once did disappear is rather difficult. There''s also the matter about the neighboring countries. Albeyater receives war support every time we go into battle against the invading human armies. We are the front line, so we take the brunt force. We suffer the most losses, so the other kingdoms compensate through an offering of gold, armors, weapons, food, or dragons. This trade is also heavily dependent on the way their politicians view me.¡± he said. ¡°The way their politicians view you?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. In my mind, I couldn''t see how the two of them were connected. Albeyater''s internal matters were their own, so why did it matter if the king looked good in their eyes or not. Then again, what did that even imply since he had secluded himself in this room ever since his wife got poisoned? ¡°Dragons are long lived and some have remarkable memories. In the outside world, even though I haven''t stepped onto the political stage in a while, I am still viewed as a powerful and dominant dragon King. If a human were to come along and force me into making a deal with him, the other kingdoms would only see it as me giving in after my wife got poisoned. They would use this to point at me as being untrustworthy and hold back on their war support funds. This would in turn deal a heavy blow to my kingdom and make us vulnerable during a future invasion.¡± he explained with closed eyes. ¡°And that''s not all, is it?¡± I asked with a wry smile. Opening his eyes, he looked at me and replied ¡°No.¡± I gulped. ¡°A kingdom is supported by the commoners, but the nobles are those who lead them, while the king leads the nobles. Any change the king makes has to be approved by the nobles first before it reaches the commoners. Failure to follow this process leads to tyranny and rebellion. Of course, this does not work when the king is good and the nobles are corrupt. At that time, the king and the commoners are part of the rebellion, while the nobles are those who withhold the old ways.¡± he explained. ¡°In other words, loosing the trust of the neighboring kingdoms means losing the trust of the nobles inside your kingdom?¡± I asked. ¡°Precisely. If the outside sees me as weak, it''s in their better interest to replace me. Therefore, a rebellion will be supported by the outside through the war support that was supposed to go to my troops. This does not mean that a trustworthy king would step up to do the job. There''s a high chance the whole rebellion will be led by corrupt nobles, leading to the ascension of a tyrant on the throne.¡± he explained. ¡°Out of the frying pan and into the fire, huh?¡± I remarked and let out a heavy sigh. ¡°Indeed.¡± he nodded. ¡°Then... How am I supposed to change things? How can I not make you lose standing with the outside and inside at the same time?¡± I asked a bit desperately. ¡°Relax, it''s not something impossible, just rather improbable. At your current level of strength it''s impossible, but if you were to become a Breakthrough-er, then it could change something.¡± he nodded. ¡°So there''s a chance, right? Wait... Breakthrough-er? How is me getting stronger connected to all of this?¡± I asked confused. ¡°Humans are beings who put more value on one''s ability to be cunning and aware of one''s political surroundings. On the other hand, dragons value one''s individual and group strength as well as their assertiveness in critical matters.¡± he replied. ¡°So, humans lie and cheat while dragons hit their chests with their fists and roar?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. My words caused Feryumstark to burst out in laughter. ¡°That''s quite so, little human!¡± he said after he calmed down. ¡°Hm...¡± I leaned back and rubbed my chin. ¡°Hou? Is there something on your mind?¡± he asked squinting his eyes. ¡°You said I need to be assertive and strong, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded. ¡°Let''s say I can do that. What I don''t understand is how this is going to get me out of my current predicament.¡± I said knitting my brow and raising my shoulders. ¡°It''s simple. You stage a display of strength through which you prove your assertiveness.¡± he smirked. ¡°Like a duel?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Like challenging me directly to battle.¡± he smirked. ¡°Impossible! I''ll die!¡± I immediately complained. ¡°Come now! If you have fought against Brekkar or Kataryna, then surely you can put up a fight against me! Your Luck should definitely guarantee your survival!¡± he pushed. ¡°Not in one piece!¡± I retorted. The gaze in the King''s eyes suddenly changed to a serious one and then moved towards the door. He opened it just enough for his servant to pass the tray holding two warm cups of tea and some small snacks. Without saying a word, he took it and then closed the door. ¡°The tea is here.¡± he told me. ¡°Ah... OK.¡± I nodded. Feryumstark placed the tray on the table next to the wall and then brought me the cup of tea. ¡°Thank you!¡± I nodded and accepted it politely. ¡°You''re welcome. But I have to say, not many get the chance of being served tea by royalty.¡± he said as he sat on his chair. ¡°Well, I did tell you, didn''t I? I don''t come from a country that holds royalty in such a high regard.¡± I smirked. ¡°However, it''s not like you don''t know manners in regard to being around one either. Seryanna must have taught you some.¡± he pointed out and then took a sip from his cup. ¡°Yes, she did, but if I were to act while keeping mind of those, how would you be able to judge my true character and more so have an easy discussion with me? I''m well aware that your words can be the same as orders for me, but maintaining a stiff conversation wouldn''t have been very productive for either of us. Plus, it''s annoying.¡± I shrugged and then I took a sip of tea. It was delicious, but unfortunately, I wasn''t that much of a tea drinker. I had no idea how to properly appreciate it. For me, it was just warm, calming, and delicious. ¡°This is my wife''s favorite. Rossenrhode mixed with Blueberries and just a pinch of Mint.¡± he showed me a gentle smile while looking down at his cup. I gazed over at the sleeping Queen and asked him ¡°I''ve been meaning to ask, but aren''t we going to wake her up with our conversation?¡± ¡°Impossible.¡± he shook his head. ¡°She can barely stay awake more than a few minutes each day. When she wakes up, I''m usually here, ready to give her the medicine prescribed by the healers. It''s the cup over there, on the nightstand.¡± he pointed at a tea cup similar to ours, but with a black liquid inside. ¡°May I look at it?¡± I asked. ¡°Just don''t spill it or breath in it.¡± he said and calmly took a sip of his tea. I nodded and then approached the tea. ¡°Activate...¡± I muttered as I thought about using [Identificus Processus Juridicus]. Back then, the process of activating a skill was still a bit of mystery to me. There were times when I used them without saying a word, while other times when instead of saying ''Activate'', I shouted the skill''s name. All of these options came naturally to me, and I never noticed the difference. It was only AFTER I spent a few months in the Seculiar Forest to train that I come to understand the trick behind it. The system of activating the skills took into account the fact that we, the human heroes, never used Magic Energy back on Earth. It was a new, mysterious sensation to all of us, that was why our brains simply weren''t wired appropriately for it and had to learn it step by step. There was also a psychological factor involved. If we believed we could activate it without saying a word, we would, if we didn''t, we had to try and bypass whatever fear or worry made us unable to. The [Identificus Processus Juridicus] was successfully activated and returned the following information to me:This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. (Poisoned Black Sunder Rossenrhode Tea): Revitalizing Tea flavored with the Rossenrhode plant for a more pleasant taste. It has the properties of calming the nerves and inducing a relaxing sensation to the body. The concoction had been poisoned with Ryumarry roots, an odorless and tasteless substance that weakens the immune system, causes dizziness, heavy sleepiness, and an overall sensation of fatigue. [Bartender]: Ingredients: Rossenrhode leafs. Rossenrhode root. Ryumarry root. Playas leafs. Citrus peel. Adeline root. Water. Sugar. Requires a Trusted Journeyman Alchemist to make. I gulped after I read this. ¡°For how long did you say she has been taking this stuff?¡± I asked him. ¡°A year after she was poisoned, why?¡± he replied and squinted his eyes at me. Seeing the change in my expression, he placed the tea down and walked up to me. ¡°Did you find anything suspicious?¡± he asked me. ¡°I just need to confirm something. Do you know the ingredients of this... stuff?¡± I asked him pointing at the tea. ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded ¡°Playas leafs, Rossenrhode leafs, Rossenrhode root, Citrus peel, Adeline root, water, and sugar depending on the taste of the drinker.¡± he said. ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked him. ¡°Yes. Definitely! I drank it myself when they started giving it to my wife. It''s meant to help her recover and keep her alive in the hope of finding an antidote for the poison. Unfortunately, in the past eight years or so, I noticed a decline in her state of health... Lately she can barely keep her eyes open long enough for me to help her drink the tea.¡± he looked down with a sad gaze in his eyes. ¡°I''m not surprised.¡± I shrugged. ¡°What do you mean?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Well, my skill [Bartender], the one I told you about, allows me to see the ingredients of potions or in what potions I can use the said ingredients. It also tells me what type of Alchemist I need to be in order to be able to brew it.¡± I explained. ¡°What did you find?¡± he asked in a serious tone of voice. ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus] told me this is Poisoned Black Sunder Rossenrhode tea. [Bartender] confirmed the poison used. Now I''m going to read you exactly what it says here: Ryumarry roots, an odorless and tasteless substance that weakens the immune system, causes dizziness, heavy sleepiness, and an overall sensation of fatigue.¡± I replied and looked back at him. The killing intent of the King was back, but this time it didn''t feel aimed at me. Nonetheless, I could feel the pressure of pure power emanating from his body. He wasn''t happy at all with what he heard. ¡°You are telling me someone has been poisoning my wife? AGAIN?!¡± he growled. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°And if you think about it, the effects of the poison, although not lethal, they do coincide with what you have witnessed: the heavy sleepiness and weakness of her body.¡± I told him. He remained quiet, just kept glaring at the cup of tea he had personally made his wife drink. It was impossible for me to understand the hurricane of emotions raging inside his heart at the moment, so I continued to speak. ¡°The most troubling one is the weakening of the immune system. This one basically guarantees that the previous potion can act faster and better than before. The fact that it took you so long to find out was also because you most likely were led to believe that this was part of the natural process of the other poison. If fed in small quantities, this Ryumarry root will only act as sleeping medicine, but since the Queen kept drinking it for over eight years, it slowly built up in her system. Her body being unable to process and expel it completely led to the current situation where she can barely keep her eyes open for a few minutes a day. Maybe if not for her being a dragoness, she might have died a long time ago.¡± I nodded. ¡°What makes you think it was for eight years and not more?¡± he questioned. ¡°From what I heard, her health started to decline around eight years ago. Until then, the culprit probably didn''t mix in the poison. They let you believe that she was taking something good, tested, clean, until they were certain it became a habit, just the usual medicine. Proof of this was the fact that you didn''t even suspect this tea to be poisoned with something else, especially not something as simple as Ryumarry, which on its own doesn''t have the power to kill a dragon. All this time, you and everyone else believed it was actually the first poison showing its effects.¡± I explained. ¡°Is there anything we can do about it right now?¡± he asked as his anger slowly started to subside. Maybe he came to the conclusion that raging in here would have been bad for all of us. Then again, he would end up making the poisoner wary of him and flee before he got the chance to catch him. ¡°Right now if I ask to see her status, I will only see her name and power level. If you can wake her up and get her to accept to be my friend, I can then see both the poison in question, her current ailments and even how to cure them, if I am skilled enough.¡± I told him. ¡°This shouldn''t be a problem... She''ll wake up soon, that''s why I had the tea prepared beforehand.¡± he told me and then walked up to the cup and poured it in the waste bucket, which thankfully was empty. ¡°I had the feeling that instead of the bucket you were going to pour it in the pot of one of those plants here.¡± I said. ¡°And kill an innocent plant? My wife would kill me if she found out.¡± he smirked. ¡°I see... Well, I guess we''ll wait until she wakes up, then?¡± I asked him. ¡°Indeed, we will... And thank you.¡± he bowed his head in front of me. ¡°Huh? What for?¡± I asked surprised, taken aback by this gesture. ¡°For finding out about the poison in the tea.¡± he told me. ¡°Don''t worry about it. Now, let''s talk a bit more about the assertiveness and imposing my strength stuff you mentioned earlier.¡± I showed him a smile. ¡°Indeed, let us elaborate more on it. Hm, you could start by telling me your list of combat skills or anything that could be used for intimidation. This [Bartender] of yours should be kept a secret, for now.¡± he said and nodded. We returned to our seats, and just for safe measure, I analyzed the tea we were drinking as well, but this one had not been poisoned. While we waited for the Queen to wake up, we came up with several ways of imposing myself in the court and having the King accept me as a subject of his. Unfortunately, none could be applied at the moment because I lacked the required strength. If it was up to him, we wouldn''t need to go through all of this hassle. Just by having Brekkar and Kataryna accept me was enough for him, the problem was as he said, the rest of the nobility, which had to appeased as well in order to avoid a possible rebellion or acts of betrayal. However, once I told him about my journey to the Seculiar Forest, we took into account the possibility of me reaching a Breakthrough. With my Luck it was highly possible. I had both the strength and the abilities I needed to survive there and boost myself close to level 1000. Mentally, I was very close to it, so that wasn''t a problem either. In the end, [Itsy Bitsy BOOM!] turned out to be a very interesting and noteworthy intimidation tool I could use, something like a trump card to make everyone keep quiet and listen to me. I told him the details of this type of attack, and he shuddered at the thought of detonating it in a populated area. It was an impressive weapon with a fearsome effect on the local area. He warned me to never use it unless circumstances absolutely demanded it and even then I had to think thrice before doing so. It wouldn''t be funny if I ended up mutating the already powerful monsters of this world. The King''s worse fear was that of a three-headed, fire-breathing sheep that was 60 meters tall. Imagining that monster going ''baa baa'' and thrashing the city gave me the impression that I was in some sort of badly written horror movie or maybe a joke cartoon. ¡°Then all that''s left are the matters of the court. Who exactly should I have present here in order to convince the buffoons that you are not joking around?¡± the King asked as he rubbed his chin. He truly enjoyed plotting this scheme with me. His tail was swaying up and down while he had a deep pondering expression on his face. ¡°Brekkar, Seryanna, Elleyzabelle, and Kataryna?¡± I suggested. ¡°Indeed, they would truly prove to be worthy witnesses. I will call Brekkar not long before you return. This will give him enough time to increase his strength and get a step closer to his Breakthrough. But should I attempt to resume my usual royal activities?¡± he wondered. ¡°No. This would give the perpetrators of this poisoning incident a reason to be wary of you and be on guard for any ''strange movements''. Hm, if this was a game, I think I would have you appear two times at completely random moments, to give the impression that nothing had changed, but that something might. Then on the third appearance make it appear as though you are about to make a grand announcement, such as retiring or something like that.¡± I suggested as I scratched my head. ¡°Retirement is no good, hm... I could use that fellow Draejan. Make it seems as though I''m about to give in and promote him to general? If I put him on my right side and Brekkar on my left, it could signal the local nobles of my presumed intent to make a change. Declaring the Brekkar Army as changing into the Draejan Army would require both of them to be present, further fueling this idea of a great promotion. It would also give reason for me to call out to all the nobles I find... suspicious. I think I can have Elovius look into it. See who Draejan spends times with and what party alliances are shifting in the following months. Hm, now that I think about it, that''s a very sneaky thing to do. However, it all falls down to you being able to achieve a Breakthrough and arriving on time on that day. If you fail, I will be forced to put Draejan in the General position. I do not have to explain now what this would spell for your future with Seryanna Draketerus, do I?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Don''t worry, I won''t fail. I''ll bet my whole Luck on it that not only will I arrive on time, but I will also make a grand entrance suitable to shift all attention on me.¡± I showed him a confident smirk. ¡°Wish this right now, in front of me.¡± he said. ¡°Very well, your majesty.¡± I made a polite bow. ¡°I wish with all of my being that when we meet again, I will be a full fledged Breakthrough-er with the might to easily show both my strength and assertiveness in front of your court. I wish that we will meet again in nine months and 14 days from now, when you will make your third public appearance, and I will arrive at the perfect time to set this last part of our plan into motion. I wish for everything to go just the way we planned it, without any unforeseen events. And while I''m at it, I wish to be able to both cure your wife and find the perpetrators who dared poisoned her.¡± I spoke in a determined tone of voice with no drop of hesitation in my heart. The King smirked when he heard me and nodded in approval. ¡°That''s the attitude you want to keep!¡± he said. It was going to be a very dicey plan, with many unknown variables, but my Luck was certain to make things happen in the way I wished for them to happen. All that was left to do was to actually level up and become just as strong as I promised. Not an easy feat, certainly, but not 100% impossible either. Improbable, yes, but not impossible, and with my Luck, totally doable. About half an hour later, the Queen woke up. Her pale skin and silver blond hair made her look like a fragile porcelain doll. With a single gaze, I could tell how weakened she was. Her breath was soft, but barely there, it was almost like she was fighting with her last bits of strength to both stay alive and awake at the same time. For all she knew, this could have been the last time she saw her family. ¡°Elliessara, my love, don''t move too much. You are weakened... I may have found someone who can help you, but... he''s a human.¡± the King spoke in a gentle tone of voice as he brushed her hair. ¡°Do you... trust... him?¡± she asked in a barely audible tone of voice. Feryumstark closed his eyes and then looked back at me. In this moment, with his words, he could send both his kingdom and his family to certain doom if by chance I was not whom I claimed to be. From his point of view, this was a terrible risk to take, and at that time, I believed I had yet to prove myself trustworthy enough. However, I was yet unaware of the fact that throughout our conversation, he tested me time and time again. My desire to be honest with him as well as refusing to use his authority as means through which I could gain my immunity in his kingdom at the cost of unrest within the population, were two of the main reasons he could give the answer he did to his wife''s question. ¡°Yes.¡± he said. When I heard this word, I let out a sigh of relief. I was glad this was so. It meant that I could easily proceed with my next move. ¡°Your majesty, my name is Alkelios Yatagai, I''m a friend of Brekkar''s and Seryanna Draketerus.¡± I introduced myself. ¡°A human... a friend of those two?¡± she blinked surprised and then looked up at Feryumstark. He nodded in confirmation. ¡°In order to find out what ails you, I need to be your friend. I want to be your friend, your majesty. Will you accept?¡± I asked her with a soft smile. ¡°What? S-Something appeared... a question?¡± she stared in open space a bit confused. ¡°It''s my skill. This message appears only to those with whom I have an honest desire to become friends with and they in return wish the same.¡± I told her. She showed me a smile. [You have made a new friend: Elliessara Seyendraugher] ¡°To see... that there are humans like you... who wish to become friends with dragons... makes me happy... It... gives me hope.¡± she said with her last moment of consciousness before she fell asleep again. ¡°Elliessara?¡± the King checked to see if she was still awake. ¡°She''s asleep?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± he nodded and then let her rest. ¡°[Dragon Tamer] was activated successfully. I will look at her status right now.¡± I told him. [Name]: Elliessara Seyendraugher [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Light [Awakened Status]: 6 of 6 Conditions met. [Level]: 1206 [Strength]: 12 (6545)+373.2 [Speed]: 2 (7844)+401.5 [Dexterity]: 1 (9328)+359 [Magic]: 1120 (12545)+271.2 [Luck]: 55 [Magic Excellence]: 43%+4.48% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Wisdom of the Old One] [Debuffs]: [Ryumarry poisoning]: [God''s Demise Poison]: I then explained what I discovered in regard to the debuffs. To be honest, I was surprised as well, but what caught my attention were the 6 conditions she was required to attain in order to Awaken. If hers were anything close to as ridiculous as Seryanna''s, then Elliessara had a tough time Awakening. According to Kataryna, every dragon of a High Element was the same. Hers being Light, it was explained why her scales were white. Feryumstark went pale when he heard the news. He lost strength in his legs and fell on his knees. The expression on his face told me that he believed all hope was lost. However, what was probably most shocking for him was the Lich transformation. If this were to happen, not only would he lose the love of his life, but he would have to be the one to kill her. It was a fate no man had to experience. ¡°This is good though.¡± I told him with a smile. ¡°Good? HOW CAN THIS BE GOOD?!¡± he shouted and grabbed me by the collar of my clothes lifting me up with ease. The dragon was so fast, I wasn''t even able to see him coming, and his killing intent was making me unconsciously shiver in fear. This was how an enraged King of Dragons looked like. If the other royals on this continent were anything like him, then the human species never stood a chance in winning a war against them. This King alone was enough to wipe the floor with their armies. ¡°Ugh! Because there''s a cure!¡± I shouted back, hoping to reach to him. In that moment his grip weakened, and I fell on the floor. ¡°There''s a cure... Remember? [Lumenos, Lumenya, and Nocturnia''s tears Potion].¡± I told him. ¡°Yes... but you said you don''t know how to make it... your skill is not good enough, and there''s no Grand Godlike Alchemist alive in Albeyater... Actually, I have no idea how the humans even managed to get their hands on the [God''s Demise Poison]...¡± he said and then stepped back, looking around the room in a daze. ¡°Your Majesty, please relax... We still have 4 years left before there''s nothing we can do... It should be more than enough time for me to go and find the ingredients. Once I reach [Bartender] level 5, I have chance at making. I won''t guarantee anything because I don''t know what the future has installed for us, but knowing we have a chance is better than falling to despair.¡± I told him as I rubbed my neck and got back up on my feet. ¡°Yes... that''s true... and if you reach that level, then all that''s left is procuring the ingredients. That''s true... yes... I should go right away and order the troops. NO! The whole army to aid you!¡± he declared and immediately got up on his feat. Before he reached the door, I grabbed onto his tail and pulled, stopping him in his tracks. ¡°Wait a second! IF you do that then everything we planned and work for so far will be for nothing! The dragons who poisoned the queen will be left to roam free, and they might send assassins in an attempt to stop me! It will become a hassle and needless trouble for all of us!¡± I called out to him. He listened to me and then thought carefully about it for a moment. ¡°You are right...¡± he nodded and stepped back. I released his tail. ¡°Phew!¡± I exhaled relieved. ¡°Still, I cannot stop worrying about the fact that this might not work...¡± he said as he knitted his brow and looked at the ground. ¡°Then in the next nine months come up with plan in case I don''t return, though I highly doubt this because I want to kiss Seryanna again.¡± I nodded. ¡°You are right... I know the poison''s name. I know the cure''s name. All I need now is a Grand Godlike Alchemist. A dragon with such mastery won''t hesitate in taking up the challenge to brew this famous cure.¡± he said. ¡°And you also know what potions to acquire in order to help your wife recover from the Ryumarry poisoning: [Bartak''s Potion], [Adeline Tea], [Healing Potion], and [Grayum Weed]. Besides these, I would recommend making her lots of fresh fruit juice, warm soups and overall healthy and nutritious stuff like this. Of course, given the circumstances, you need to do it carefully. Hm, I know. Call for Kleo, Brekkar''s granddaughter. She''s a necromancer black-scale, but a very able and skilled individual when it comes to obtaining this sort of stuff. Also, she can act as a trusted bodyguard for you. As for the food, you can always learn to cook it yourself if you fear it will be poisoned as well.¡± I said. ¡°That''s true... but a necromancer... Hm, that might not be such a bad idea. No one would expect me to have so much trust in someone like her.¡± he nodded to himself. ¡°Just watch out for her pranks...¡± I showed him a wry smile. ¡°That I always do... I don''t want my palm to be glued to my face again...¡± he sighed. ¡°WOW! She''s good...¡± I pointed out. ¡°Ahem! Well, I guess this settles our matters. What will you do now?¡± he asked me. ¡°I''ll fly straight to the Seculiar Forest.¡± I showed him a smirk. ¡°Then may the gods have you in their care, Alkelios Yatagai!¡± he declared and then made a deep bow in front of me. ¡°You as well, your Majesty!¡± I showed him a smile. ¡°One question before you go... Why didn''t you ask me to be your friend?¡± he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Because I felt like you would decline? Well... it also didn''t really cross my mind.¡± I shrugged. He smirked. ¡°That is indeed true. A King has to stay impartial, after all.¡± ¡°And you also don''t want me to peek at your stats, right?¡± I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°Ahahaha! I have no idea what you''re talking about!¡± he looked away. This was one sneaky old dragon. Afterwards, I left the same way I came in, and the rest was history... [Feryumstark''s point of view after Alkelios left his room] I was left alone with my wife. My thoughts were in a haze, but thanks to that man, I was able to find out more about my beloved''s conditions. Not only this, but I also found a glimmer of hope when there should have been none. Instead of waiting for her to die by my side, I could now do something to save her. At this moment, my two children, the youngest ones, Shezelle Eska and Ashernitz Kos entered my room. They were smiling and came up to Elliessara''s bed. The two of them were born twins. When she found out she was pregnant with their eggs, I begged my wife to give up on them, but she stubbornly refused to do so even if it would have meant to give up her own life. It took her a while, but in the end she convinced me to accept her way, and I prayed that year every day to the gods to help her in this time of need. Their birth was a miracle, and luckily for them, they didn''t have any traces of that despicable poison in their systems. I was relieved when heard this. If I had lost both her and them, I would have certainly fallen to despair. Maybe Luck was on my side? Ashernitz looked up at me and said with a smile ¡°We told you he would come.¡± ¡°Of course, we told him to!¡± Shezelle said with a nod. ¡°He did not mention you two, though.¡± I told them. ¡°No need to. He doesn''t even remember anymore when we appeared before him unless someone jogs his memory.¡± Shezelle said. At this point, the two held hands and their eyes glowed in a bright, golden color. The air around them changed, and the expression on their face turned to a more serious one. ¡°These are the words of those you do not see but feel and pray to. Trust Alkelios. Trust him well and he shall not disappoint. However, whenever the message appears before you, asking you to be his friend, reject it. Be his friend, but don''t be his friend at the same time. This is the best way you can personally help him.¡± The voice felt like it echoed in my head and made me feel like I was listening to a being far more powerful than I. ¡°This is the first time you let me hear such a lengthy message... Why do you interfere in the mortal world?¡± I asked him or it, whatever spoke through my children. ¡°You prayed. I answered.¡± he replied. ¡°These words you tell me... are they prophecies?¡± I inquired and squinted my eyes at the twins. ¡°No.¡± they shook their head at the same time ¡°They are merely suggestions, so remember them well. In the end, your choice leads you down on your own path.¡± The children then closed their eyes and returned to normal. This channeling act drained them of their energies, so they were both yawing and got up on the bed to sleep beside their mother. I let them do so while I watched over them. These two were a real mystery on why and how they gained this ability of theirs, however, I could tell the one who spoke never tried to take control of them. If they felt like this being had something to say, the twins would hold each other''s hand and allow it to speak through them. Without their will and direct contact with each other, they could not channel his words through them. Simple sentences once in a while was all it said, but so far, they revealed this gift only to me. As for how long they were going to have it, I had no idea, yet something told me it wasn''t going to be forever. I wonder if it''s true what the priests told me about the two of them having a chance to one day become the Apostles of a god? If this is what they will want to do, I will support them, but I will not force them to become one just because they can do a little channeling. I smiled and then gently patted their little heads. ¡°Sleep tight, my children.¡± I whispered. Chapter 56: Insanity at the court [Alkelios'' point of view] Thus, I stood before the one named and respected as the strongest dragon in the Albeyater Kingdom, the King of Albeyater, Feryumstark Seyendraugher. His presence was not one to be underestimated. Even now, I could feel he wasn''t going to let me make any mistake. I was strong now, true, but he far surpassed me, yet now I stood in front of him threatening everything he held dear and with one single thought, I could eradicate everything he held dear and had fought for all of these past centuries. Reality''s truth was this one: nothing lasted forever. No matter how much we treasured certain things, they would inevitably come to an end. No matter how much we would desire something to remain the same, one day, it would change. Technology broke down or became obsolete. People died, moved away, or changed. Loyalties shifted over time, allowing for new wars or moments of peace to appear. Nothing was certain. Nothing would last. But this... this change was absolutely perfect. This was what was wonderful about life and the Universe itself. Change was what made it move, what pushed it forward even when it appeared to be going back. Change was what created absolutely everything one held dear in the first place. However, accepting change was not an easy thing to do, and precisely because of that, both I and Feryumstark understood that those who feared it would be the first to break down. In this case, I brought the change with my inconceivable attack. I demanded things that undermined the authority of the King. I posed myself as someone... lunatic, unstable... human. Thus, wouldn''t it be logical for those few who had yet to reach a Breakthrough and cared for their lives to step up and try to save it? Wasn''t it logical for the few nobles who hated or saw the current King as weak to try and stand by my side? It was normal, natural, understandable... But so far, nothing gave them a reason to do so... Nothing caused fear in their hearts enough to willingly break out of their own shell and jump on the ledge that appeared to be the most safe. Thus, I spoke... trying to lure the rats out... ¡°Your Majesty, do you know who and what I am?¡± I asked as I tilted my head to the left. ¡°No.¡± he lied. ¡°GOOD! GOOD! I guess, you haven''t heard of the name Alkelios Yatagai?¡± I asked. ¡°If I knew beforehand that a dangerous element like you existed in my kingdom, I would have done everything I could to stop you.¡± he declared. This one probably wasn''t a lie, but the underlying condition he didn''t say out loud was the fact that I had to prove myself to be against his rule and evil with dragons. ¡°Well, your subjects had no reason to explain the appearance of a weakly little ol'' human like me.¡± I made a small bow. ¡°Human?¡± one of the nobles let the word slip. When I introduced myself, I declared I was a ''former human''. Those who knew the details of my Dragon Tamer understood immediately what this implied. This was why Seryanna was trying hard not to blush and look at me with a feverish gaze. Kataryna was wagging her tail like a dog ready to jump on a treat... Please hold on, you two! I prayed in my mind. Anyway, the common sense of this world dictated that it was absolutely IMPOSSIBLE for one to simple change his species just like that. No one encountered a Human Hero like me before, so they had not idea that our special skills allowed some of us to do just that. I had a feeling those with a similar ability for Elves, Relliars, Dwarfs, and whatnot were also granted the ''half-change'' possibility at the fifth level. But, as I mentioned before, this little piece of information was believed to be absolutely absurd by the majority of the people of this world. The minority was made out of only those few who interacted with the heroes intimately enough to find out about it and also believe it as a result of past actions. ¡°Is it bad that I''m a human?¡± I asked with a grin as I looked at the dragon. He made big eyes and gulped ¡°N-No... I d-didn''t say that!¡± he shook his head, denying the thought, but something told me it was something else that surprised him. ¡°Ah! Speaking of my kind, the Queen was poisoned by one, wasn''t she?¡± I said and with a smirk on my lips, I squinted my eyes at the King. Immediately, a powerful killing intent was released from his body, putting pressure on all those in this room as well as sending shivers down their spines. ¡°Oh! How scawy! But cut it off, scaly!¡± I waved him off. The King seemed to be reluctant, so I pointed up at the sphere I was holding above my head. Immediately, the killing intent vanished. The nobles gulped and began to whisper among themselves. ¡°Good... Guess, I should give out my demands, but first off, I want to know... Anyone here on the human side?¡± I asked. I, a former human, wasn''t on the human side anymore, but few knew this. Those who looked at me now believed I was, therefore, a few individuals were starting to stir. ¡°I''m just going to put this as a reminder, but I can blow up this entire city in the blink of an eye, so do tell me... WHO among you is on the human side?¡± I asked with a grin. ¡°W-What do you plan to do if y-you find out?¡± someone on my left asked. It was a skinny gray-scale dragon with a long white beard, draconic eyes, smooth horns growing backwards, but only his hands, feet, and tail were those of a lizard. He looked youngish? Maybe around 30 years old by my estimates and around 200 by draconic ones? ¡°I might NOT attack them.¡± I said. I wasn''t, but the King afterwards was certainly going to. I didn''t say a lie, but my words didn''t mean I was going to protect them either. ¡°I am!¡± a fat dragon in the back raised his hand and came forward. ¡°Marquise Belogna?¡± the King asked. ¡°I-I traded secretly with humans... I am on your side, human...¡± he gulped and tried hard to avoid the gaze of the other dragons and that of the King''s. ¡°Good! Stand over there, at the back.¡± I pointed towards my left, at an empty spot in the room. Kataryna was on that side, and the moment I looked into her eyes, she understood that she had to make sure not to let the rats out of her sight. ¡°I''m also on the human side!¡± said another dragon, a skinny green-scale wearing some rather expensive garbs. ¡°Viscount Draghun?¡± the King asked, but he was ignored again. ¡°Good! Anyone else?¡± I asked. Shortly after, several more dragons raised their hands and were set apart from the other nobles, who were already starting to throw glares at them. The most frightening of them all being Elovius, the Prime Minister. I guess he never suspected them to be traitors, huh? I thought. ¡°Those who declared themselves to have sided with humans, I will keep my word, I won''t attack you.¡± I declared. ¡°Then you will let us go?¡± Draghun asked. ¡°Not yet, you need to give a report to your human allies of what''s going to happen here.¡± I said and shook my head. ¡°But you will not harm us, right?¡± he asked. ¡°I will not.¡± I replied putting accent on the pronoun ''I''. ¡°If you want a contact with the humans, I have several.¡± said a dragon all of a sudden. He was not part of the bunch set aside, but among those who remained. ¡°You? Duke Pallause? How could you!¡± King Feryumstark asked in a roar. You did not see this coming, did you? I wondered. ¡°It''s simple, your Majesty. This Kingdom is rotting. Ever since the Queen''s nonsense about making peace with humans, things have went pretty bad for us. Not only have our armies weakened, but our trade suffered as well. Without restoring the Brekkar Army and returning Scar Battlefield to its former glory, you let it rot like that, denying the right to an incursion in retaliation to the human attack.¡± he declared. ¡°That doesn''t sound very human-friendly like?¡± I pointed out tilting my head to the right. ¡°I have sided with the humans about 28 years ago. You may not know this, your Majesty, but the humans want war because it''s profitable, however, because of your reluctance to strike back at them, dragon sympathizers have began to appear among their population. If matters are left as they are, the war might end, but we also need this war. The support we''re offer from the other kingdoms, the way our trade works, the will of our entire Kingdom is based on this war. Albeyater was grown through war and remained stable with it! Incursions and invasions of our own are a MUST!¡± he declared pointing a finger up. ¡°So why side with humans?¡± I asked him. ¡°In order to remove the one who wishes for peace, the King and Queen.¡± he replied. ¡°What?¡± this time it was Elovius who asked surprised. ¡°With the two of them gone, the war is guaranteed. And it appears now is the long awaited moment. I believe the Emperor of Akutan sent you? Or was it the King of Ten Swords?¡± he questioned. ¡°It''s a secret.¡± I smirked. ¡°I see... Very well, I will go stand over there while you deal with them.¡± he spoke calmly. This red-scale dragon wearing a fancy robe embroidered with golden thread did not stood out from among the others from my point of view. He looked rather bland in my opinion, but his confident smug told me that he didn''t mind betraying the King in the slightest. Actually, I had the feeling he was happy things turned out like this. ¡°Interesting...¡± I muttered. Looking back at the King, I saw him barely keeping his anger in check. Of course, he knew that he could break our little play any time he desired because I never planned on truly unleashing this nuke on the city, but besides him and my friends, no one else knew this. What I found strangely uncomfortable was the fact that Draejan had yet to move from his spot. He wasn''t showing any emotion either. No, what he was doing was calmly analyzing this whole situation, almost as if he was aware of my little play. Maybe I should bait him? I wondered as I looked through the remaining nobles, trying to avoid his gaze. ¡°I heard something interesting about a tea... and Ryumarry roots? The one who knows what I''m talking about step up.¡± I said. The King froze in his spot. The others were whispering. Pallause squinted his eyes at me. But so far, none of them reacted. This is strange... Is he not here? I wondered. After another moment passed, someone raised his hand. It was a short, fat dragon who was sweating a lot. Besides a pair of short wings on his back and the slit eyes, there was nothing to point out at the fact that he wasn''t human. ¡°Are you...¡± I said but stopped. ¡°Yes, I am Viscount Galbarion. I did as I was told and poisoned the Queen''s herbal tea with Ryumarry root dust...¡± he declared as he wiped his sweat with a handkerchief. When he met the King''s furious gaze, he trembled in fear. This dragon... he''s terribly weak. I noticed. ¡°I see, good job, now stand over there next to Pallause.¡± I said pointing at them. ¡°T-Thank y-you...¡± he said mumbling. ¡°I''m curious though, how did you manage to do it?¡± I asked him. ¡°Erm... I lied to the maid that brought the tea and told her the Ryumarry root dust had to be added to it afterwards. Of course, she had no idea what the dust actually was, and I made up a pompous explanation, which she was unable to understand but which gave me credibility. I did this several times until she gave up on trying to listen to the long and boring explanation. Because it was a weird talk, the passing guards had no idea what I was doing either and didn''t bother to investigate...¡± he explained. ¡°Good job.¡± I showed him a smile. It was actually a good plan, although, a bit risky. I would have simply changed the contents of a bottle or mixed it in with a similarly colored ingredient. Although, with my current [Bartender] skill, I could have also just turned it into a concentrated drop which I could add with ease in anything I wanted. Still, the fact that a Viscount said and did this removed any possible suspicion from the maid. After all, she couldn''t just ignore his words. Although, it still wasn''t alright to just accept it like that, but maybe this was the reason behind the need to offer her an explanation. Because the Viscount didn''t try to act suspicious and just came right up at her, she found it easy to trust him. ¡°What if it didn''t work?¡± I asked. ¡°Then... that was going to be it for me, but any other method would have failed either way. If I visited the healers too many times, I would have been found suspicious. This way, I just got the bad rumor that I''m trying to charm the King''s maids.¡± he replied. ¡°Hm, I see. I see.¡± I nodded in understanding. Looking back at the remaining bunch, I saw that there weren''t that many nobles left standing on the King''s side, but they were all furious with the betrayal of the others. The balance was strangely tipped in the human faction''s favor. But I had to admit, it was a well thought up plan, making connections with so many different dragons of high status and separately as well, giving them their own little missions, everything working together like one big complex machine aimed at destroying the kingdom from within. Whoever was the mastermind behind this was good. He was very good. ¡°What now?¡± asked one of the nobles who willing gave themselves up as being part of the human-siding faction. To be honest, I felt like this went a bit too easy, but maybe I simply just underestimated the authority of important figures like Brekkar, Kataryna, and Feryumstark. To me, they were just a bunch of dragons among many others, but with whom I got along quite well. That was why, something told me this wasn''t going to be over just yet.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. It was highly likely that the mastermind had yet to reveal himself or herself. This made me a bit worried. If I couldn''t find the actual cause of this whole mess, then they could end up undoing what I worked hard to achieve today. Either that or replace these fellows with other pawns. But how can I lure them out into the opening? I wondered and closed my eyes for a moment. Analyzing the situation, there were several things that didn''t go as I had initially planned: 1) Draejan didn''t make a single move and quietly obeyed the King''s order; 2) there were way too many traitors of high noble ranks, among which even a Duke; 3) the one who poisoned the Queen did it in a way even I hadn''t thought about because it was too... suspicious in my point of view; 4) there was proof of the existence of a mastermind behind all of this, yet no proof of them making a move or even being in this room at the moment. With the first three, I could live, but the last one was difficult to solve. If I asked these nobles for a name or evidence of this claim, they could simply rebuff it as being nonsense or that they were the actual mastermind. At the same time, it would prove that I am not who I claimed I was, or rather who they on their own misunderstood I was. Maybe I''m thinking too much into this, and the truth is actually right in front of my eyes? I wondered as I scanned the crowd. Kataryna, Elleyzabelle, Seryanna, Kleo, Iolaus, and Brekkar were out of the question, but not because I was their friend, but because they had proven time and time again where their loyalty stood. I mean, Seryanna nearly gave up on me for her loyalty, and if she did that, it would have been bye bye Awakening for her. Draejan was a suspect as well, but his aim seemed more towards gathering an army that... Wait a moment! An army? I stopped and thought a bit about how this army presented itself and then compared it with the basic ideal of noble pride dragons had. I also took note of the black hooded fellow in the back who felt familiar for some reason, and the many seemingly normal retainers. These guys are trained, armed, and judging by their status, all over level 500. I thought and gulped. They weren''t actually a threat to me, maybe just to a bunch of no-good bandits. They weren''t even a threat to any of my friends, especially the King, so a coup d''etat was most definitely impossible to achieve with them. Some were even starting to worry about the current situation, proving that they had no idea their masters were traitors to the Kingdom. This left me only with the Brekkar Army, once one of the strongest and most disciplined of the Albeyater Kingdom, now only a mere shadow of its former self. The number of soldiers had increased exponentially, but their strength paled in comparison to the original ones. Discipline and order were strange notions for them, but they all shared a common ideology... they followed Draejan first over anyone else. Even so, this wasn''t enough to prove he was the mastermind behind this. A good tactic would have been to increase the number of soldiers in the Brekkar Army and attract supporters among the nobility. Once he was promoted to General, he could trim down the unneeded soldiers and properly organize it into a powerful army. By default, this didn''t require Draejan to be a traitor to the crown, just an overzealous noble who desperately wanted the title of a General. Besides, he had nothing to gain through the death of the Queen. She was his grandmother. Thus, his nobility and rank in the country was assured. But let us presume he wanted to become the King. What would he need to do in order to achieve this? I wondered. The answer was simple: slay all the current Royal Family members or force them into declaring officially that they willingly gave up on all of their rights to the crown. But the King''s family was quite numerous, and there were probably many among his children who wouldn''t mind giving it a shot. There were some among them who also had the backing of outside dragon forces, like Embryger, Solustia, and Merganus. There was also a matter of the loyalty of all the dragons who achieved an Awakened Breakthrough. Last I remember, there were a total of 16 in this Kingdom, not counting myself. Indeed, there was no way for him to become a King... But what if... that was never his aim? What if... war was the aim? Weakening the Kingdom enough for a powerful force like Embryger to see it just to step in and correct things. I thought. In this case, an alliance with the humans would have been the way to go. A war, as Pallause said, was something both sides desired it more or less. In other words, the nobility who could profit from it. After all, a large and powerful army had no use in times of peace. Even so, this whole thing was just my presumption. I did wish for things to eventually reach a peaceful end and for matters to be settled, but in what way or how it could be possible was not something I could control. The more freedom I allowed for a wish to manifest itself, the faster and easier it would. On the other hand, precise control was only needed when I didn''t want certain possible bad events to take place. But even then it wasn''t 100% guaranteed because sometimes in order for the wish to come true, bad things had to happen. It was like the saying went: if you want a new car, then sell the old one and make room for the new one. Your garage can only hold so many, but it''s up to you if you cling to the old or are willing to let it go and accept the new. I guess it''s all about taking a chance now. The traitors are already marked, and with this the King and his court will pay more attention to such schemes, but discovering the mastermind will have to be left for another day... I let out a sigh and scratched the back of my head. Up until now, I remained silent, so most people here had no idea what I was going to do or say next. I also had a big fireball above my head, which was ready to explode as soon as I gave it the order to do so. ¡°I guess so... Well, any of you heard from the boss yet?¡± I asked as I looked back at the nobles. Their confused expression told me that they were unaware of the existence of a mastermind. None of the other nobles, including Draejan reacted in a suspicious manner. ¡°You in the back with the hood... Show yourself.¡± I told him. He didn''t reply nor comply. ¡°Sir Draejan, tell your man to reveal his face.¡± ordered the King in a low growl. ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± the dragon replied and then nodded back to the hooded fellow. The man pulled back the hood and revealed his face. He had dark-brown slit eyes and scales on his cheeks. ¡°Hm, was I mistaken?¡± I wondered. ¡°I ordered him to use the hood and hide his identity in order to be able to easily spy on the troublemakers in the Brekkar Army. I am aware that there are some... problems, and he is the solution I am currently employing.¡± he replied in a calm tone of voice, but the gaze in his eyes betrayed his satisfaction for something. ¡°Is that so? Although, the army shouldn''t have had any sort of problem if you simply followed Brekkar''s rules, right?¡± I asked him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Even if it holds his name, it will soon hold mine, so I saw no reason in just blindly following the laws and rules established by my predecessor. If I were to reach the same conclusion, then so be it, but learning and understanding the way things work is more valuable than copying the knowledge from another and claiming it as yours.¡± he declared. His words were wise, but also slightly foolish. ¡°There''s no shame in copying what others achieved through hard work as long as you admit it and they permit it. If you try hard to improve them afterwards or come up with a brand new solution, it will be your own merit. Starting from zero is... a bit irresponsible.¡± I said. Draejan shot me a glare when he heard what I had to say, while Brekkar smirked. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai, you have proven to this court that there are traitors among it, what do you plan on doing now? Are you going to kill us all?¡± the King asked squinting his eyes at me. I guess this is my cue to wrap things up... I thought. After clearing my throat, I spoke in a loud and clear tone of voice ¡°I, Alkelios Yatagai, wish the following matters to be approved by this court. One is that my previous duel against Sir Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya to be considered null and it''s result void.¡± ¡°Consider it done.¡± the King nodded. ¡°But, your Majesty!¡± Draejan tried to object. ¡°It''s just a childish duel. It had always been unimportant in my eyes.¡± declared the King before tossing him a glare. ¡°Any objections?¡± he then asked as he looked at the remaining nobles standing on his side. ¡°None, your Majesty.¡± one replied. They all agreed and one even went so far as to consider that all duels between dragons and humans unless approved by the King were to be considered void as it involved members of two species currently at war. ¡°Second, I wish for the court to return the command of the Brekkar army to Sir Brekkar Draketerus.¡± I declared. Murmurs and whispered flowed throughout the court, while those set aside as traitors looked confused. ¡°Why should we accept an old dragon unable to fight as a general?¡± asked one of the nobles who up until now had been quiet. ¡°It''s a good question.¡± pointed out the King. ¡°Who said that old dragon can''t fight?¡± I smirked. ¡°Brekkar. Do you have anything to say regarding this?¡± asked the King. ¡°Ahem! Yes, your Majesty, I was going to announce it sooner or later, but I am currently back to my full health. I have been cured and I''m quickly regaining my former strength.¡± he declared with a smile while his dark-red scale tail waved left and right slowly. ¡°Is that so? And who was the one who healed you?¡± he asked. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai, your Majesty.¡± he replied with a bow. The murmurs and whisper flooded the room once again, raising the amount of background noise. ¡°SILENCE!¡± ordered the King as he glared at them all. With an audible gulp coming from several of them, the King looked back at Brekkar and asked him. ¡°Where does your loyalty stand?¡± he asked him. ¡°With you, your Majesty.¡± he made a deep bow in front of him. The confusion among the nobles continued. ¡°Hm, very well. If it''s like this, then there is no problem in making you the general of the Brekkar Army again.¡± the King nodded satisfied. ¡°Any objections?¡± I asked as I looked at the nobles. No one replied. Brekkar had a good reputation among many nobles, and his sacrifice 38 years ago wasn''t one that was taken lightly. If he was cured, then they would rather wait for him to get his strength back than handing over the Brekkar Army to a youngling with no experience like Draejan. This declaration, however, did seem to spark something inside the dragon. He looked calm, as though he had come to terms with this result, but his clenched fists were nearly bleeding from how hard he was squeezing. ¡°Now, for my third wish, I want his Majesty to officially dissolve the engagement between Seryanna Draketerus and Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya.¡± I declared. ¡°I never knew she was engaged with him in the first place.¡± the King squinted his eyes at me ¡°Even so, I cannot do this unless the parties involved also desire this.¡± he pointed out. ¡°Your Majesty, I never considered myself as Draejan''s fiance, and I was told this engagement was a royal command.¡± Seryanna stepped forward and declared sharply. ¡°Is that so? Who made this call then?¡± the King asked as he looked around. ¡°It was I, your Majesty.¡± Elovius stepped forward. ¡°You? Why?¡± he asked rubbing his chin. ¡°In order to smooth out the transition of the Brekkar Army''s leadership. At the time, I believed Brekkar was still ill and unable to fight anymore. As such, I desired to at the very least preserve the might and legacy of his army. I also did it believing that it could be a symbol both towards the outside and among our population that Albeyater''s might had not weakened.¡± replied Elovius with a courteous bow. Normally, I could have suspected Elovius as being the mastermind as well, but back when I first met the King, he assured me that his son was at most just a hard to understand fellow, but his loyalty and intentions were all in the right place. ¡°I understand. Given the circumstances, do you still believe it to be the right call?¡± Feryumstark asked him. Elovius glanced back at Brekkar and then at his father, the King. ¡°No.¡± he replied. ¡°I see. Then the engagement between Seryanna Draketerus and Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya has no reason to be when one of them doesn''t wish for it and the original political reason behind it is no more.¡± the King declared. The nobles nodded in agreement, while Draejan swallowed his own spit. ¡°Anything else, Alkelios Yatagai?¡± asked the King. ¡°I would really need a back massage, but I can''t ask you for that.¡± I laughed. ¡°That would be ridiculous.¡± the King scoffed. The others just showed a stiff reaction at my innocent joke. ¡°Ahem! Anyway, yes! I wish for his Majesty to declare that I am pardoned of any and all crimes against the crown anyone may believe I have committed today or in the past, such as threatening you and stuff like that.¡± I declared. ¡°Hm... Where does your loyalty stand, Alkelios Yatagai? Declare this first before me and the gods above, and I shall then give you my answer.¡± the King replied in stern tone of voice. I smirked. ¡°I, Alkelios Yatagai, officially declare my allegiance to the The Third Princess of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Elleyzabelle Sojourn Seyendraugher, and through extension, their Majesties the King and Queen of the Dragon Kingdom Albeyater, Feryumstark Seyendraugher and Elliessara Seyendraugher!¡± I declared in a loud tone of voice. Except for the few who knew me, the shocked expressions on their faces was priceless. Elovius even had his mouth opened wide despite how rude that might have appeared. Even Draejan was looking at me with big eyes as if not believing his own ears. As for the group who openly revealed their traitorous behavior because they thought I was a human sent by humans in order to help them in their plot, they looked as though the whole world came crushing down on their shoulders, and they didn''t have the strength to stand up anymore. ¡°I-It''s over...¡± Pallause said. Yes it is... I thought. The King closed his eyes for a moment and then burst out into a loud laughter. ¡°You heard him, right? Do you have any objections?¡± he asked as he looked at the shocked nobles who stood by the King''s side. ¡°I for one, no.¡± Brekkar declared. ¡°Neither do I.¡± Elleyzabelle declared with a polite smile on her face. ¡°I see no reason as to why he shouldn''t be pardoned. Considering all that has happened until now, he is indeed worthy of being pardoned!¡± said one of the nobles. ¡°I agree. The human has guts! He thinks like a dragon more than he does a human.¡± said another. ¡°Although I also agree, I do not trust him.¡± said another. ¡°I do not believe this whole thing was about trust in the first place. Now that he declared this, it all makes sense. I found it really weird that he simply didn''t use this ability of his to just rampage in our Kingdom. An attack like that from a dragon-hating human would have been the absolute best for him.¡± another pointed out. ¡°I''m just disappointed to have learned that so many of the dragons I thought to be respectable turned out to be... traitors.¡± one said with a sigh escaping their lips. They continued to state their opinions one after another, while the said traitors were unable to utter a single word. They were devastated by sudden turn of events. ¡°Well, as you can see, there are no objections. So yes, I officially pardon you, Alkelios Yatagai, for any crime committed against the crown until this very moment. I also accept your loyalty declaration.¡± Feryumstark declared with a smirk. ¡°Thank you, your Majesty! And good! Finally! Holding my arm up like this all this time was a killer!¡± I groaned in protest as I canceled out the spell. The massive threat to the lives of everyone in this city was reabsorbed as basic Magic Energy by my body. Seeing it vanish, everyone let out a sigh of relief, especially the guards in this place who found themselves to be completely useless. Still, there was one more thing that had to be done before we stared to celebrate. ¡°Alkelios, here''s your first order. Apprehend those fools who tried to plot against me.¡± Feryumstark said as he pointed at the group of traitors. ¡°My pleasure!¡± I made a courteous bow. ¡°Wait! No! There has to be some sort of mistake!¡± one of them called out. ¡°You tricked us!¡± Pallause declared. Viscount Galbarion was already out cold, seeing how he revealed himself as the one who deliberately poisoned the Queen. After he spilled everything he knew, the only thing waiting for him was going to be death or the gallows, depending on how merciful the King was going to be with them. My only job so far was to reveal and apprehend them. ¡°I don''t understand... why would a human like you help us?¡± asked Elovius confused as he approached me. ¡°Why should I not help my friends?¡± I asked tilting my head to the left. ¡°Pardon?¡± he blinked confused. ¡°Go and ask your father, I''m going to round up these morons.¡± I smirked and cracked my knuckles as I was preparing to administer a dose of Knock Out and one of Tie Up. My ropes were enchanted to resist even the struggles of the Four-Headed Dog Boss I encountered when I first arrived in this world. ¡°Can''t we talk about this?¡± one of them begged. I smirked and then I punched. Several minutes later, the job was done, and everyone who was revealed as a traitor was currently being taken down to the cells where the interrogation process was going to make them spill every little secret they had. That was if they didn''t die while in the process of being interrogated. If they survived, a swift death awaited them instead of more torture. With a smile, I returned to the King, who was telling something to Elovius. When he saw me, the two of them stopped. The first to speak was the Prime Minister. ¡°My apologies, Alkelios Yatagai, if I had been aware of any of this...¡± he lowered his head. ¡°No, it''s all good. I had to learn a bunch of things as well. Besides, everything turned out alright and that''s the important thing!¡± I laughed. ¡°I see. I apologize nonetheless, and I will take this lesson to heart so that in the future I will be more aware of my surroundings.¡± he declared and then returned to his spot by the King''s side. The next to come up to me was Brekkar. ¡°I haven''t seen in you in so long, and you already surpassed me in strength! You boy are a miracle walking on two legs!¡± he laughed and patted my shoulders with his hands. ¡°It''s good to see you, my friend. I am not weak anymore.¡± Iolaus declared with a proud smirk. ¡°Unless we''re talking about Kleo, then this boy is useless.¡± Brekkar let out a sigh. ¡°I-I... THAT''S NOT TRUE!¡± the dragon rebuked. ¡°Bwahahaha! It''s good to be young!¡± Brekkar patted the man''s back. ¡°Welcome back, Alkelios! As usual, you don''t fail to impress! I knew I was right about you back then! You really are one interesting dragon!¡± Kataryna said with a smile as she came over and before I knew it, she stole my lips in a kiss. ¡°Welcome back! Fufu!¡± the dragoness said after our lips parted. ¡°Hey! He''s mine!¡± Seryanna pulled the dragoness back, but when she looked me in the eyes, her face turned completely red. ¡°W-Welcome back.¡± she said. ¡°Glad to be back.¡± I said and this time, I was the one to take the lead as I gave her a kiss on the lips. ¡°AHEM!¡± the King interrupted us. We all blinked surprised and looked his way. Elovius was sighing and shaking his head. The nobles rolled their eyes, and the King was just staring at us. ¡°It''s good that you had your little reunion party RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, but there are important matters that need our attention, especially with today''s reveal of so many traitors within my court. Also, my wife would like to have a word with you as well.¡± he declared. ¡°Mother would?¡± Elovius asked surprised. ¡°Yes.¡± the King nodded. Everyone began to whisper again. This was getting a tad bit ridiculous. ¡°Sure thing. Oh, but before we do that, I have one more thing I wish to settle.¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°Which is?¡± the King asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Sir Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya, I challenge you to a duel. If I win, you are hereby forbidden to even try to become a general again unless I have officially approved of you!¡± I pointed at him. ¡°You wish to challenge me, again?¡± he asked raising a eyebrow. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°You are a foolish human as always. And here I thought you had changed.¡± he shook his head and then sighed. ¡°Who knows? Well, do you accept or not?¡± I asked him. ¡°And what am I to gain if I am to win?¡± he asked. ¡°My official approval of you and a set of armor I will personally make for you.¡± I replied with a smile. He raised an eyebrow. ¡°You are blacksmith?¡± he asked. ¡°Among many others, I can also make you some nice enchanted rings as well. With [The Shiny Artisan] skill I can make a lot of interesting jewels and accessories.¡± I smiled. ¡°Sounds fair. If I can''t even defeat a weak human like you, how can I even dare ask for a General title?¡± he scoffed. ¡°A fair duel. I like it, and I approve of it.¡± declared the King. ¡°Let us all move to the training grounds then!¡± Brekkar said in a loud tone of voice. ¡°Now this will be interesting!¡± Kataryna said while her tail was swaying in the air. ¡°I have a feeling I have been completely ignored...¡± Kleo let out a sigh and looked down. ¡°Not really. I''m glad to see you again, Kleo.¡± I told her with a smile before I followed Sir Draejan to the training ground. Chapter 57: Duel [Alkelios'' point of view] The last time I stepped on the training grounds was when I had my first duel with Sir Draejan. Back then, because of my immaturity and lack of skill, I found myself disgraced and humiliated despite my high Luck and outstanding stats. It didn''t really matter that I could summon a level 999 Phoenix or that I was friends with Kataryna Greorg. What mattered was my ability to fight using everything I had up to the last drop of strength I could muster. Regarding this humiliation I suffered, I was in a way thankful towards Sir Draejan because it made me realize that just having power was meaningless if you were unable to use it properly. Kataryna also helped me a lot to understand and accept this fact. True, I had a lot of stat points, but I never was able to exert them completely. They sort of represented the maximum I could achieve, but even if I could theoretically lift one tonne in one hand, I didn''t believe I could do this nor did I know how exactly I could exert that amount of force to begin with. While this was something easy, natural even for the people of this world, Earth''s inhabitants had other thoughts on the matter. In essence, it was all about how your mind perceived things, and at that time, I had a lot of mental blocks and fears that kept telling me it was impossible. During my time in the Seculiar Forest, one of the biggest challenges I faced wasn''t reaching level 1000 or achieving my Half-Dragon form. No, the biggest challenge I had to face in there was to accept the fact that my body was indeed capable of exerting the amount of force and speed displayed in my Status Window. This was the thing, the trick behind this unique ability of the Human Heroes. This was what was never explained to us by anyone, including the God-like. Even if you suddenly gained a boost of 100 points in Strength, then on the first go, an earthling was most likely to use only a maximum of 16-20 points. When we ran, our average speed wasn''t 100 km/h as it was displayed there. No, it was a maximum of maybe 30-40 km/h. Maximum usage of stat points occurred when we were really putting in effort, when we struggled and tried to push ourselves to reach or surpass our limits. That being said, it was impossible for the me back then to fight Sir Draejan who constantly trained and kept pushing his limits. When he was using 1000 points in Strength, I barely stumbled around 800. That was the truth of that past battle. I had moments of instant bursts of both speed and strength, but I could neither control nor use them properly, thus I only appeared like a bumbling amateur who lacked both skill and coordination in the eyes of a trained warrior. Kataryna showed this to me quite clearly during our little scuffle. However, I was different from the me back then. I could fully control my power, my stats, and every skill I had acquired throughout my days in the Seculiar Forest. More so, I had surpassed Draejan in everything. Of this fact, I was certain. ¡°Are you sure about this, Alkelios?¡± Kataryna asked me with a smirk. ¡°I still have something left to show you, so yes.¡± I nodded as I prepared myself to enter battle with the dragon in front of me. ¡°As King of Albeyater Kingdom and the one who approved of this duel, I request both duelist to step forward.¡± Feryumstark announced while standing straight on the podium reserved for him. Both me and Draejan approached the center of the training ground. ¡°Both of you desire this duel, correct?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± we replied one at a time. ¡°Based on what rules do you wish to fight against each other?¡± he inquired. ¡°With our best weapons and armors.¡± declared Draejan with a confident smirk on his lips. ¡°I''m fine with that.¡± I replied with a shrug. Even if he wanted us to do a mud wrestling competition in bikinis, I still would have approved of it, but more to see Kataryna and Seryanna drooling over me or laughing, depending on the case, rather than seeing Draejan wearing that. The image of the dragon in THAT sort of outfit was rather... disturbing. ¡°Very well. You will be granted half an hour to equip yourselves. Return here after you have donned your best armors and equipped your best weapons!¡± the King declared in a commanding tone of voice. As usual, his intimidating and imposing aura was as strong as ever no matter where he stood or what he said. I nodded in confirmation, then I returned to my side of the field where my friends awaited me. ¡°Do you have an armor and weapon you can use?¡± Seryanna asked in a worried tone of voice. ¡°I do. I have acquired a blacksmithing skill called [Rock Hard!]. It''s at maximum level and advancements. I can quite literally make any type of armor and weapon.¡± I nodded. ¡°Hm, Dregarya will be quite interested in this.¡± Seryanna pointed out. ¡°Who?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°My blacksmith friend.¡± she showed me a smile. ¡°I see.¡± I nodded. ¡°Erm... You said you have a weapon and an armor, but are they in your [Purse] ring?¡± Kleo asked. ¡°No, they are in my storage skill. I''ll take them out now and equip them.¡± I told her and then began to take off my current armor. ¡°Out here? In public?¡± asked Kataryna. ¡°Besides you and Seryanna, who''s going to get excited over seeing me half naked?¡± I asked her with a raised eyebrow after taking off my chest armor. I had a long sleeve shirt underneath enchanted to act as a softener between the armor''s part and my skin. One thing I noticed after wearing armor in this world was the fact that it ITCHED everywhere! It was a nightmare... ¡°Aw... You are still wearing clothes...¡± Kataryna said disappointed. ¡°You pervert.¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Me? What about her?¡± she pointed at Seryanna... who was drooling. ¡°Erm... Are you OK?¡± I asked her. ¡°Huh? Yeah... I''m fine... just thinking... about... stuff...¡± she replied and quickly wiped off her drool. ¡°You should be careful tonight. Lock the door.¡± whispered Kleo. I only let out a sigh in reply. Note to self: make a contraceptive wish for tonight... I thought while glancing at the embarrassed Seryanna. With this armor unequipped, I activate my Storage Skill named [Black Hole]. The name suited it because it literally created a black hole in the middle of the air in front of me. It didn''t suck in matter or anything like that, it was just a big black orb that popped out of nowhere. When I first acquired it, I was really nervous about using it because I was thinking about the black holes found in space and as a result of a star collapsing on itself. However, the mouse trap that laid hidden inside it wasn''t funny. It went ''SNAP!'', and I went ''YEOUCH!'' the moment I placed my hand in there. Of all the free items it could have come with, why did it had to be an ARMED mouse trap? Anyway, I activated the skill and stored the armor I unequipped, then I took out the one I planned to use in this training duel. What came out of the black orb was a sleek looking armor that covered my body from head to toe. It used composite armor technology, meaning that each plate was designed out of multiple different materials, all with the purpose of enhancing one attribute or another. The first one was a dampener of physical shock, the second one an absorbent of Magic Energy, the third one used Magic Energy Circulation to further enhance and improve the existing enchants found on each individual plate or scale as I called them, this one was the matrix of the material. The inner layers enhanced movement and reduced friction between certain elements, making the use of physical skills feel more easy and natural. There was a thermal layer as well that maintained the inner temperature to a fixed 24 degrees, which could be adjusted anytime I wanted. The outer thermal layer was found underneath the scales and could withstand an oven''s cooking temperatures. Enchants allowed me to further improve it''s abilities, but overall, it was a genuine Magic Enhanced Powered Armor, the type I often saw in Sci-Fi movies or games. It was awesome, and it could even change its shape and morph into a bigger version when I changed forms. ¡°That''s impressive.¡± said Brekkar from behind me. ¡°Gya!¡± I jumped when I heard him. ¡°What''s wrong?¡± he asked a bit confused. ¡°You startled him, grandfather.¡± said Kleo trying to abstain from laughing. ¡°Yeah... Don''t sneak up on people like that, you old man! You''re going to cause someone a heart attack!¡± I retorted. ¡°Hey! That''s rude! I''m still considered a handsome dragon!¡± he snorted. We all squinted our eyes at him, a proof that we didn''t really believe his words. ¡°Ahem! Anyway, what about your weapon?¡± he asked curiously, changing the subject. ¡°Oh, I''m going to use these two.¡± I said and then activated [Black Hole] again. From within, I pulled out a pair of twin longswords. One was black as charcoal and the other was white as snow. The blades were sharp and gleamed in metal luster, showing off the quality of the material they were made out off. Small runes glowing in an emerald light were carved within their fullers, and a black crystal was placed within the pummel, encased in the same gleaming metal the sword was made out off. The hilt was covered in a layer of tough monster skin, which offered a good grip as well as a better Magic Energy flow from the user towards the sword itself. Upon taking them out, a black aura appeared around the black blade, while a white one appeared around the white one. They hummed in a delighted tone at my touch, happy that I picked them up again. ¡°This one is Hell. It controls the Darkness Element.¡± I said lifting the black sword up. ¡°And this one is Heaven. It controls the Light Element.¡± I lifted the white one up. ¡°Impressive... But two opposing elements? Won''t it be difficult to control?¡± asked Brekkar. ¡°Not at all.¡± I replied shaking my head. ¡°Who made them?¡± asked Kataryna with a curious gaze. ¡°I did.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°If I''m not mistaken, these two are powerful enough to be called legendary weapons or even priceless artifacts... Isn''t it a bit too much to use in a duel against that fellow?¡± asked Kataryna, tossing a finger over her shoulder at the other camp. ¡°I''m just going to ask this once. You really don''t wish to see them in action?¡± I asked her. After a moment of thinking about it, the silver-scaled dragoness replied ¡°Please unleash their full might against that dragon.¡± ¡°I thought so.¡± I laughed. ¡°Will you be alright?¡± Seryanna asked a bit worried. ¡°If I''m careful and don''t let my guard down, I should be alright.¡± I replied with a nod. ¡°Are you going to rely on your Luck?¡± asked Kataryna raising an eyebrow. ¡°Not as much as I did before.¡± I said shaking my head ¡°I learned my lesson. Luck is a terrifying weapon if used properly, but I shouldn''t become dependent on it.¡± I replied. ¡°That''s good.¡± she nodded. After I properly equipped my armor and weapons, I stepped back into the circle marked with stones in the middle of the training ground, the arena meant to serve as our battle terrain for our duel. The eyes of the spectators were focused on my equipment. The exceptional craftsmanship and the sleek look caught their attention, and they understood with one glance that no normal blacksmith could create something like this. If I were to give an exact level of skill required to make them, then a Beginner Godlike craftsman was the minimum recommended for making the individual components of the armor plates, and at least a Trusted Legendary for the enchantments. As for assembling it all, that was another matter. The amount of time I needed to make them was no joke, that was why I had the confidence that even without activating it at full strength, I could still easily take any blow thrown at me by Draejan. Meanwhile, my opponent''s armor was a typical knight''s heavy armor covered in metal plates and using chainmail underneath, but which lacked the luster of a decorative armor. The main colors painted on it were brown, black, and red. They were meant to better hide him among his soldiers but at the same time let them known that he was a general. The paint was matte, avoiding the reflective metallic luster commonly found on decorative gold and silver armors. Letting your opponent know where you were wasn''t always the best idea. In my case, however, I could hide it with a spell if needed be or drop a bucket of mud on top of me, but in general, I wanted the enemy to know my location. My plan was to act as a tank or a diversion for the powerful forces while the soldiers down bellow would take care of the rest. In other words, I was a vanguard. Taunting the enemy was a must for me. When looking at his armor, I noticed that the level required to make it wasn''t all that great. I could make thousands of identical copies of it without a problem. There were no intricate parts or detailed accessories on it. It was simple, but by making it this way, the craftsmen didn''t augment it to its optimal potential. There were many things an enchanter could do if they had the skill. As for his weapon, it looked like a simple longsword meant for a human warrior, but this dragon was holding it one hand. To be honest, he looked better wielding that sword than I did Heaven and Hell. I sort of looked like one of those dwarfs with huge weapons from Dragon Hunt. Well, I also had short blades as well for those tiny and cramped corridors inside a dungeon, but those were another story. In terms of enchants and magics used on it, I got the itch of using [Identificus Processus Juridicus], but I found it to be unfair. Besides, the duel had not yet begun so no matter what spell I had cast, it would have been seen by the public as foul play. ¡°Are both of you ready?¡± asked the King as he glanced at each of us.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. I looked in Draejan''s eyes and replied ¡°I am.¡± and then I put on my helmet. A click was heard as it was locked into place and the enchants activated. ¡°I am, your Majesty.¡± Draejan replied with a nod of his head and put on his helmet as well. When it came to this part of the armor, Draejan''s was custom built to protect his horns as well, giving it a rather weird look. On the other hand, since I didn''t have any horns, It had the usual aspect as a Sci-Fi full-cover helmet. Once I morphed into my half-beast form, it would change shape to allow the horns to pop out. Their protection was optional in my case, a single enchant activation would send thin plates out of my helmet to cover them up. ¡°Then, by the order of the King, I command both of you to have a fair match! May none die by the blade of the other! May one come out victorious either through knocking out their opponent or pushing them out of the ring! Thus, I, your King, command! Begin!¡± Feryumstark ordered in a loud and clear voice filled with the stern authority of one in his position. Thus, the duel had begun! I thought. The first to attack belonged to Draejan. Unsheathing his sword, he stepped forward and dashed using a skill that I would have previously mistaken it for [Blink] because it felt like he teleported in that split second. Still, if I wasn''t as powerful as I was now, I wouldn''t have noticed the fact that he simply pushed himself forward with magic at an extreme speed rather than having teleported. A fast enough individual could have easily avoided any of his incoming attacks, but I didn''t. I let the strike fall on my armor to test out my endurance. A loud clang was heard when metal touched metal and then the blade recoiled as if tossed by a spring. Draejan quickly changed directions and retreated with a jump back. If he didn''t hold tight on the hilt of his sword, it might have flown right out of his grip. The recoil was that powerful. This armor of mine was one meant for combat against Bosses that toyed around with dragons of Level 1000 or lower. Their strikes were nightmare-inducing blows that could crush stones enchanted with [Toughness] and send sturdy warriors flying in pieces. This reminded me that when I was barely level 678, I encountered such a beast for the first time. I wasn''t even paying attention when I received the first attack, which was a ranged one. It literally blew me back by several tens of meters and shredded a big portion of my chest armor. Only my sturdiness granted by passive skills and stats allowed me to survive, otherwise, I would have met my end there. Lucky was the right way to call my miraculous survival. Then came the battle with the beast, a long neck Turtle Dragon who spat beams of light from its mouth and had an aura that froze and slowed down anyone around it. This sort of foe made you believe long range was the way to go, but it could create a wind barrier within the range of its ice and slow aura. This would make any adventurer believe that only through a sustained long range barrage could they stand a chance to win against this monster. Fortunately, I didn''t think about using long ranged attacks. If I did, I would have only wasted Magic Energy and the Turtle Dragon would have kept spitting out those beams of light, which were ridiculously accurate and precise. The reason for this was that very barrier of his. It was ridiculously powerful, but what an ordinary adventurer wouldn''t have accounted for was the fact that this beast had lower accuracy within the barrier, the beams also didn''t do as much damage. So, what I did was rush towards it with my very first enchanted long sword and hoped to chop down its neck before it took a bite out of me. The slow, cold, and wind was seriously annoying, but the beast had trouble attacking me. It was like moving through a blinding freezing blizzard. Because of its own barrier, it also had trouble finding me. That was why most of its attacks missed, and those that were on target were dodged in the nick of time. After the first few slashes, it became furious and turned off its barrier, especially since it didn''t detect any long ranged attackers to be wary off. It was then when the accuracy of the Turtle Dragon increased, and I had to dodge by jumping around like a speeding bunny. Eventually, I got close enough to unleash a [Thousand Strikes] attack at the base of its neck. I was successful and killed it. To be fair, I was extremely lucky in that battle. Later, when I encountered the monster''s siblings, I attempted to attack one of them with a long ranged barrage. The battle was drawn out for almost two hours until its barrier finally vanished and one shot landed right on its snout. The other monster I engage only in melee and ended the battle in five minutes. After facing the attacks from the Turtle Dragon and having my armor shattered in one blow several times, I decided to change the type of enchant I placed on it. From a regular shield type, I switched to a disperse and absorption type. What it basically did was disperse the energy resulted from a physical or magic attack around the armor and then reabsorbed the pure Magic Energy and focused it in other enchants. By the way, it took me a lot of time to figure out how to do this and even more time to remember that physical attacks had something called Kinetic Energy, and without it the blows turned into harmless bumps. Remembering the name was also difficult... I was calling it at first: physicalish energy. Well, all of my experiences in the Seculiar Forest led me to creating for myself an outrageous battle armor and a pair of swords just as ridiculous. I used them only when battling bosses or facing off entire nests of monsters. It wasn''t a problem with their durability but rather the fact that they were overkill against other foes. Right now, Draejan wasn''t even someone I wished to fight with both Heaven and Hell in my hands, but it was necessary... This battle was a rematch, and he had to be aware of my prowess. ¡°What was that?¡± the dragon asked confused after he landed safely on the ground. He looked down at his trembling arm. The recoil was quite something. I showed him a smirk and told him ¡°To think you can''t even properly land a strike on me... Did I perhaps overestimate you?¡± I asked. Of course, I didn''t. I knew quite well at what level to place him. I understood his power from our first duel. Without something similar to [Dragon Tamer] it was impossible for him to make noticeable progress like all of my friends did. I mean, the previous Iolaus was nothing more than a shadow when compared to the current him. ¡°Ridiculous!¡± he claimed. It was directed not at my words but at what he had experienced after striking my armor. Truth be told, with this sort of pathetic attack it was impossible to lay a scratch on my armor no matter how many times he tried. Only a force capable of surpassing the recoil could also stand a chance to go beyond the armor''s energy dispersing ability and damage it. Raising his hand, he chanted fast and then called out the name of his spell: [Thunder Spike]. It as an ice spike charged with enough electricity to turn it into plasma, but the magic forced the spike to appear like an icicle. Yet, this was only on the outside. I lifted Heaven up and then slashed down. The spike was cut in half and out came the electrified water inside that splashed over me. The shock was released and if it would have been any other adversary, they would have been temporarily paralyzed or stunned. However, this was not the case with me. I just pretended to not be able to move. Seeing this, Draejan rushed forward and tried to impale me with the tip of his sword. Letting go of Hell, I grabbed onto his blade with my gauntlet protected hand and stopped its advance. ¡°I-Impossible!¡± he said. Lifting my head up, I looked him in the eyes and smirked. CRACK! The blade of my foe shattered to pieces. ¡°Hm? Did I used too much force?¡± I wondered as I looked at one of the pieces that remained in my hand. Rather than that, wasn''t the metal supposed to bend or mold not shatter like glass? Maybe it was forged badly? I wondered. Letting go of the pieces, they fell on the ground. It was pathetic to look at him like this, so I summoned a sword from my [Purse] ring. ¡°Take this. It''s a loan.¡± I told him as I tossed him in front of him. The sword was called [Mass-produced Sword Number 17]. Unlike the swords used by the majority of the soldiers around this place, this one had some more serious enchants. In general, the number also showed what sort of enemies they could handle from the weakest one, which was 1, to the strongest one, which was currently 35. The first being able to handle the usual level 100 mobs in the Seculiar Forest, while the latter was for the more dangerous Bosses that usually popped up here and there. Now why did I give Draejan the number 17 and not the 35 one? Well, because the sword I destroyed was at most comparable with number 8 of the mass-produced series. In other words, I gave him a far better one. ¡°I don''t need your pity and spare swords! I have a better one!¡± he retorted and kicked my sword back. He pulled out of his [Purse] ring another sword, but compared to mine, this one was barely a number 9. It was indeed better than the previous one, but not by much. Actually the number 17 could easily cut his in half. ¡°Suit yourself.¡± I shrugged and picked up the sword. Looking to my left, I tossed it at Brekkar. ¡°Have some fun with it.¡± I told him. The dragon grabbed it in midair, but the moment his eyes laid upon it, his gaze turned serious. ¡°I will.¡± he replied. The dragon was old enough and smart enough to see a good sword when he saw one. Even Seryanna, Kataryna, and the King were looking seriously at it. Iolaus was confused, but he realized it was an impressive item as well, while Kleo and princess Elleyzabelle didn''t understand why the big fuss. ¡°Well then, shall we continue?¡± I asked and picked up Hell from the ground. ¡°You will fall here!¡± Draejan shouted when he saw me reaching for the blade. I turned around and punched him in the face, sending him rolling on the ground all the way to the edge of the arena. He coughed and groaned from the pain. Shrugging as if I just swatted a fly away, I picked up my sword and then resumed my combat stance. ¡°The lad is merely playing with him.¡± remarked Brekkar in a whisper. It wasn''t loud enough to reach Draejan''s ears, but I was closer than him, so I was able to catch wind of it. ¡°Indeed.¡± confirmed Feryumstark. Elovius said something as well, but I couldn''t tell what. Meanwhile, the nobles were standing still and trying not to look too surprised as it would have been rude towards the noble fighting in the arena. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked. ¡°Ugh! I don''t need your concern!¡± Draejan roared back as he stumbled up on his feet. He was breathing hard, and his legs were shaking. Did I hit him too hard? I wondered. While he recovered, I remained calm and simply watched him. So far, I had yet to make a serious move. ¡°I will win this!¡± he declared to himself after he regained his composure. When he lifted his sword up, I squinted my eyes at him and payed attention to the swirling flow of Magic Energy around him. The dragon''s body began to change and grown in appearance. He was assuming his half-beast form, in which his strength and stats increased. As long as they retained human form, dragons were pretty much similar in strength with a level equivalent human, a well trained one. However, the half-beast transformation was something that increased their power by a lot, to the point where they could easily overpower that said human and many others like him. Draejan did exactly just that, and thanks to the [Morphing] enchant on his armor, which more or less was mandatory on draconic armor and clothes, he didn''t need to change. Dragon scales were tough and all, but the extra protection given by an enchanted plate of metal was well worth it. A s for how he looked like, he had an anthropomorphic head covered in pure white scales, with several golden ones on his chin. The tip of his long, spiky tail also had golden scales, while on his wings only two rows were visible and flowed down from the tips all the way towards his back. His horns mounted on each side of his head were long, white, and smooth like polished ivory. Because of their shape and size, the helmet wasn''t able to cover them in sheath of armor, or maybe showing off was his intent. The spike plates emerging from his spine were visible only on the back of his neck and his tail where the armor didn''t cover them. They were small and looked more like bony bumps than actual spikes. ¡°Now, you shall feel my true might!¡± he gave a very clich¨¦ line in my opinion. ¡°Oh! Cool! Can I do that too?¡± I replied with a bright smile. ¡°Wha?¡± he blinked surprised. Murmurs and whispers spread out across the entire training ground, especially among the nobles and soldiers who saw me only as a human. My friends, however, merely looked in my direction and watched carefully. They held a serious gaze in their eyes, especially Feryumstark and Brekkar. For some reason, Seryanna was blushing and Kataryna was wagging her tail. ¡°Are you mad, human?¡± Draejan growled as he clenched the hilt of his sword now turned into a short sword if I were to compare it to his huge, nearly 4 meters tall body if he stood up straight. ¡°Mad? Nah, I''m just clinically insane!¡± I replied, but my words only brought confusion to his mind. The joke was too modern to make sense to them. Now, just like he did, I began to gather Magic Energy from the environment and poured it inside my body. There weren''t really any conditions as to when and how I could change from one shape to another. As long as I fit in that place and my clothes didn''t shred, I was pretty much set to go any time I wanted. Thus, my change to my half-beast began. My body grew from its original size to a height of 3.6 meters, since I was standing straight. In a more relaxed position, I was averaging at around 3 meters tall because my legs were bent and my body was leaning forward. I had a wingspan of 9 meters, with two meters longer than Draejan''s. My whole body was covered in Red, Black, White, and Gold scales in streak patters, giving me a menacing look. The amount wasn''t just a scale or streak here and there, I was literally covered in them, and from all points of view, I looked like a battle-ready dragon whose sole purpose in life was to rush into the heart of the enemy''s army and then slash my way out of there with my claws and teeth. Speaking of which, I had a pair of razor-sharp teeth that allowed me to slash through meat with ease. I was a carnivore when looking at my denture. The spikes on my body were all slick black and between 2 to 5 centimeters long, going down on my spine, all the way to the tip of my tail. Several of them were on my wings as well, the bony ends of it. As for the horns, I had a pair on each side of my head. They were golden and had a white base. The top ones were the longest and slightly curved inward, while the bottom ones were short, about ten centimeters and straight. My eyes were slit like a lizard''s and with a dark-red iris. Around my eyes I had red scales with a row of black ones starting from the middle of my snout and going over the top ridge of my sockets, ending at the base of the horns. More prominent on my head were the red and black scales, a sign of ferocity. When I transformed to my half-beast form, my armor changed as well, growing in size and morphing the aspect of some of my protective plates from a round one to a pointy one. The mass didn''t change, it just got thinner, but the enchants were boosted by at least 25%, or so I presumed. With my change over, I didn''t let them catch their breath, so I lifted both Hell and Heaven up, and chanted a short spell. Believing it was an attack, Draejan took a defensive stance, but what happened next surprised everyone. The two swords merged into the most powerful weapon I currently held in my arsenal. It was called Chaos, a two-handed sword only a dragon my size could properly wield. It was a double-edged bastard sword with a long hilt and flat blade that had sharp shark teeth formation closer to the guard. Starting from the base of the guard and ending at the tip, one half of the blade was white and the other was black with the middle turning gray. The engravings on its fuller were runes designed by me with inlaid magic enchants, each holding a specific purpose. When I activated a certain rune, it glowed bright red from all the Magic Energy accumulated inside it and then launched the attack through the tip. Building the Magic Channels for this thing wasn''t easy. If I were to drain it of Magic Energy, it would still be quite a durable weapon, but not as durable as its individual components: Heaven and Hell. It was wiser that in a Magic Energy saturated area to use them without uniting the two and forming Chaos. The blade itself was sharper than either Hell or Heaven, more durable if infused with magic, it had numerous annihilation-type spells engraved on it, it was light, and most importantly it looked absolutely BADASS! It was like some sort of ancient legendary artifact crafted by the gods for the simple reason of ruling over the battlefield with its ridiculous and awesome firepower. Then, at the very end, I took a deep breath in, and activated the innate [Flaming Roar] skill with an [Intimidate] spell mixed in. The end result was me barfing a tower of fire towards the sky and letting out a terrifying roar that sent a shockwave around me. ¡°ROAAAR!!!¡± When I was done, I clenched the hilt of my sword and lifted it up, then I let it rest over my shoulder. I glared at Draejan and released a puff of smoke from my nostrils. The shocked expression on his face was priceless, but everyone else looked the same. Maybe the [Intimidate] was a bit overkill? I wondered. ¡°Y-you... b-but you are... y-you are a human. HOW?!¡± Draejan asked dumbfounded. ¡°I wonder how?¡± I replied with a smirk. ¡°N-No! No! NO! NO! This has to be an illusion!¡± he growled and then charged at me. I let him get close enough then I swung my sword at him, but with the flat side of the blade. I didn''t want to cut in half and go against the King''s order. ¡°Guha!¡± the dragon was hit right in the face and sent flying back through the air. ¡°STRIIIKE ONE!¡± I said and then rushed at him. Draejan was getting dangerously close to the edge of the field. If he left it, I would have won by default. With a [Rapid Dash] I moved in front of him, standing on the very edge of the arena and then struck him with the flat side of my sword again. ¡°STRIIIKE TWO!¡± I shouted. I moved again to the other side and just before he went out of the arena, I hit him again. ¡°STRIIIKE THREE! YOU''RE OUT!¡± The aim this time was towards the sky, sending him flying upwards in an arch. With a flap of my wings and a strong jump, I caught up to him. With my fist clenched tightly, I punched him in the face and sent him flying towards the ground. Several of his teeth were broken in the process and the impact from his landing formed a crater around him. I aimed my hand at him and intended to use a spell, but I stopped. He''s not worth it. I thought. I let myself land next to him, and I grabbed him by his tail. With a pull, I lifted him up in the air and then slammed him into the ground like I would have a lifeless puppet. I pulled and slammed him again in the opposite side, but this time, I released my grip and let him bounce on the ground as he spat blood. Rushing to him, I punched him in the chest with the intent not to kill him but to shatter his armor. The enchants didn''t resist and the metal broke off into pieces. I moved on top of him, grabbed his head and then headbutted him so hard I made him lose whatever drops of consciousness he had left. A few of his scales even flew off. With this... it was over. ¡°Did I win?¡± I asked as I dusted off of my armor. What came in reply was a row of applause from everyone who witnessed the battle. There was no need for other words besides this. A clear reply that the outcome had been accepted by all those standing here. Even in his half-beast form, Draejan proved to be a weakling against me. ¡°I declare this duel won by Alkelios Yatagai!¡± Feryumstark announced through the roar of loud applause. Chapter 58: Draejans escape [Alkelios'' point of view] Draejan was left knocked out on the ground with his armor and weapon shattered to bits. It was a humiliating defeat for him because he wasn''t able to do anything to me, not even lay a single scratch on my armor. Two of his soldiers took him away after the King announced my victory. Stretching my wings a bit, I returned Chaos to its individual components: Heaven and Hell. With my weapons sheathed and a smirk on my scaly face, I walked up to where the King and the others were. ¡°I guess there''s no problem now with me taking Seryanna as my wife?¡± I asked as I placed my hands on my hips. ¡°You are a dragon, so no...¡± Feryumstark replied, but judging by the gaze in his eyes there was something bothering him. ¡°Even if you weren''t, I still would have taken you for a husband, Alkelios.¡± the dragoness replied with a smile as she came forth and stopped in front of me. When I looked into her captivating red eyes, I could feel her boundless love for me. Seryanna had turned over the course of these past several months into a woman who was far more attractive than before. I felt my cheeks turning red, well... sort of, it couldn''t be seen on account of the scales, but the idea was that I felt flushed, and my heart was pounding in my chest faster than it normally did. My tail was wagging as well, but that was a minor detail I didn''t notice. Maybe it was my draconic side reacting to her new Awakened self? ¡°And I agree of this union as well!¡± declared Brekkar. The old dragon''s words pulled me out of my daze. ¡°Technically speaking, I''m a human-dragon hybrid, that''s why I will never be able to take the beast form. What you see is the best I can do.¡± I pointed at myself. ¡°Bah! Details!¡± Feryumstark waved it off and then laughed. While we talked like this, the nobles who were watching the duel from the sidelines approached me and congratulated me on my win and what I had accomplished today. This gesture of theirs took me by surprise and their polite words held no mean intention behind them. One after another approached me and then bowed to the King so they may take their leave. ¡°It was a splendid duel, Alkelios Yatagai! I congratulate you on your win and hope to see great achievements from you now that you have officially declared your allegiance to our proud Kingdom!¡± a dragon with a slim build said as he held his chin up high and showed me a smile. ¡°I will try and do my best... erm...¡± I said, but I stopped here since I didn''t know his name. ¡°Marquise Eonstrak.¡± he introduced himself. ¡°Yes, a pleasure to meet you, Marquise Eonstrak.¡± I replied with a nod. He then turned towards the King and made a deep bow. ¡°Your Majesty, if you have no more need of me, I shall be retreating to my room. I must inform my wife immediately of what transpired today and see to it that we do a thorough search in our fief for any such traitors as those discovered today.¡± he told him in a polite and respectful manner. ¡°Please do so, Marquise Eonstrak. If you hear of anything suspicious, do not hesitate to send news to the palace.¡± he replied. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± he declared. Afterwards, he gave a short bow to me and those around me before taking his leave from the stage. These words had more or less been repeated by all the nobles who came to congratulate us. Not even one of them spoke about exchanging further pleasantries or inviting us to some sort of event as I initially thought they would. After all, with so many famous dragons around and the King as well, it seemed quite likely. What I wasn''t thinking about at that time was the fact that they might have felt worried or troubled by the fact that they were put to the same test as the other traitors were. This meant that the King suspected them of being traitors. Today, they proved their loyalty, but their pride took a terrible hit. What I didn''t get was why was it so important to mention this news to their wives? It sounded as though ALL of those dragonesses thought their husbands were cheating on them or lying to them, which in my opinion was a bit sad. Once all the nobles were gone, we guided the King back to the throne room. I was walking with Seryanna on my left and Kataryna on my right. In front of me, Brekkar was walking next to the King, both of them were talking about the situation with the Brekkar Army, and behind us were Kleo and Iolaus walking side by side. As for Elovius, he went to visit the dungeons and interrogate the traitors. There was a lot of paperwork waiting for the Prime Minister as a result of today''s events. After taking a seat on his throne, Feryumstark looked at all of us standing in front of him and then took a deep breath. ¡°I wish to commend you all for a job well done today! We rooted out some traitors that had been plotting right under my nose, and we even manage to reinstate Brekkar in his position as a General. Least to be said that none of these things could have been possible if not for the efforts of one Alkelios Yatagai. As such, I see it only right to offer you a Noble Rank and a spot at my Court. With you having pledged your allegiance already to my daughter, Elleyzabelle, there is no problem with this and if any dare to complain, I''ll make sure to shorten their tails with a rusted dagger!¡± he smirked. ¡°Thank you, your Majesty. I appreciate it!¡± I bowed my head respectfully in front of him. Because I was still in my half-beast form, my stature was rather imposing and I was also currently the tallest among all the dragons present here. Regarding this nobility reward I was offered, I didn''t really know what to say. It didn''t hold that much of an impact on me, and I felt neither flattered nor insulted by it. If I were compare it to something, it was the same as receiving a gift on a random day from a random friend. I accepted it and took it, but I didn''t make a big deal out of it. Maybe this nonchalant attitude was the fault of my Breakthrough. ¡°As for the rest of you, I came to understand that you played a vital role not only in bringing Alkelios here but also in helping him take the side of dragons. For this, I will see to it that you are all properly rewarded as well.¡± ¡°Thank you, your Majesty!¡± they all said and bowed their heads at the same time. ¡°Now then, Alkelios, I will discuss this nobility matter in more detail with you after I had spoken with my wife and son about it. And speaking of which, my wife, the Queen of Albeyater wishes to speak with you in person when you have the time.¡± he smiled. ¡°Of course! I''m guessing she is feeling much better now?¡± I asked. ¡°Thanks to you, yes.¡± he nodded. ¡°Good to hear!¡± I smiled. ¡°Your Majesty, I apologize, but I will hand over Alkelios tomorrow or maybe the day after.¡± Seryanna said all of a sudden. ¡°Huh? Hand over?¡± I blinked surprised. Did she just say ''no'' to the King? AND QUEEN?! I thought, and I felt my heart beating a bit faster because I had no idea how his Majesty was going to react. I mean, this was pretty serious and considering the whole matter with the Queen''s current poisoning situation and all... ¡°I see. Very well.¡± the King nodded while rubbing his chin. ¡°Huh?!¡± I turned and looked at the dragon surprised. ¡°Hm? Anything the matter?¡± he asked. ¡°Well... Erm...¡± I didn''t know what to say, but all of a sudden I lost my balance and fell face first on the ground. ¡°OMPH!¡± I groaned. ¡°Then, we will take our leave! Have a good day, your Majesty!¡± Seryanna said while literally dragging me away by my right foot. ¡°WAIT A SECOND! What''s with all this?!¡± I complained. ¡°What do you mean?¡± asked Feryumstark, and Seryanna showed me a puzzled look as well. ¡°How is this normal? Shouldn''t royalty take priority in this?!¡± I asked. ¡°Well...¡± the King was looking away, avoiding my gaze. ¡°This is a matter between dragonesses. Besides, I am your fiance, and I have not seen you for a year. It is natural that you will be handed over to me immediately, no questioned asked.¡± Seryanna declared with a nod. ¡°What am I? A dragon for lend?¡± I retorted. ¡°No, but I take priority.¡± she declared. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Did no one tell him?¡± Feryumstark asked around. ¡°Tell me what?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. All of my ''friends'' were looking away. ¡°I may have forgotten this tiny detail... or was randomly mentioned at one point but wasn''t given any attention.¡± said Brekkar. ¡°Tell me WHAT?!¡± I retorted. ¡°Ahem. Dragons have a matriarchal society.¡± said the King. ¡°A what now?! Then why did the whole thing with Draejan happened?!¡± I retorted. If this was true, then Seryanna''s vote and opinion in the matter was far more important than that dragon''s.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Well, she wasn''t Awakened yet at that time for one thing. Secondly, my wife was ill and couldn''t be bothered with such things. You of all dragons should know quite well what her condition was at that time. Third of all, because I had assumed the role of the dominant figure in the Kingdom, many male dragons began to have more courage. We ended up as a semi-patriarchal society for a small period of time, but the truth was that most power remained in the hands of the wives. Fourth, there was a noticeable difference in the ranks and titles the two held. Seryanna was a Royal Knight and a Noble, true, but she held no title. After the battle 39 years ago, the Draketerus Dukedom was reduced to ashes and so was their title, which remained only in name, but only for Brekkar. Overall... it''s complicated, and I am certain my wife would sympathize with Seryanna right now. I don''t see it as a problem either, so you have my blessing miss Draketerus to... take him away and lock him up in your room for now.¡± he showed me a wry smile. ¡°Say what now?!¡± I retorted. ¡°See? No problem!¡± and then she continued to drag me. ¡°At least let me walk on my own! Don''t drag me like I''m some washed up drunkard!¡± I retorted. ¡°Fine.¡± she let out a sigh and let go of my leg. ¡°Good.¡± I said, but before I could get up, she lifted me up by the waist and tossed me over her shoulder. ¡°Greeeat! I have been upgraded to a ''sack of potatoes''.¡± I squinted my eyes at the ''friends'' who weren''t even attempting to help, they were just trying VERY hard not to burst into a loud laughter. ¡°Well, you are MY ''sack of potatoes'', and I''m not sharing!¡± she said as she walked away with me, waving her tail like the happy dragoness she was. ¡°Shouldn''t we... help him?¡± Iolaus asked. ¡°Nah! He''ll be fine! You, on the other hand, we need to resume last night''s ''play''.¡± Kleo showed him a devious smirk. Iolaus froze and looked around for help with a desperate look on his face. ¡°Ehehe, my erm... ''wife sense'' is tingling. I think she''s calling me!¡± said Feryumstark as he fled the scene. ¡°Yes. Ahem! I need to erm... train this sword! I meant to say train with this sword!¡± Brekkar ran towards the closest exit. Kataryna was trying VERY HARD not to laugh right now. As for Elleyzabelle, she had remained quiet all this time. I let out a sigh and seriously thought about whether or not the male dragons in this kingdom were helpless in front of their wives or if this was a general rule of some kind. It could have also been something else: the old dragons understanding the needs of the younger generation, they simply let them be. Although, Feryumstark was the KING! Why was he fleeing?! How could an old dragon and royal like him take part of this childish joke?! Well, this did tell me that he was a very understanding King, but was it necessary... were we really that close to him to answer and participate in these sort of jokes. Were these jokes normal in the first place? My mind went swimming in circles around these questions until I finally gave up, letting the smoke fly out of my ears and my brain to cool down. It wasn''t like I was against Seryanna being so assertive, but considering everything that happened and with the whole Draejan thing, I felt as though this was a bit rushed. It was also possible that this was simply their draconic nature? Honestly, I don''t understand anything anymore... I complained in my mind while I was trying not to look at any dragons we were passing by. I wasn''t unhappy with it, but being carried like some sort of prize won in a contest was a tad bit embarrassing... I was still in my half-beast form, sooo the size difference was noticeable... [Draejan''s point of view] ¡°Ugh... W-What happened?¡± I groaned and tried to get up, but a terrible pain surged through my whole body. ¡°ARGH!¡± I screamed. My muscles felt like they were being ripped apart piece by piece, yet I didn''t remember suffering so much damage. In the duel, yes... the duel... all I remembered was his smirk at the end... when he punched me. After that... what happened? Did I... Did I lose? ME? Against a dirty human? the very thought of it made me angry, furious, annoyed beyond measure. I clenched my fists despite my pain and glared at the ceiling. I couldn''t accept it... I didn''t want to. ME?! A noble dragon with royal blood?! Me?! The one who was about to bring this whole kingdom to its knees and restart the human-dragon war?! No! IT CAN''T BE! It''s not POSSIBLE! I screamed in my mind. I couldn''t dare let these words of mine be heard for I did not know who might hear me. This reflex was formed over the decades and even when I was completely annoyed, not even a peep came out. ¡°Master, please calm down, you are injured.¡± the slave spoke. Glaring at him, I bared my fangs and asked ¡°What did the King declare?¡± ¡°That... you lost.¡± he replied. ¡°Tch!¡± I clicked my tongue and leaned back on my bed. ¡°The healer said you will need to drink Healing Potions and call for someone with the ability to cast healing magic.¡± he said as he placed a potion on the nightstand next to me. ¡°Are my injuries that serious?¡± I asked in a low growl. ¡°From the outside... it doesn''t look that way, but you can feel it''s not so. Alkelios'' attacks sent shockwaves of pure force throughout your body, damaging it at all levels... It''s a miracle you''re not dead.¡± he explained. ¡°Dead? He was trying to kill me? ME?!¡± I asked as a smile was formed on my lips. I knew I looked like a madman, but the thought of someone like him trying to kill me was unpleasant. ¡°No... just damage you in such a way that you would need weeks of healing.¡± he said. ¡°Ridiculous!¡± I growled. ¡°Yet, here we are.¡± he shrugged and walked to the end of my bed. Pulling back his hood, I saw the same scaly face he showed to the King when he was ordered to show himself. Even I would have confused him with a pure-blood dragon if I didn''t knew any better. ¡°You know, I was surprised when Alkelios called me out... Somehow, he knew who I was... He''s gotten smarter, stronger too...¡± he said as he looked as he flexing right hand. Humans had the tendency to display some rather weird gestures. The spell he used deactivated, and I could see his true appearance. He had a bushy black beard, tired-looking dark-brown eyes and a shaggy haircut. In the human territories, he would have been confused with a bum, yet this man was someone with a level over 500 as he claimed it to be. His scheme in gaining Power Levels seemed to have worked splendidly so far, but he didn''t really feel as powerful as a dragon with an equivalent power. Yet, if I were to toss him in battle, his ability to teleport troops wherever he wanted would make him a rather valuable and dangerous asset. ¡°Or maybe it''s because you stuck to the same clothes you used back when you first met him?¡± I pointed out. He looked up at me and then shook his head. ¡°I doubt it.¡± he replied. What an idiot... I thought and then leaned back, closing my eyes. Several hours later, I woke up again and drank three healing potions. There was no need for a healer to cast his magic on me. As a soldier and knight, I learned a few basic spells in the field, so I applied them on myself. Two hours later, I could move and stand up, but barely... My whole body was hurting, and my insides felt like they were about to burst. I can''t stay here... I have to take advantage of the fact that they lowered their guard and prepare for the next step of my plan. There''s no way I will admit defeat like this... Not after I made so many sacrifices... Not after all the plans and schemes I put into motion... I thought and while clenching my jaws, I got up from my bed. The pain was horrible, and I could barely stand, but I was not going to allow myself to succumb to the pain. ¡°Kronius! Get in here!¡± I shouted. The human teleported in front of me and pulled back his hood. ¡°Yes, master?¡± he asked. ¡°Bring me my [Purse] rings and use your ability to steal as many weapons and armors as you can from the armory. Return to me once you are done.¡± I ordered him. ¡°As you wish, master.¡± he replied with a bow. After he teleported, I clicked my tongue and went to my dresser. From inside, I picked up an inconspicuous set of clothes and put them on. These should do... I thought as I looked in the mirror. I looked no different from a noble of a low rank. The hood was to help me hide my horns and face, while the mantle was needed to keep my tail hidden. There was no reason to hide my white scales, but the gold scales on my face and tail tip were a sign of royalty, or at very least someone related to the royal family by blood. Looking around the room, I let out a sigh. This was going to be the last time I saw this place. My residence in Drakaria was going to be the first one to be searched after I was gone. As such, I was prepared to vanish without leaving any trace behind me. This meant no clothes, no documents, no tools, nothing to even remotely hint that this place was once used by me. With pain pulsing through my body, I limped all the way to the room I used as an office. I opened the door and took a long look around. There were many things in here that had to be disposed off: documents, books, letters with secret orders and messages, all sort of things. Once I''m done gathering all of these, I''ll move on to collecting any item of value and tools in this house and finish by collecting my clothes, armors, and weapons. I should make sure to empty the cellars and attic as well... I thought. Thus, I began to empty my house of everything I saw as important. The only things I left behind were the pieces of unmodified furniture. I only had secret compartments installed in my desk and two of my chairs, which I took with me. The safe in the wall behind the map of the Doesya Dukedom was taken as well. Kronius returned not long after I was finished. He had more items to store than I did. ¡°It has been done.¡± the slave reported. ¡°Good. Now, teleport us to the Brekkar Army Headquarters tent outside of Drakaria.¡± I ordered him. ¡°As you wish.¡± he bowed and then opened a portal to his left. This skill of his, the [Pika Boo Blink], was extremely useful in the hands of a capable commander. Acquiring him as a slave was nothing but a stroke of luck. If he had been discovered by the humans before me, he would have been a troublesome enemy to deal with. As I stepped through the portal, I found myself inside my tent. Everything was where I had left them, including the map with the ''fake'' strategy on it, which made it look, to any spying eye, as though I was thinking more about defense and supply management within the kingdom than I did of instigating a war between the humans and Albeyater. ¡°Go and tell Goryan, Talladov, Servorth, Colar, Jormungar, Kossan, Taranvik, Oldessa, and Patrianus to see me here at once. I don''t care what they are doing or what they were planning on doing. If they dare to decline my call, tell them they are not needed anymore.¡± I ordered him. ¡°As you wish, master.¡± Kronius replied and then ran out of the tent. There was a big difference between telling a slave what to do and ordering him. In case of the latter, he had no choice but to obey my commands, while in case of the first, it remained up to him if he decided to do it or not. To allow a human like him a free reign was absolutely ridiculous, so I ALWAYS ordered him what to do. As I looked at the map spread on the table, I let out a sigh. ¡°To think that accursed human pushed me to gamble on this move... Breakthrough-er or not, I am going to make sure to kill him.¡± I said and moved the King piece from Drakaria all the way to the Eastern Plains at the border with the Embryger Empire. ¡°As long as the King doesn''t come here, the plan is safe... But...¡± I smirked. ¡°with the Queen suffering from that terrible poison, I wonder if he would dare to leave her side.¡± The plan I made when I was but a whelp was coming into fruition only now, after so many years had passed from that one... faithful meeting. My only worry was whether or not I was trying to pluck this fruit before it was ripe or after it had already gone bad. Either way, after losing to Alkelios, there was no way I could show my face again at the court. Therefore, while I still had the chance, I had to make the decisive move and put my plan into action. In just a few months, the Queen will be no more, the King will die of grief, the economical and military power of this Kingdom would have crumbled, and all that will be left for me to do will be to invade, take over, and set up a new reign... Or rather, put a worthy puppet on the throne while I moved things from the shadows. The idea of peace between humans and dragons will die together with my foolish grandparents! And along them, everyone who dared to support them! I thought and then picked up the King piece ¡°History will remember you and your allies as fools and me as the hero who brought balance to the values of both dragon AND human kind.¡± I said and then squeezed the piece in my hand until it cracked and turned to dust. As for Alkelios Yatagai, until I made a Breakthrough or found a way to weaken him, all the battles between us would end up with my loss. He made this all too clear yesterday, and I was no inexperienced fool to deny this fact. In order for me to win this ''war'', my strategy had to be perfect, my goals clear, and my allies there. But most importantly, I had to find a way to neutralize, weaken, or incapacitate the enemy''s Breakthrough force. I had to find a way to keep most of their Breakthrough-ers away from my battlefield... I guess... I will need to ask the help of the humans... again. I thought and looked towards the entrance of my tent. The dragons I had called for showed up one after another. Wearing a serious expression on their faces, these loyal, battle-ready dragons were going to obey only MY orders and through them, a big part of this army. ¡°Tonight, we depart from Drakaria.¡± I said and with this, I began to give them specific orders on what to do and how to move. Chapter 59: An audience with the Queen [Alkelios'' point of view] Three days... Three very long and sleep deprived days... That was how long Seryanna kept me inside her room. Although, I wasn''t one who would complain about all the passionate tumbling we did, but I was glad one of us knew a spell capable of soundproofing the room. It wasn''t the same as the barrier around the forge here, but it did the job. The spell was called [Silence] and belonged to the Darkness element. What it did was absorb all the sounds that touched the coated walls, but unfortunately it also covered the whole room in a pitch-black mantle, forcing us to use a light spell in order to see... erm details. During these three long days, we didn''t just copulate like rabbits. When we took a break, we spoke about what happened to each of us during the time when we didn''t see each other, what we went through, what we saw, what we heard. I told Seryanna about my adventures within the Seculiar Forest and the Northern Desert. The funny moments were given priority over everything else because I wanted to see her smile and laugh, but I didn''t leave out the bad parts either. Despite my 100 Luck, there had been moments when I stumbled into a bit of trouble. When I first dropped into the forest, more than once I found myself running around while being chased by a mob of monsters. The only thing missing was a funny chase song. We had no trouble with acquiring either food or water. I had plenty of supplies in my [Purse] rings and [Black Hole] skill. In the end, Seryanna got to know everything that happened to me, and I also found out everything that happened to her. It appeared as though she Awakened not long after I left, then she went through her first change and assumed her current draconian form. The scales on her body, the tail, the wings, the horns, were all new from my point of view, but they all felt natural to her, almost as if she had them from the moment she was born. Seryanna''s eyes were of a bright crimson, slit like those of any other Awakened dragon out there. From each side of her head, right above her ears, a pair of curved ivory horns extended backwards for about 6 centimeters. The scales on her back now spread from shoulder to shoulder and continued down over her tail. A strong pair of wings were now attached to her back, spreading with an impressive wingspan of 6.3 meters, while her tail reached a length of 1.6 meters. When we slept, she tended to wrap us in her wings and coil her tail around my waist. Even if I wanted to, I couldn''t get away from her. I could have been wrong, but I also had the feeling that she had become a lot more sensual and attractive. Maybe it was her Awakening that gave her the sudden confidence, but she had no problem in using her natural beauty to entice me. Leading the dance had become possible only if she let me, otherwise the spell of her charm was broken, and that was something I wished to avoid. To be honest, these three days felt both long and short at the same time. The reason was because we both truly enjoyed our time together. After I was brought to this world, there had been very few moments when I found myself in a state of calm and relaxation. All of them were within my lover''s arms. Just by being close to her, feeling the warmth of her embrace, being allured by her scent, being trapped in her gaze, I could forget about Earth, about the life I had until now, about the duty I had for my home planet... I could forget everything that bothered me back there and even here, in this new world. All I cared about was enjoying the moment together with Seryanna. If someone told me that I could spend all of my days like this with her, I would have accepted no question asked, but then again... neither of us was a recluse. ¡°I told his Majesty that I would keep you for two days at most, but it''s been three days now.¡± said Seryanna as she was putting on her armor. ¡°I have no regrets, besides, I''m returning tonight.¡± I told her with a smile as I put on a black cotton t-shirt of my own creation. ¡°You don''t want to ask for your own room?¡± she asked a bit surprised. ¡°Nah. I want to sleep with you, not alone.¡± I shrugged. Seryanna showed me a soft smile and nodded ¡°I as well wish to fall asleep with you in my arms.¡± ¡°By the way, you never told me about the matriarchal system of this kingdom, right?¡± I asked. ¡°I think we mentioned it a few times, but for us it was a bit self-explained.¡± she replied while scratching the top of her head, trying to remember. ¡°For me it wasn''t, although this could also explain the reason why Kataryna''s authority was so high... Although, I can''t find an explanation for why you were treated so awful if that was the case.¡± I told her. ¡°Awful? By whom?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Back when we were in Tomeron and Andromeda, the dragons there gave you a mean look.¡± I replied. ¡°Oh, that! Well, that was mostly because I was Unawakened. As I explained, Awakened dragons are treated as adults are in human society, while the others more or less as children. It''s... sort of instinctive for us.¡± she explained. ¡°Is it wrong to think that''s bad?¡± I asked. ¡°No, most of the other species believe so as well, it''s just that this isn''t something we can change over night. It''s a part of our nature. When I Awakened, the dragons in the palace as well as those in the city began to treat me in a different way. It doesn''t mean that I forgave them, just that I sort of understand their point of view.¡± she replied. ¡°Instinctive, you say... Well, true, I do find you more attractive now, but I also found you attractive back then, but in a human''s eyes you were dead gorgeous.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I appreciate the compliment, my love, but aren''t going to be late? You shouldn''t keep his Majesty waiting any more.¡± she said with a seductive smile as she approached me. Her hips swayed with a deadly temptation with each step she took and when she stopped in front of me, she wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me into a long, passionate kiss. When we parted lips, her feverish gaze told me she wanted more, but she was the one who pushed me back. ¡°You should go before three days turn to four.¡± she giggled and turned around. ¡°I think I''m starting to understand why dragons might have a matriarchal society.¡± I blinked surprised. With another giggle, she looked back at me over her shoulder and said ¡°Maybe, but I think if you ask his Majesty directly, you will receive a better answer.¡± I shook my head and put on a dark-brown leather jacket. ¡°I''ll see you later, Seryanna!¡± I told her as I walked over to the door. ¡°Have a good day, Alkelios!¡± she replied. Before I stepped out, I removed the darkness spell [Silence], returning the room to normal. Today, I saw no reason in wearing my heavy plate armor, so I wore a pair of casual clothes: a pair of cotton pants, a black t-shirt, a leather vest, and a pair of leather army boots. I made my way straight to King''s room, where I was stopped by the guards. After a brief introduction, one of them knocked on the door and told his Majesty that I had arrived. ¡°Let him pass.¡± came the reply in a stern tone of voice. ¡°Yes, your Majesty!¡± replied the guard and then stepped aside. I opened the door and walked in. The Queen appeared to be awake and reading a book to her children, while the King was... knitting. That''s an odd hobby for a fierce dragon king. I told myself as I tried not to stare. ¡°You must be the rumored Alkelios Yatagai. It''s a pleasure to meet you. I am the Queen of Albeyater, Elliessara Seyendraugher. Last time, I was a bit out of it, so you will have to excuse me if I don''t hold a memory of you.¡± she told me in a polite tone of voice and with a small smile on her lips. ¡°No, it''s alright. I''m happy to see you are feeling better, your Majesty!¡± I smiled back and nodded. ¡°Hm, you really do behave like a Breakthrough-er.¡± she remarked while tapping her right cheek with her pointing finger two times. I blinked surprised and tilted my head to the left in confusion. ¡°Why do you say so?¡± I asked. ¡°Only a Breakthrough-er would dare act so... casually in front of me. Any other dragon would have knelt on the ground and wouldn''t even dare lift their head up unless I ordered them to do so.¡± she explained. I shrugged. ¡°Meh. You are my friend, so acting like that to you would be considered far more disrespectful, wouldn''t it?¡± I asked. ¡°Ouch!¡± the King poked his finger. The Queen blinked surprised to my words then giggled when she saw her husband trying to mend his wound. ¡°You are just as my Feryumstark described you, fearless, cunning, yet... very honest. Qualities you don''t normally find in either humans or dragons. And above all, you are not of this world, correct?¡± she asked. ¡°Yup.¡± I nodded. ¡°You are a fascinating man, Alkelios, but where are my manners? Please, have a seat. I was just about to finish this story. Once I am done, we can have a friendly chat.¡± she replied with a smile. ¡°Now you know why I''m knitting.¡± said the King. ¡°Hush, my dear, I need to focus.¡± she giggled. Feryumstark looked at me and then shrugged like it was nothing and went back to his knitting. He wasn''t making anything, just wasting his time, or maybe I was the one who wasn''t able to guess what he was making. Since I had nothing to do, I decided to sit back and listen to the queen''s story as well. With a calm voice, she began, while the twins listened to her with big curious eyes. ¡°And so... night fell upon the lands of Varkminsha. The prince, injured from his previous fight struggled between life and death, yet he had no desire to give up. Failure for him was not an option, for if he were to fail, his entire Kingdom would sooner or later fall into ruin, and his people would suffer terribly. Losing the people of his Kingdom was something he feared far more than losing the sacred treasures stashed away in the Euphorium. If fate allowed him, no... if he didn''t give up, then certainly, he would reach it before the crack of dawn. So, with one hand pressing over his injured side, he marched forward through the back alleys of the capital, leaving behind only a small trail of blood...¡± The Queen was a good storyteller. The way she spoke those words pulled you in and made you listen. She brought to life the characters within the tale, and even I found myself losing track of time as I listened to the adventures of the prince and his unlikely ally. It was a somewhat fitting tale for a young Prince and Princess. It was about honor, duty, love, and the desire to save the people living in a Kingdom sentenced to doom. She stopped reading long before the story was over, but it was a rather thick book, so it was far better to end it in a random point, for now, instead of continuing until she reached a cliffhanger. The twins also showed signs of being tired, however, before the two of them left, they turned to look at me. ¡°Hello...¡± I said a bit confused. ¡°Thank you for saving our mother, Great Hero!¡± the two made a formal bow and then showed me a bright smile. ¡°Although I''m not done yet, I will do my best.¡± I gave them a thumbs up and smiled. They looked at each other, then back at me. ¡°We believe in you.¡± they nodded. With this, they left the room. Looking back, I saw the King and Queen staring at me with big eyes. ¡°What?¡± I asked knitting my brow. ¡°Well... the twins... That was surprising.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°What about them? They are just kids.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Ah, never mind.¡± he sighed and shook his head. This being the first time I met the two, I didn''t understand why it was so shocking for their parents that they came over and thanked me. From my point of view, there was nothing amiss with what had just happened, maybe only the fact that I had yet to fully heal their mother. Now that the Queen''s storytelling was over, the King put down his knitting needles and walked up to her bed, taking a seat in a nearby chair. ¡°How are you feeling, my love?¡± he asked her. ¡°I feel a bit tired, but I''m alright. I want to spend as much time as I can with the little ones.¡± she replied in a gentle and calm tone of voice while looking in the dragon''s eyes with a loving gaze. Feryumstark nodded and kissed her hand. After this sweet moment between them, he turned around and told me to come closer. I walked up to the side of the bed and pulled over a nearby chair so I could take a seat. ¡°Did your fiance tell you anything about the structure of our political world?¡± Elliessara asked. ¡°Erm, shouldn''t we first talk about your well-being?¡± I asked scratching the back of my head. ¡°He does have a point.¡± remarked Feryumstark. ¡°That can wait a few more minutes. It''s not like he can instantly brew me the cure right away. And as far as I know, I have a few more years before this wretched poison gets me if I don''t do anything.¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Well... true, but...¡± the King tried to convince her, but she wouldn''t allow it. Shaking her head she declined his request, and we were back to me answering her initial question. ¡°Erm... not much, only that you will tell me more about it.¡± I shrugged.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°I see. Your fiance is a smart dragoness.¡± she remarked. ¡°Indeed she is...¡± I nodded, although, it eluded me as how she came to this conclusion from my answer. ¡°Now, what do you understand when I say: matriarchal society?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm... A society ruled and dominated by women, and in which men had no right whatsoever?¡± I replied. ¡°Oh my! That would be an awful one to live in.¡± she replied. ¡°Then, I guess I have the wrong definition of it.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Indeed. That one is taken a bit to the extreme. What use would there be in a society where we shun, discredit, and belittle the males?¡± she asked. ¡°Erm... I don''t know, but someone must have thought it was a good idea.¡± I replied. ¡°They were all a bunch of fools, maybe women who had no idea what a society needed in the first place.¡± she said shaking her head. ¡°Well then, what''s the right definition for a matriarchal society?¡± I asked. ¡°Ahem. If I may, I will begin with the reason why WE are a matriarchal society.¡± she said. ¡°Alright, I''m listening...¡± Not like I have a choice right now, and my future is also at stake here... I thought. ¡°In an age long past dragons had a visible difference in both height and strength when it came to the females and males of our species. The latter were smaller but stronger, while the first were larger and smarter. As we evolved and ended up forming a civilization of our own, this difference lost its meaning as countless millennia passed. The fact that we could grow stronger by absorbing the Magic Energy around us was also a very important factor in this... change.¡± she explained in a calm tone of voice, but her storytelling skill was felt in each articulated word and sound she made. ¡°Are these just rumors or actual facts?¡± I asked. ¡°Facts. Now, as I was saying, over the course of time, this difference in height and strength came to be barely noticeable in some of us. As you have clearly witnessed, Kataryna is far stronger than most dragon males in this palace. Your fiance''s sister, Thraherkleyoseya is also far stronger than her own fiance.¡± she pointed out. ¡°Hm, that is true...¡± I nodded. ¡°The difference in intelligence, however, remained. More than often you will notice that the females are far more intuitive and smarter than the males are. As such, it became a natural move for our ancestors to allow the dragonesses to lead, while the dragons took up arms and used their strength to protect them.¡± she explained. ¡°Wait, then you are telling me that you are the actual ruler of the country?¡± I asked a bit surprised. ¡°It''s not that simple. I am the political ruler. I have the power to declare against whom to take up arms, how to battle, and what laws to follow. But while this is true, my husband, the King, has the power to lead the armies and act as a symbol of our Kingdom''s might. On the battlefield, he is the absolute ruler, while on the throne of our Kingdom, I am.¡± she explained. ¡°But wait, if I''m not mistaken, then even your thrones are different in height. The one the King sat on was the larger one, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, that is to display the fact that any act of aggression against me or this Kingdom will have to first go through him. But while he acts as my shield and sword, I am free to give any orders I desire.¡± she replied. ¡°So, one handles the politics and the other... the battlefield?¡± I said scratching the back of my head. Elliessara nodded. ¡°This ramification of power extends further to other duties such as appointing the Knights and dealing with insurgencies.¡± she explained. ¡°So that was why Seryanna told me that she can''t disobey the King''s orders?¡± I asked. ¡°Indeed. Feryumstark''s authority over any and all military personnel far exceeds mine, but I am nonetheless second after him. Although, I believe the trouble Draejan had caused with your fiance is also on account of the fact that she was Unawakened. If I were to compare the situation with one in the human kingdoms, it would be the same as having a 12 years old child suddenly declaring he is a knight. Nobody would take him seriously even if that was the actual truth. Trust and authority would come only with age.¡± she explained. ¡°But she didn''t look like a child at all! I mean, seriously, she was FAR from anything I would even remotely considered a kid!¡± I shook my head. ¡°I understand how that can be so. While physically she had matured... her draconic side had yet to do so. We dragons take into account not the first but the latter. And technically, a dragon will never Awaken at an age when he might be confused with a child even by a human.¡± she explained. ¡°Well, it is true that I find her more attractive now for some reason...¡± I said scratching my head. ¡°It''s because she has Awakened. No doubt many dragons have become aware of her beauty now.¡± remarked Feryumstark. ¡°Should I worry?¡± the Queen asked. ¡°Hm? Of what? If there''s any dragon that tries to mess around with her, that dragoness will certainly punch him away! She has the might of her grandfather!¡± the King replied and laughed. ¡°Well...¡± she let out a sigh. ¡°I think I know what you mean by difference in intelligence.¡± I noted. ¡°Hm? What is it?¡± the King asked a bit confused. ¡°He is just exaggerating. He understood my little joke.¡± Elliessara smiled and gently patted the dragon on the head. ¡°But if this Kingdom is matriarchal, why were all the nobles at the court male?¡± I asked. ¡°Not all nobles are married, Alkelios. Some are still single because they have not yet met the right dragoness, or they are widowed because of a past war or accident.¡± she said. ¡°Well, some of them said they were going back to their wives, so I''m guessing some of them weren''t exactly... single.¡± I said. ¡°I think I can explain this one.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°Please do.¡± Elliessara nodded once. ¡°The dragonesses are cunning and slippery like an eel. While I don''t hold absolute political power as my wife does, I do come in second after her. As such, to my royal summon, the nobles were forced to send a representative. The dragonesses, fearing it could be some sort of trap, they sent their husbands, and those without a wife came on their own. Loosening the mouth of a dragon is far easier than that of a dragoness. After their husbands were declared as traitors, most of them fled the Kingdom, while those few we caught declared they had no fault, until they were put under a truth-telling spell.¡± he explained. ¡°So, in other words, they sacrificed their husbands in order to save their own skin?¡± I asked. ¡°Precisely.¡± nodded the Queen. ¡°But the other day, the King said that the dragons in this Kingdom became a bit too... daring?¡± I asked. ¡°You are referring to the increase in male authority within Albeyater, correct?¡± Elliessara asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°That is somewhat natural to happen. When it comes to political power within the Royal Family, first there''s me, then comes my husband, then the one we appointed as Prime Minister, which is our son, Elovius. After him, the dragonesses are the first in line and only after them come their brothers. The adopted children have no claim for the throne, and they know this very well. The dragons saw my husband and son acting on important roles and believed on their own that there was a shift in power. While they didn''t voice out their opinions, their actions spoke for them.¡± she explained. ¡°This was also why Draejan acted the way he did. His mother dotted too much on him, so she didn''t try to correct him, and his father couldn''t overstep her decision. That dragon had always been a bit of a coward if you ask me.¡± she let out a sigh and shook her head. ¡°What happened to him, anyway?¡± I asked. ¡°I believe he is recuperating after the battle with you.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°Well, at least he''s not dead. That''s something.¡± I shrugged. I couldn''t really care about what happened to Draejan, especially after how he tried to steal Seryanna from me. To say he never stood a chance would be a bit wrong. If it wasn''t for me, he would have eventually gained control over the entirety of the Brekkar Army and ended up promoted as its general. Of this fact, I was well aware. ¡°Alkelios, do you have a better understanding now of what we dragons understand through a matriarchal society?¡± asked Feryumstark in a serious tone of voice. ¡°Yes, I think. A dragoness will rule the political stage, while the dragon will rule the military one. However, because of the Queen''s poisoning incident, the King was forced to take control over both stages, but the worry for his wife''s health kept him from acting out appropriately, leading to a situation where the society tended more towards a patriarchal system?¡± I replied. ¡°That is correct. Although, I highly doubt the most representative nobles in our Kingdom would have allowed for such a thing to happen. While the Dukes do hold an impressive military or economical might, the Duchesses are the ones who handle all the important and critical matters.¡± he said. ¡°What about family matters?¡± I asked. ¡°In a typical dragon family, the dragoness will make any decision which will require planning, while the dragon will take care of any and all physical duties if his body allows him to do so. This, however, highly depends on the knowledge and experience of each of them in their respective domains. It''s unwise for either of them to thread on unknown ground unless the experience of such a thing is what they desire.¡± explained the Queen. ¡°In other words... it''s complicated and solely depends on each family, but the tendency is to leave the women do the thinking, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± they both nodded at the same time. ¡°Quite different from what I''m used to.¡± I scratched the back of my head. ¡°Humans have a tendency to be patriarchal rather than matriarchal, and I even heard stories of how they treat their daughters as nothing more than chess pieces in order to gain more power.¡± said the Queen. ¡°But didn''t you also marry off some of your daughters to foreign countries?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Hahaha! Alkelios, they all married those dragons because they fell in love with them. But what one in my position fears the most is not marrying my daughters to a foreign land, but having foreign Princesses marry my sons!¡± declared the King with a growl. ¡°Humans often believe that it is the dragons they have to watch out for, but in our case, it is the dragonesses.¡± said Elliessara. ¡°There''s nothing worse to fear than a cunning Princess out to steal your son!¡± declared the King. ¡°Do not mind him, Alkelios, he is a bit... upset because he recently found out about whom the First Princess of Embryger fancies.¡± giggled the Queen. ¡°Oh... So that''s not a good thing, right?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°On the contrary, it is. The First Princess of that Empire is not as cunning and elusive as some of her younger sisters, and the one she fancies is actually the Adopted Second Prince Kryogan, who acts as an ambassador there. If they do form a couple, then she will automatically be denied any right to the throne, and she won''t have much of an authority within the Empire. Adopted children don''t have any right for the throne, so it is the same as marrying a high noble of a foreign land.¡± explained the Queen. ¡°Well, I believe I got the gist of it now...¡± I said scratching the back of my head. ¡°Do not worry, young one, in time, you will learn the ins and outs of our Kingdom. You have a strong fiance by your side and some rather powerful friends to guide you on your way.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°Indeed, including Queen Elliessara here, but speaking of which, should I check your status now and see what we need for the cure?¡± I asked as I looked back at her. ¡°Well, I suppose. Please do.¡± she nodded and showed me a small smile. ¡°Show Status of Elliessara Seyendraugher.¡± I said and the window which only I could see appeared before me. [Name]: Elliessara Seyendraugher [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Light [Awakened Status]: 6 of 6 Conditions met. [Level]: 1207 [Strength]: 1245 (6556)+ [Speed]: 540 (7868)+ [Dexterity]: 2310 (9378)+ [Magic]: 6540 (12980)+ [Luck]: 55 [Magic Excellence]: 43%+ [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <5X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Wisdom of the Old One] [Debuffs]: [God''s Demise Poison]: When I read out loud the ingredients, I felt like the King and Queen were staring at me with dead fish eyes. ¡°And... Orange Juice... At least one thing is easily obtainable...¡± I pointed out and forced a smile. ¡°What is an orange?¡± asked the King. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. Clicking on the ingredient revealed the following information: Orange juice: the juice squeezed from the fruit called Sweet Orange. The tree that produces it is a hybrid citrus result from crossing a Pomelo mother tree and a Mandarin father tree. The Human Empire Akutan uses Oranges as a sacred plant to determine the next generational ruler. The ritual involves in having the young princes and princesses attempt to grow an multi-generational sweet orange tree by using the same Pomelo and Mandarin trees provided to all of them. Cultivation and Consumption of Oranges outside of the Imperial Palace and in any other human kingdom is considered illegal and punishable by death. ¡°Oh for the love of...¡± I nearly cursed. ¡°Sigh... Although we have the cure, to think it was in the most unobtainable locations of all...¡± the King shook his head. ¡°Well, depends on the way you look at it. Honestly speaking, I find the other ingredients to be even more troubling to obtain...¡± I pointed out, scratching the back of my head. ¡°A skilled thief could steal some oranges for us. The only thing we would have to worry about would be the backlash from the Empire. If they were to find out, an invasion would be the least of our concerns...¡± suggested the Queen. ¡°I could go there and kidnap the prince or princess who knows how to grow one?¡± I asked. ¡°You do realize that''s a terrible idea, right?¡± she asked squinting her eyes at me. ¡°Erm... Sort of?¡± I tilted my head to the left. To be honest, I found that idea to be the most... interesting and fun to do of them all. ¡°Indeed, what will we do with the royal afterwards?¡± asked Feryumstark. ¡°I don''t know. Trade him back for a peace treaty?¡± I suggested. ¡°That might work... I think, but there''s nothing keeping them from attacking afterwards.¡± said Elliessara. ¡°Well, that''s complicated...¡± I nodded and crossed my arms at my chest. ¡°There''s also this Cure-All Plant... I had never heard of it... As for the scales of the dragons, those individuals would need to be fully Awakened.¡± pointed out Feryumstark. ¡°Ah, I think we can use some of mine in the worst case scenario. Your Majesties have both the scale of Authority and of Light, so we would just need to find the rest.¡± I suggested. ¡°You know, I always thought that the reason people feared Superior Draconians of a High Element was because of their incredible power and ability to control their element, but I''m starting to guess that it might have also been because their scales are components of certain powerful potions like this one.¡± said Elliessara with a heavy sigh. ¡°Don''t worry, your Majesty, we''ll be sure to get the cure for it! Besides, we already have one of the ingredients!¡± I said and then activated the [Black Hole]. From within it, I pulled out the plant I discovered back when I first met Seryanna. It was the weird plant the herbalist thought it was worth around 30 gold coins. It''s rarity made its price exceedingly high. Of course, this wasn''t the same plant, just another I had found during my travels through the Seculiar Forest. The one I found together with Seryanna had been left with Kataryna or sold off, I couldn''t remember what exactly happened to it. A lot of stuff happened since then, and I sort of forgot about it. ¡°This is the Cure-All plant. Hm, if I''m not mistaken you can use its leafs and petals to make a special kind of tea that should help slow down the poison''s effects. Actually, why don''t you use this one just for that? I have several of them in my storage, and I can probably find some more if I wanted to. If we give one to a botanist, maybe he can find a way to cultivate it?¡± I suggested as I placed the rare plant on the table. ¡°I honestly don''t know what to say... Is this really alright?¡± Elliessara asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Well this is good news then! Hahaha! But what of this Enchanted Water?¡± asked the King. ¡°That''s a special type of water processed by an Alchemist. I can make it, so no need to worry about it. Although, I guess I will have to make myself some travel plans in order to obtain the rest.¡± I said scratching the back of my head. ¡°I will immediately send my best dragonesses as ambassadors to the Elvin, Relliar, and Dwarf countries to organize a special visit from you. As for the human one, I will need to consult with Brekkar and see if we can obtain the oranges without starting another invasion... Maybe that dragoness, Kataryna might know someone?¡± said Feryumstark as he was already making plans in his mind. ¡°With the recent events that happened, I will once more take lead and advise Elovius on the matters that need to be solved immediately.¡± Elliessara said. ¡°Then what should I do?¡± I asked blinking surprised. ¡°Prepare for the upcoming tournament! You won''t be participating, but I arranged for you to have an opening spar with someone! I promise they will certainly put up a good fight!¡± Feryumstark laughed it out. ¡°Understood... wait what?¡± I said then tilted my head to the left. ¡°Since the tournament was originally organized to gather competent forces from within the Brekkar Army, I gave order the day before for this one to be changed into a tournament meant to scout powerful dragons who aspire to a military career. The opening entries aren''t restricted only to the Brekkar Army anymore. Anyone with a sword can participate, but they must not be a wanted felon or member of suspicious organizations. In regard to this, I have ordered Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus to skillfully process all of them.¡± explained the queen in gentle tone of voice. ¡°Erm... OK... I''ll do my best then.¡± I said with a forced smile. ¡°Alkelios.¡± Elliessara said and showed me a warm smile ¡°Thank you for helping us... I''m happy to know that not all humans are bad. Maybe with time, we can help put an end to this tiring conflict. It is sort of a dream of mine, and you... you are living proof that I can still hope for it to come true.¡± ¡°No problem! That''s what friends do! They help each other out!¡± I replied in casual tone and gave her a thumbs up. ¡°A friend... that sounds nice...¡± she said with a soft smile on her face. Chapter 60: A day like no other [Alkelios'' point of view] One week after I had met Queen Elliessara Seyendraugher of the Albeyater Kingdom, I found myself waiting in front of the large doors that led towards the Throne Room. The dragons managed to fix them nicely, and no signs of my forced entry could be seen anywhere. Well, given the importance of this room and also the fact that dragons had access to magic, it was highly unlikely that it was going to stay broken for too long. It was unaesthetic first of all, and second of all, the wrath of the Seyendraugher King and that of his Prime Minister wasn''t something a worker would have wanted to bring upon himself. I was wearing the armor I had used during my battle against Draejan. At my hips, I had Heaven and Hell sheathed in their individual enchanted scabbard. There were too guards in front of me, and both of them were wary of my presence. After all, last time we had the pleasure of crossing paths, they ended up flying across the room and staying unconscious for the most part of the day. As for why I was standing here like this, the answer laid in the ceremony I was about to take part in. According to the custom, I had to wait here until I was called in. Like all those before me, I had to present myself while wearing my best armor and weapons, to look clean and presentable, and certainly not drunk or under the influence of any narcotics. Apparently they made this a clear rule after a certain dragon arrived late at this ceremony, half drunk, and also in his casual clothes. He still got the rank, but he was heavily scolded for this by most of the nobles present then at the ceremony. Seryanna, Princess Elleyzabelle, and even the Queen herself made sure to remind me of this... several times. Speaking of which, after audience with her Majesty, I dropped by more often in order to prepare her the Cure-All tea and also to tell them about my adventures in the Seculiar Forest. Feryumstark spat out his tea when he heard about the army of insect monsters that were marching towards Albeyater. Because it was too meddlesome, I told him that no further rewards or thanks were necessary. I just happened to be at the right time and place, but I was glad to hear they weren''t allies or anything of the sort. Unfortunately, given the dangers of the Seculiar Forest, there was no way to send a scouting party in the Northern Desert to bring back proof of my claims. I did show him, however, some armor pieces and a half broken weapon I had in my [Black Hole]. Besides the Queen and King, their two youngest children, the twins, also listened to my tales with great interest. They found themselves pulled in by the many battles I had and the things I managed to build. They always called me Great Hero, Human Hero, Dragon Hero, Brave Hero, but not even once did they use my actual name even though I asked them several time to do it. I had no problem in being called like that, but I didn''t want the young prince and princess to grow up with a weird idea about me... or to expect more of me or turn me into some sort of ridiculous supernatural being who was nigh-omnipotent. This ceremony I was about to attend to was one I was told about by the King himself, and the Queen agreed with it as well. Seeing how she was feeling much better, she wanted to find the perfect moment when she could show herself in public again, and what better opportunity to do so than the Ceremony of rise to Nobility of the one who saved her life? The event was publicly announced exactly one week ago, and I heard that countless dragons and dragonesses were going to attend this ceremony. I for one knew not even a quarter of them, but after today, many of them will try to make my acquaintance. On the other hand, I had a feeling everyone was buzzing inside with the sudden appearance of the Queen, which in result would also bring MORE attention on me. Hence why I decided to wear my best armor and weapons. ¡°Now enters Alkelios Yatagai!¡± shouted someone from the other side of the door, which began to open slowly. I gulped and stood up straight. Even I wanted to go in looking my best. Here goes nothing... I thought and then stepped forward. Murmurs and curious eyes fell on me the moment I entered the room. Unlike the time when the traitors were gathered up, today the whole room was filled with dragons and dragonesses as well as knights who formed a row to my left and right. The number of women far surpassed that of men, and the clothes they wore were all exquisite and representative of a refined taste. There were countless faces I couldn''t recognize, but I didn''t bother looking around. I stepped forward and led myself to the spot in front of the King and Queen where I had to kneel down. Doing anything else would have come as rude or disrespectful, and I wanted to avoid this possibility at all cost. Still, in a way, I understood now why Feryumstark said this country had a matriarchal society where women dominated the political intrigue and the men flourished on the battlefield. All the dragonesses present in this room stood in front of the dragons, except for the royal couple, whose positions were symbolic. These women gave off an incredible pressure. Their gaze was only partially curious and more intrigued by my very existence. They were analyzing me, dissecting my character to find points of weakness or strength. To see if I was of more worth as an ally or as a foe. The dragons tried to do the same, but their presence was vastly overshadowed by the dragonesses. There wasn''t even a point to compare the two. When I stopped in front of their Majesties, I knelt on one knee and bowed my head in front of them. Silence covered the entire room, and everyone''s attention was on us. The King got up from his chair and took a step forward. His presence was imposing as always, making all those who looked at him understand their place in the food chain. The only one unaffected was the Queen, who just by being present here made the whole ceremony receive a whole new level of importance. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai, you have shown courage, intelligence, and determination when the fate of the Albeyater Kingdom was at balance. You have shown wisdom and understanding when my wife, Queen Elliessara Seyendraugher, was proven to have been poisoned by the traitors who sought to harm our Kingdom. You have shown strength and might worthy of a Breakthrough-er and an incredible devotion to the dragon kind when you yourself chose to become one of us! As the rightful ruler of the Albeyater Kingdom, I had come to the conclusion that it would be both unwise and unjust not to reward you for your achievements!¡± he declared in a powerful tone of voice, which echoed throughout the entire room. While he spoke, everyone here listened to him carefully. No one even dared to make a single sound. I as well, paid attention to his words. After he finished, Queen Elliessara got up from her seat and joined her husband''s side. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai, you have done a great deal for Albeyater Kingdom. You have shown your worth not only to me but also to many important figures in this land. General Brekkar Draketerus, Sir Seryanna Draketerus, Lady Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus, Sir Kataryna Greorg, Prime Minister Elovius Seyendraugher, Princess Elleyzabelle Seyendraugher, and many others. Your desire to protect this kingdom has been shown on more than one occasion, and as my husband declared, they cannot go unrewarded.¡± she declared in a captivating tone of voice which let you know that she was the ruler here. When looking at the two of them, you would normally think that the big imposing dragon was the one in charge of everything, but when they spoke, there was a clear difference between the two. Their presence held a different pressure as well. ¡°We have thought long and hard about what this reward should be. Seeing how you have no title or rank, we have decided to grant you one in accordance to your abilities, relationships, and achievements.¡± said the Queen. ¡°But before we announce which one it shall be, Alkelios Yatagai, raise your head and stand up straight!¡± declared the King. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± I replied and then got up from my kneeling position. ¡°Good! Now, I ask of you to make an oath here, in front of all these dragon and our gods above. Do you, Alkelios Yatagai, swear to protect and defend the Albeyater Kingdom from now on as though you would your own family?¡± Feryumstark asked. ¡°I swear to protect and defend the Albeyater Kingdom from now on as though it was my own family!¡± I replied in a firm tone of voice. ¡°Do you, Alkelios Yatagai, accept me and my wife as your King and Queen from henceforth, whose orders you will obey and whose laws you will reinforce?¡± ¡°I swear to accept Feryumstark Seyendraugher and Elliessara Seyendraugher as my King and Queen whose orders I obey and laws will reinforce!¡± I replied. ¡°Then from now on, you are not just Alkelios Yatagai, you shall be known as Duke Yatagai of the Albeyater Kingdom! In all you do from now on, may you bring glory to your King and Queen! May you bring glory to the Albeyater Kingdom!¡± declared King Feryumstark Seyendraugher in a powerful tone of voice which echoed throughout the room for all those present here to hear loud and clear. ¡°Thank you, your Majesties! I swear I will do everything I can to reinforce your laws and listen to your orders!¡± I made a bow at the waist. ¡°Then so be it!¡± declared the King. I straightened myself and took a step back from them. With this, the ceremony was over and everyone in the room began to whisper among themselves. Most of the dragonesses here seemed to have been shocked by the fact that I was made a Duke on the get go. Actually, even I was surprised. I was expecting a Baron, a Marquise, maybe even Viscount, but certainly not a Duke, which was a title one step under that of a Prince. While the King and Queen returned to their respective thrones, several dragonesses approached me to congratulated me on becoming a Duke. Although I held no land to speak of, I was a Duke in title only and had more of a military role within the Kingdom. It wasn''t like I minded, I wouldn''t have had the time needed to properly administer the land either way, and I told their Majesties this very fact several times, pointing out that I had my mind set on traveling around the world and visiting other nations. While Albeyater Kingdom was going to be my home country from now on, there was no point in rooting myself to this place. As for those who congratulated me, they were formal and openly showed their interest in my armor, weapons, and scale colors. I replied with the words the Queen herself thought me to say: ¡°A pleasure to meet you as well [Rank] [Family Name of the individual], but I apologize, for at this moment in time, I am unable to answer your questions. Maybe with another occasion perhaps? I would be delighted to chat more then.¡± It was only a formal matter as the sheer number of nobles who stood in line to congratulate me wouldn''t have allowed for any small talk to take place. Besides, behind me were two dragonesses with a short fuse, who gave a glare to anyone who tried to get too close or tried to prolong the conversation. Once the formalities were over, I stepped out of the throne room together with Kataryna and Seryanna and then the three of us went to grab something to eat at Brekkar''s Inn. Collentra and Bayuk were waiting for us with a hot meal, and little Askanti, their child, was taking a small nap in the back room. ¡°So what title were you given, Alkelios?¡± asked Collentra when she brought us three bowls of soup, one for each of us. ¡°I''m a Duke now.¡± I replied calmly after the food was placed on the table. ¡°A DUKE?!¡± she said raising the tone of her voice. ¡°I told you she would be surprised.¡± Kataryna smirked my way. ¡°My apologies, but just last year you had no rank in this Kingdom, more so... you were a human, then before I knew it, you became a dragon and now a duke! It''s like you have the luck of the gods, Alkelios!¡± commented the dragoness as she shook her head. ¡°You don''t know half of it.¡± Seryanna replied with small smirk. ¡°Well, in that case, I''m glad you keep coming to eat here, Alkelios! Having such big names visit our humble inn can only be good for business!¡± Collentra laughed. ¡°Of course! The food is good and the atmosphere''s nice!¡± I said with a nod. ¡°Glad to hear that! Enjoy your meal then, you''ll need it for this evening''s main event!¡± she winked at me and then left. ¡°Well she is right about that. The day had just began and there''s still that ceremony to go through.¡± said Kataryna. ¡°And how do you feel about that?¡± asked Seryanna as she took a peek at the silver-scaled dragoness. ¡°Ah, that''s a good question! What do I feel about it?¡± Kataryna replied and leaned back in her chair. Looking up at the ceiling, she said ¡°I don''t mind it, and I am indeed happy for the two of you... As for myself, I don''t really know what I''m feeling...¡± she shook her head and showed us a wry smile. ¡°Weren''t you the one who claimed you wanted to have an egg with me?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°I did and I still want to.¡± she nodded. ¡°Strange words to say in front of his future wife.¡± Seryanna pointed out. ¡°Are you against it?¡± asked Kataryna. Seryanna looked up at her and then replied ¡°I''m against witnessing the act and if he wants to offer you an egg, I don''t mind it... that much.¡± she squinted her eyes ¡°I would honestly like to keep Alkelios all to myself and leave it that way.¡± she declared and then let out a sigh ¡°But you... you I wouldn''t mind as a sister-wife.¡± she showed Kataryna a smile. The silver-scaled dragoness blinked surprised and then showed her a warm smile ¡°I don''t mind you keeping your claws on him all the time just as long as you give him to me from time to time.¡± she said. ¡°Of course. We can manage this, but...¡± Seryanna smiled ¡°We''ll see if you feel the same after I had my first egg with him. Once I have our egg, I can lend him to you if you still want him.¡± she said. ¡°Erm... Sorry to butt in on this apparently important conversation, but would you mind not talking about me as though I am some sort of ''toy'' with no free will which you can pass from one to another with no reservation at all? Especially when the said ''toy'' is standing right here between the two of you?¡± I asked them as subtly as I could. ¡°Oh, don''t worry, Seryanna, I''ll make sure not to break him! I''ll bring him back clean!¡± Kataryna said with a giggle. ¡°Make sure to properly feed him too. I don''t want him lacking the energy to please me afterwards.¡± said Seryanna with a wink. ¡°Of course!¡± The two the giggled. ¡°You are totally ignoring me and having fun with this, aren''t you?¡± I asked squinting my eyes at Seryanna. ¡°What? Nonsense!¡± she giggled. ¡°You are laughing!¡± I pointed out. ¡°Relax, Alkelios, this is a matter between dragonesses.¡± Kataryna patted my shoulder. ¡°Yeah, about who drags me into bed first!¡± I squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Hey, this is a matriarchy, remember?¡± she winked back. ¡°Why you... FINE! If you want to play it that way, I have something to say about this as well!¡± I declared pointing at the ceiling. ¡°Oh, really?¡± Seryanna said as she looked at Kataryna and then back at me. ¡°Yes, really. Erm... If Kataryna still wants to have an egg with me after I had one with Seryanna, then I will gladly make it happen, and I will enjoy it too!¡± I said hitting the table with my fist. This resulted in the soup bowls flying up and landing right on top of our heads... Splash! Then the table broke into several pieces... Crack! The two dragonesses slowly turned their furious gaze towards me, and I gulped. ¡°Erm... My bad?¡± I showed them a wry smile as a piece of noodles fell off my left cheek. ¡°Alkelios... You said you reached a Breakthrough, right?¡± asked Collentra who was standing behind me. I gulped again and slowly turned to look at the third angry dragoness who was glaring at me with her arms crossed at her chest. ¡°Erm... Yes?¡± I replied with a wry smile. ¡°Good! Then you will survive my Punch of Fury!¡± she said as she made a fist.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°Wait! But I''m a Duke now, right? Isn''t punching a Duke bad?!¡± I tried to defend myself. ¡°Yes, that''s why these two lovely ladies whom you drenched in my soup will punch you as well!¡± she said. ¡°Wait what?¡± I blinked and then looked back at Seryanna and Kataryna who got up and both made a fist. ¡°OK, I know I may deserve a tiny slap, but I think you are exaggerating a bit? Just a tiny bit... Seryanna please don''t make a fist. Erm, Kataryna, why are wrapping your fist in ice armor? Collentra... that''s a frying pan not a fist!¡± I said as I backed away from the three. ¡°Nooo, we''re not exaggerating in the slightest. You drenched us in soup and broke a table. You are a Breakthrough-er, so you should have know better than to do that. Most of all, you should know how to properly control your own strength.¡± Seryanna showed me a cold smile. ¡°I don''t really care, but I''m just going with the flow.¡± Kataryna said with a shrug and a cold smile. Like HELL you don''t care! I thought in my mind as I backed away until I reached the wall. ¡°Collentra! Askanti just woke up... Erm, are you busy?¡± Bayuk asked as he came out with the little baby. ¡°Abububu!¡± the little one made a cute baby noise and the three dragonesses melted, completely forgetting about me. ¡°Awww! How cute!¡± times three. Am I saved? I wondered. As I was trying to sneak away, Kataryna trapped me in an Ice Cage that reached all the way up to my neck. ¡°Don''t think we''ve forgotten about you. Just stay there until we''re done playing with the cute baby.¡± she said before taking some noodles out of her hair. ¡°Me and my blasted Luck...¡± I grumbled to myself. One would think that my stats should have prevented this incident from happening, but the Universe didn''t see it as life-threatening, neither did I, and despite the way the conversation was going, I didn''t really feel like I was in a terrible danger or wished for it not to happen, thus, resulting in the passive ability of granting me 100% chance of something good happening to not activate. Then again, if you looked at it from another perspective, what were the chances of me actually being able to land three bowls of soup on all three of us at the same time AND break the table in the process, all with one single hit? Not long afterwards, Seryanna gave me a slap on my left cheek, Kataryna punched me on the right one, and Collentra gave me a pan on the head... all at the same time with perfect timing. After my served punishment of breaking the table and drenching them in soup, Bayuk gave me a broom and told me to clean up the mess I made... I complied... This was probably the first time a Duke had to go through something as embarrassing as this, but I did break the table. I should have controlled my strength better. Once I was done cleaning, Collentra gave me a bowl of warm soup at a new table, where Kataryna and Seryanna joined me. We talked about something else, like the upcoming tournament and new things I could make for them. Seryanna told me about meeting the Albeyater Kingdom''s best blacksmith and her friend: Dregarya Gorrashy. Then, after we ate, we borrowed two separate rooms at the inn for us to get washed and changed out of our soup-drenched armors. I thought I was going to take a bath with Seryanna, but Kataryna pulled her away. Thanks to our spells and good use of magic, the drenched armors were all cleaned up in no time at all. We left the inn and thanked Collentra for the hospitality... and pan strike. Back at the castle, we all left our separate ways again. I went to a room the King had prepared for me. Here, I met with Brekkar and Feryumstark who were having a Chess Showdown. I introduced the game to them a few days ago on a whim, but apparently it sparked a curious rivalry between the two. They both managed to beat me at it not long after I showed them how you played it. I tried to take my revenge again today, but I wasn''t able to do it, so I resigned myself to the humble role of an observer. However, as time went by studying their moves, the sense of urgency began to grow inside me. The reason for this was a rather important and pressing matter I had to deal with. In not even one hour from now, I was to head to the Temple of Drakartus in the capital, where another big ceremony was going to take place. This time, I wasn''t going to receive a title or rank in the Albeyater Kingdom, but I was going to be recognized as Seryanna''s husband and she as my wife. Indeed, today... was the day I was going to marry my redhead dragoness. ¡°Alkelios, relax. It''s not that big of a deal, and you memorized everything you have to do.¡± said Brekkar right before he moved the black pawn on C5. They were starting a new game. ¡°You old lizard, what are you scheming?¡± Feryumstark grumbled as he looked at the table, then moved his left white Knight on F3. ¡°I''m totally relaxed, Brekkar.¡± I retorted. ¡°You are hanging by the ceiling in your half-beast form. You look more like a stressed-out bat than a dragon. Knight on C6.¡± he said. ¡°Huh? I didn''t notice.¡± I said as I got off the ceiling. I really did take a bat-like position. At the very least, I didn''t say: Silence! I''m prowling the night, for I am Batdragon! I thought and shook my head. That would have been... embarrassing. ¡°Let me tell you something, young dragon. Even I was nervous on the day of my marriage with Elliessara! Pawn G3.¡± he said. ¡°You were?¡± I asked. ¡°There is no dragon out there who can claim they weren''t nervous on their wedding day. For you, this was also the day when you became a noble, which by all rights makes you even more worthy of my granddaughter''s hand! Pawn E5.¡± said Brekkar. ¡°I guess it does... But what if I mess it up?¡± I asked. ¡°Then just wish for nothing bad to happen.¡± suggested the king. ¡°You know, you are right. I do wish for nothing bad to happen during today''s wedding ceremony!¡± I declared proudly. ¡°By the way, you aren''t going to my daughter''s wedding wearing THAT!¡± Brekkar lifted his head off the table and pointed at me. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°You are wearing your own armor BACKWARDS!¡± he retorted. ¡°Bishop G2. The boy must be more nervous than we thought he is.¡± Feryumstark sighed and shook his head. ¡°Oh! Really... It''s backwards... How did that happen?!¡± I said as I twisted around. ¡°You are lucky the enchant makes holes where your wings are, otherwise that armor would have ended up shattered to pieces.¡± said Brekkar. ¡°Indeed.¡± nodded Feryumstark. ¡°I''m good with enchants...¡± I pointed out as I changed back to my human form. ¡°By the way, what''s the score so far?¡± I asked. ¡°45 to 45¡± replied Brekkar. ¡°This old lizard is good.¡± pointed out Feryumstark. ¡°I''m not a general just for show!¡± the dragon laughed. ¡°And I''m not a King just for show either!¡± the other dragon laughed. ¡°You two really like this game, don''t you?¡± asked. ¡°Indeed, it is enjoyable. We have a similar one, but this one has more well-defined laws.¡± replied Brekkar. ¡°I see... Well, I''ll go change then go over the rules of today''s ceremony once more.¡± I said as I moved to the dresser and changed into my suit for today''s wedding. It was a silver armor with fine golden decorations added to it. This was Brekkar''s old wedding armor which he kept just for such an occasion. I didn''t have one, but even if I could make it from scratch, it felt more appropriate to accept this one. It had... sentimental value. Apparently, Seryanna was going to wear her grandmother''s wedding dress... erm... armor... thing. I had yet to see how she would look like wearing it, but when I tried to take a peek when she was testing it out, Kataryna punched me to the other side of the city... I landed in some poor dragon''s fish cart. Of course, I payed for it and the cart, but I didn''t take it with me. I donated it to the not-so-wealthy dragons in the slums. I also gave them a bunch of healing potions to those I found sickly, for which reason I apparently became well-liked by them. When it was time to head out, Feryumstark and Brekkar stopped their game where it was and walked out with me. The two of them took the Royal Carriage, while I was to head there together with Iolaus. Seryanna, Kataryna and the other women were already there, meaning that us men were the last to arrive as tradition beckoned. ¡°How are you holding up?¡± asked Iolaus with a cocky smirk on his face. ¡°You''ll soon find out as well.¡± I replied with a smile. ¡°What? I... Erm... Yeah...¡± he looked away. ¡°Is this the carriage we''re riding in?¡± I asked as I pointed at the decorated silver carriage next to him. ¡°Of course, you are a Duke now. Traveling on foot is unbecoming of you.¡± he replied with a stern expression on his face. ¡°I think I can manage. Can''t be worse than running away from hungry sheep.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Ah, that must have been horrible.¡± he said. ¡°Oh yeah! You don''t want to know how I escape, but let''s just say it involves Luck and me falling head first in something very gross.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Ew!¡± he grimaced. ¡°Hey! It worked! That''s what matters!¡± I smirked. ¡°Still gross.¡± he said. ¡°Sigh. Let''s just get going... I don''t want to leave Seryanna waiting...¡± I said. ¡°You wouldn''t, trust me. The girls worked very hard to prepare this wedding, especially the celebration party.¡± he reminded me. ¡°Indeed, the did their best...¡± I nodded and then we got on the carriage. ¡°I for one can''t wait to see the moment when Brekkar punches you in the face at the party!¡± Iolaus showed me a wide grin as he said that. ¡°That is one part I''m not looking forward to...¡± I retorted squinting my eyes at him. The carriage driver pulled the reins, and the Khosinni began to trot and slowly move up to a canter. We were heading for the Temple of Drakartus, and no pit-stops were allowed. During the journey, I was reminded that when the talk about preparations came, me, Iolaus, and Brekkar were literally tossed out of the room by Kataryna and Kleo. Later, the Queen joined them as well, and as a result, the King joined our merry group. These dragons helped me understand the traditions as well as learn my lines for the upcoming ceremony, but although I practiced them very well, I was literally a nervous wreck. As our carriage arrived in front of the temple, I could see many other guests entering the temple as well. Everyone was a noble here, but there were going to be commoners present as well, like Collentra, Bayuk, and their child. The temple of Drakartus was located in the noble area alongside the temples of the other gods. It was like a small religious corner where most nobles went to pray. There were similar ones in the commoner area too, but not as big or well decorated. This one was almost entirely made out of white marble, but it was decorated with red gemstones. The general color theme for the Drakartus temple was White, Red, and Gold. Every temple had its own color theme. As for the decorations themselves, they were representations of dragons in their beast form. Inside, the walls were covered in depictions of scenes of great importance in their religious lore, such as large scale battles or a blessed marriage. Iolaus stepped out of the carriage first. I climbed out after him and remained there standing. ¡°I can''t believe this day finally came...¡± I said as I looked up a the temple. ¡°Yeah... Who would have believed the scrawny little human I met back in Pertiko was going to marry the oldest granddaughter of General Brekkar Draketerus?¡± commented Iolaus. ¡°I also became a Duke and a Breakthrough-er.¡± I smirked at him. ¡°With so many achievements in one year, you will go down in history.¡± he said. ¡°I know... but I don''t complain.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Just remember what you have to do. I''m going in to announce your arrival.¡± said Iolaus. ¡°Sure... I''ll just wait here...¡± I said with a wry smirk. For dragons, it wasn''t ''Here comes the bride!'' but ''Here comes the groom!''. Although I never did witness an actual marriage ceremony back in Romania, I did have a rough idea of what happened during one thanks to the wonders of the internet. Because of this, I knew that the one in the dragon traditions and the ones in both orthodox and catholic traditions, had quite an interesting resemblance. The first part went down like this: After the assembly gathered, the priest came forward and announced the beginning of the ceremony. A song was played in the background, performed by the temple''s own acolytes and priests. It was only an instrumental one, but the sound was calm, soothing, and had a certain happy note to it. As the priest explained how Drakartus united in the holy matrimony the gods Lumenya and Lumenos, the assembly listened while sitting down. By the end of the first song, the story was over. Now, Seryanna, who was the bride to be, was going to stand in front of the priest and receive a preaching. Through it, she was advised on how to traditionally take care of the family and always make it a priority, but never above the words of their gods or those of their King and Queen. Because she was also part of the military force of the Albeyater Kingdom, she was also told to remember that her time on the battlefield was one through which she would not only protect the people of this land but also her own family, and she should always remember this when in battle from now on. At this point, Iolaus, who was the ''Bringer of the Groom'', announced my arrival and opened the door for me. Up until now, I would have to wait next to the carriage, so I didn''t hear the preach Seryanna received, but I had a good idea of what she might be told. Feryumstark and Brekkar gave me a detailed explanation of the whole thing. Tradition dictated that I should not make a single step forward until called in. If I did, it would be seen as a bad omen and this marriage would be riddled with bad luck. When I first heard this, I inwardly smiled. ¡°The groom has arrived!¡± Iolaus announced and the opened the big doors of the temple. That''s my cue. I thought and straightened myself. With a smile on my face, I approached the entrance of the temple. Here, I made a bow to the left and one to the right. This signified my acceptance of Drakartus'' blessing in the following ceremony. Afterwards, I entered the temple. I held my back straight and a hand over my chest, with my palm resting over my heart. This signified my willingness to participate in this ceremony and declaration of love towards the one standing in front of the altar. While I approached the bride to be, another song was played out in the background. Seryanna at this point was with her back at the altar and looking at me. She also held her hand over her chest, with her palm over her heart, a gesture that signified her approval and love of me. Seeing her for the first time in the wedding... erm... armor made me blush and simply be amazed of how beautiful she was. Her long lush red hair was wrapped in a golden string with nine pins stabbed in a small bun at the back of her head. Over her shoulders, she wore a transparent white mantle made out of silk. The armor was white and made out of thin plates over a light chainmail. Underneath, she wore a one piece dress, which extended all the way to the ground, hiding her tail. Around her hips were white plates of armors made out of three parts. The dress had long sleeves which reached all the way to her wrists, where it expanded in a diameter to several sizes. In her left hand she held bouquet of multiple red flowers and a candle in the middle. Traditionally, it always had to be the same color as the bride''s scales, that was why a marriage was never performed for Unawakened dragons. When I arrived at the altar, the song ended. I made a bow in front of Seryanna, another in front of the altar, and then I had to turn around and make another bow to the King and Queen who stood on the front row seat. Lastly, I turned to face Seryanna, and said ¡°I am blessed to be in your presence today, my love.¡± ¡°I am blessed to be have you in my presence today, my love.¡± she replied. These were the ceremony''s lines for greeting each other. After this, I moved to her right side. Here, Brekkar, who was the dragon representative of her family and also a substitute for her deceased father, gave me a bouquet of flower similar to hers, but had Red, White, Black, and Yellow flowers instead. Again, this represented the color of my scales. I made a head bow to Brekkar and held the bouquet in my right hand. I turned to face the priest. ¡°Blessed be this day, for we have all gathered here to witness as these two dragons willingly and selfishly bind themselves together in marriage and love!¡± the priest said as he took my left hand and Seryanna''s right hand then joined them together up in the air for everyone to see. ¡°With love, I declare my willingness to participate in this ceremony.¡± I said. ¡°With love, I declare my willingness to participate in this ceremony.¡± she said. A song was played in the background and the priest lowered our hands. ¡°Love is a blessed gift offered to us by the gods. And while few cherish it as they do, I still urge you to try and like Lumenos and Lumenya hold it high in your hearts! Never let it waver nor let it dry. Love is an act of will and not of need. As long as you hold it within you, so will the gods above bless you. Now, I stand here as substitute for our great god Drakartus to unite these two in the holy ceremony of matrimony! I bless thee, Alkelios Yatagai.¡± the priest said and then used a small fire spell to light my candle. ¡°I bless thee, Seryanna Draketerus.¡± he now lit her candle as well ¡°May the two of you cherish the love you hold for one another and may it never dwindle or waver for as long as you are given days to live on this world!¡± the priest raised his hands in the air and a chorus sang to accompany the instruments. The tune lasted for about a minute, then he lowered his hands and walked back to the altar. From on top of it, he took two circlets, one out of gold and one out of silver. He approached us and continued with the second part of the ceremony. ¡°In the name of Drakartus, the God of Life and guardian of all the dragons in this world, I bless thee, Seryanna Draketerus, to lead a happy life filled with love and treasured moments alongside your husband, Alkelios Yatagai. May this gold crown signify your willingness to accept the role of leading the family and keeping it safe.¡± he said and then placed the gold crown on top of her head. Seryanna closed her eyes and bowed her head once, then the priest turned to me. ¡°In the name of Drakartus, the God of Life and guardian of all the dragons in this world, I bless thee, Alkelios Yatagai, to lead a happy life filled with love and treasured moments alongside your wife, Seryanna Draketerus. May this silver crown signify your willingness to accept the role of protecting your family and keeping it safe.¡± he said and then placed the silver crown on top of my head. I too closed my eyes and bowed my head once. The priest lifted his hands up and another chorus sang for about one minute, then only the instrumental melody remained. ¡°In front of our god, Drakartus, Alkelios Yatagai, reveal the rings of marriage.¡± he said. At this point, I activated my [Black Hole] skill, which brought a bit of a surprise to everyone, seeing as how I wasn''t just taking them out of my pocket. From inside, I pulled out a crystal box. After the black hole vanished, I turned to face the priest and opened the box. Inside were two special rings I had made myself. They were simple identical rings made out of enchanted Celestium-Dregaryum alloy inscribed underneath with the words: ''May our love last forever.''. The enchants I placed on them was a morphing one for when she turned into her beast form and a Luck one. To my surprise, a Grand Godlike Enchanter could add some very interesting enchants on items. The one I found to be rather incredible was the [Add 10 points in Luck] one. Of course, there was a downside to it: the enchanted item couldn''t hold another enchant besides one at the same level as the morphing one; I couldn''t add more than 10 points; and only one such item could be worn by an individual. If someone were to wear two such rings, the effect would activate only on the first one. Also, the enchant had no effect on me and couldn''t be added on common metals like gold, silver, iron, copper, etc. ¡°My these are... some rather remarkable rings.¡± said the priest, who was quite surprised by them. ¡°It''s my own work. Celestium-Dregaryum alloy, and they are enchanted as well.¡± I said. ¡°Celestium? The same material from which god level artifacts are said to be made out of?¡± he asked surprised. ¡°For my special dragoness, I saw it only fit to offer her the best of what I could make.¡± I said with a smile as I turned my head to look in her eyes. Hearing me say this, Seryanna smiled and blushed. ¡°Very well, then we shall proceed!¡± the priest said and then took out the two rings and lifted them up in the sky. Murmurs and whispers spread throughout the entire temple as everyone came to know the metals they were made out of. ¡°Oh, Drakartus, God of Life, bless these rings with your light and let them be the physical proof of the union between Seryanna Draketerus and Alkelios Yatagai!¡± he said this three times before lowering them down. ¡°Do you, Seryanna Draketerus, take Alkelios Yatagai to be your lawfully wedded husband in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, to love them and honor them all the days you have left on this world as granted by Drakartus, the God of Life? And do you, Alkelios Yatagai, take Seryanna Draketerus to be your lawfully wedded wife in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, to love them and honor them all the days you have left on this world as granted by Drakartus, the God of Life?¡± he asked. We each took one ring from the priest''s hand and looked at each other. ¡°I, Seryanna Draketerus, take Alkelios Yatagai to be my lawfully wedded husband in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, to love him and honor him all the days I have left on this world as granted by Drakartus, the God of Life.¡± she declared and then placed the ring on my left hand ring finger. ¡°I, Alkelios Yatagai, take Seryanna Draketerus to be my lawfully wedded wife in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, to love her and honor her all the days I have left on this world as granted by Drakartus, the God of Life.¡± I declared and then placed the ring on her left hand ring finger. ¡°Then in the name of Drakartus, I pronounce you husband and wife! May the two of you lead a happy life together blessed with riches, with love, and with many children! You may now kiss the bride!¡± And so I did. In front of the priest of the Drakartus Temple and the assembly that stood up and applauded, with the background music and chorus singing, I took Seryanna in my arms and kissed her. This was indeed a one of a kind day I would come to always remember no matter where my destiny would lead me in the future. Chapter 61: The wind of change [Alkelios'' point of view] The wedding ceremony was amazing, and just by looking at the ring that now signified the fact that I was a married man made me feel like I was soaring through the sky. No longer was I a simple bachelor, I had a wife and a new family. I had finally took one of the biggest steps a man can take in his entire life... accept the fact that he loves so much a woman that he wants to stand right there beside her for the rest of his days. While true that I would have wanted for my human family to be here as well, I had a feeling mother would have freaked out when she saw how my beautiful bride looked like. Leaving aside the fact that she was a bit taller than me, but she had wings, a tail, and scales... Not exactly normal for an average Romanian family. After the ceremony inside the temple was over, we walked out the aisle while holding hands. Outside, we stopped in front of the carriage that was to take us to the party at the castle, and we both threw our bouquets of flowers to the crowd behind us. Of course, we didn''t peek back to target someone, and we also made sure to put out the candle so we didn''t accidentally start out a fire. Although, if one were to have started, I could already imagine the poor fellow getting drenched by several dragons who instinctively cast Water Spells. My bouquet was caught by a young noble dragon with brown scales, while Seryanna''s bouquet was caught by Kleo. She sort of cheated by having Kataryna throw her after it. Good thing she had wings, otherwise, her landing would have been worth a 10 out of 10 in a comedy show. ¡°Iolaus! You''re not getting away this time!¡± she said while pointing the bouquet at the poor dragon, who could only sigh in defeat. The carriage took us directly to the castle, where we were then guided by the maids to the garden where the party was to take place. This was the Queen''s idea. She was the one who organized everything here, and I had to say that it looked incredible. You could clearly see that she had a professional touch in absolutely every single detail from the way the flowers were arranged on the tables, to the arrangement of seats, to the placement of decorations around the venue, and the type of food that was to be served. I was honestly impressed with all of it, and I for one wouldn''t have been able to do even a tenth of what she accomplished in mere days. At the party, we politely waited for everyone to arrive, since they all took their own way of transportation, Kataryna being the only one who flew over and grabbed the first bottle of wine she could see in order to quench her thirst. She was also the first one to congratulate us. A moment which went like this: ¡°I wish for both of you to be happy!¡± she said with big grin before her attention was caught by a wine bottle. After everyone gathered and was seated, one of the main events of the party took place... the punching of the groom. I stepped away from the tables and looked at Brekkar who was cracking his knuckles. ¡°Can''t we just ignore this?¡± I asked with a wry smile. ¡°Nope! I''ve been waiting for this for a very very long time!¡± he said with a grin. ¡°I have a feeling my luck failed me here... What''s so lucky about being punched in the face by one of the most famous generals in the kingdom?¡± I retorted. ¡°Well, you can consider yourself lucky because I''m not going to hold back!¡± he grinned. ¡°Again, how is that lucky?!¡± I retorted. ¡°It is for me!¡± he said he pulled his fist back. ¡°Don''t hold back, grandfather!¡± Seryanna wished him. ¡°HEY! Aren''t you supposed to be on my side?!¡± I retorted. She merely poked her tongue out at me in reply. ¡°Here it comes!¡± warned Brekkar. BOOM! ¡°YOU SHOULD HAVE HEEELD BAAACK!¡± I shouted as I flew through the sky. ¡°Sooo, anyone wants to bet on where he will land?¡± Kleo said with a smile as she took out a notebook. This was the last thing I saw before I found myself spiraling through the air and landing in some tree outside of Drakaria. It did hurt a bit, and I flew right through a flock of birds, somehow ending up catching one, but I let it go after it squawked at me. The landing was rough, I broke a few branches on the way down and fell face first in the ground at the base of the tree, scaring off a nearby sleeping lone wolf. When I got up, I looked up and rubbed my chin. ¡°That hurt...¡± I muttered. Now came the time for the long trek back to the castle. We still had to cut the cake and probably give a speech or two. When I reached the gates, the guards asked me where I hail from, and I replied with: ¡°I just got punched by Brekkar inside the castle and I landed in a tree outside of Drakaria, do I need to say more?¡± I asked. ¡°Ah, you must be the groom then. Yes, we received word from the castle about you, but please, can you tell us your name, just to check to make sure?¡± he asked. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai.¡± I mumbled. ¡°Well, not anymore, after General Brekkar Draketerus punched you, you will be known as Alkelios Yatagai Draketerus.¡± the other laughed. I nodded while rubbing my chin, then I went inside. This was the other meaning behind the punch. The groom was welcomed within the dragoness'' family and earned the right to bare her family name. It was never the other way around, or at the very least no one told me of such a case where the dragoness was brought into the groom''s family. Also, these two guards were technically supposed to call me Duke Yatagai or Duke Draketerus now, but since I had been given the title this morning, it was highly likely that they had yet to be informed of this peculiar change. Being punched by Brekkar was a foreseeable event, but the title I was going to receive from the King and Queen of Albeyater were certainly not something anyone could know beforehand. Either way, it didn''t matter for me if they showed me a noble''s respect or not. For now, I just wanted to get back to the castle and continue with the party. When I arrived, everyone greeted me with a smile and welcomed me to the family. Brekkar regretted a bit that he wasn''t able to knock me out with one punch, but despite what the tradition said, he already knew that I was going to take care of Seryanna and our family just like she would of me. The matriarchal principles in a draconian family made it quite difficult to put all the work on the man''s shoulders. The so-called ideas of most humans back on Earth about being ''the man of the house'' were all tossed out the window here. It was actually seen as an insult towards the dragoness if I were to claim such a thing. The dragon doing everything in the house? Nonsense! We were a family, a married couple, both of us had our own roles and shared responsibilities! For some reason though, I had a feeling we were both going to be attending the same cooking classes... The party ended late at night, but instead of retreating within the comforts of Seryanna''s room, Queen Elliessara ordered a guard to take us to our new home. It was a chamber designed to accommodate a Duke not just a Knight. To be noted though, I was still a Duke in title only, so unlike many others who held the same title, I had neither a land to administer or an army to commend. King Feryumstark, however, warned me during the party that in time this was going to change. It didn''t look good for the Albeyater Kingdom otherwise, but in regard to what land I was going to get, he hinted that I might end up administering Brekkar''s old land if I managed to do something about the current situation there. While there was no concept of a Honeymoon here, we were granted a month or so to simply go about enjoying our lives as a newlywed couple. At the same time, we were also waiting for a sign from the ambassadors sent to the other continents where I could find the missing ingredients for the Queen''s cure.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. [Feryumstark''s point of view] ¡°So what you are saying is that Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya has fled from Drakaria?¡± I asked the dragon standing before me. He was part of a group tasked with the mission of keeping an eye on Draejan, but apparently, he vanished ever since a month ago. I presumed he was hiding out of shame and didn''t put much thought to it, but Brekkar asked me to look deeper into this sudden disappearance of his. This was the result: an empty house, an army with over half of its soldiers having vanished from right under my nose, two armories robbed clean of all armors and weapons, bribes and dragons tasked to lie and pretend like he was still around. ¡°That is the conclusion we have come to, there''s no explanation yet on how, but we presume they might have used some camouflage spell during the night.¡± he said. ¡°For thousands of dragons?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°I know, your Majesty. It sounds impossible, but so far... there is no actual proof of them having marched away... It would have otherwise been impossible not to notice so many dragons, supplies, weapons, and armors being moved over the plains. Unless... they can vanish into thin air?¡± replied the dragon. ¡°Hm... Let the lords of all lands known that Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya is hereby wanted for possible traitorous actions against Albeyater Kingdom! I want him and his accomplices to be brought ALIVE in front of me!¡± I ordered him using a loud and clear tone of voice that shook the dragon to his very core. ¡°Understood, your Majesty!¡± he bowed and then left quickly. Inside this room there were only the Royal Guards and myself, so I let myself think of the matters at hand. The most urgent and important one was of course the sudden disappearance of my grandson Draejan alongside countless armors and weapons from different armories as well as a big part of the Brekkar Army. There were enough dragons there to start a small rebellion if he wanted to, but this in itself would be rather foolish. Unlike in the human countries where any man could raise a flag and go against those who ruled over him, in the dragon countries it would have been a foolish thing to do. The rebellion was declared won or lost the moment all the Breakthrough-ers in the said country decided on what side to stand. Depending on their cumulative power, they would quite literally be the decisive factors in this battle. However, there was another element that needed to be taken in account when doing so. This was about who led the said rebellion. A dragoness would be trusted and accepted, but a dragon... not so much. A proof of this fact was the former Dragon Kingdom Zerudan from which Kataryna Greorg hailed. This one''s history was complex and filled with unpleasant decisions. It was one of the few patriarchal kingdoms at that time, but unlike present Albeyater or even a normal human kingdom, the way they treated the dragonesses and shared their power with them was... deplorable. The dragons held absolute control over everything, while a dragoness'' job was only that to be pretty and win the right to become one of the many wives of a powerful dragon. To declare that the dragonesses of Zerudan lacked the cunning and intelligence of the dragonesses of Albeyater was wrong. In that kingdom, these valuable traits were ignored or thought by the dragons as non-existing. As such, it was only natural that sooner or later internal discords would help bring down the might of that kingdom. As an interesting fact, it reached this state when a rebellion organized by a dragon had won and subsequently enforced his rule through the many powerful dragons he commanded. I wanted to believe that my grandson wasn''t so foolish as to believe he could succeed where the former zerudanians have failed. Yet, over the past month, I was brought proof after proof of his betrayal. Besides the many items stolen and dragons coerced into following him, there was the particular matter of what Alkelios has told me regarding the man he met within the Pertiko Dungeon. A human who could teleport... who could vanish from one place and reappear in another. Sounds quite similar to what happened to these soldiers. I thought. If Draejan had such a mind under his command, it would explain it, yet what I couldn''t figure out, and on this one I hoped my wife would find a clue, was how exactly he planned on forming a rebellion to rise against my rule when he didn''t have just as many Breakthrough-ers? Although, I can''t say I can call all of them at the same time either... The majority of them defend the borders, keeping the persistent humans at bay. I thought. While my mind focused on this matter, the doors of my audience room opened wide and Kataryna Greorg entered. She stopped in front of my throne, but she didn''t bother to bow to me. She accepted my rule, my orders, but for some reason known only by my wife, this Breakthrough-er dragoness refused to bow to me as it was customary. ¡°Your Majesty, a pleasure to see you alive and kicking!¡± she said with a grin. ¡°Indeed. A pleasure to be in your presence as well, lady Greorg.¡± I replied and squinted my eyes at her. We were both staring daggers at one another, a harmless contest between the two of us. I lost when I blinked... ¡°So, why have you called me?¡± she asked with a triumphant smirk. Her tail was swaying left and right, pleased with the fact that she had won. ¡°Ahem. Yes. I wanted to discuss with you a matter of utmost importance. It''s about Draejan.¡± I said. ¡°I''m listening.¡± her smile vanished and her tail stopped in its tracks. ¡°I have a reason to believe that he may have decided to go against the crown. Since you have lived in the former Zerudan, I can assumed you understand what a dragon-led rebellion might bring about if it succeeds.¡± I said. ¡°But he doesn''t have the power to do so. Most of the Breakthrough-ers are on your side.¡± she pointed out. ¡°Yes, and I know that my grandson isn''t an idiot, therefore, I can only assume that he may have some sort of means to balance it out.¡± I replied with a nod. ¡°Allies?¡± she asked. ¡°Precisely, yet at this point, I cannot point any fingers less I wish for a war.¡± I said. ¡°I can see how this delicate matter could lead to a war, but I do not see why you are telling me this and not Alkelios?¡± she asked and crossed her arms at her chest. ¡°The dragon is currently enjoying his time with his bride, and all of this is just a mere assumption for now. However, you are a Breakthrough-er and someone who chose to side with my daughter, Elleyzabelle. As such, I believe you are not one who would go and side with Draejan. In fact, if someone claimed this, I believe you would see it as an offense. Am I right?¡± I asked her. ¡°Yes, quite so.¡± she nodded. ¡°In light of this, I wanted to know if I can rely on you to thwart any foolish plans my grandson could be scheming. He has yet to make a move, but when he does, will you lend me your might?¡± I asked her. ¡°Hm... Only if at that time you will speak of this to Alkelios and Elleyzabelle as well.¡± she told me. ¡°Of course, you have my word. But as I said, this is merely an assumption. As such, I cannot make an official declaration, but I can suggest and inform a Breakthrough-er I trust of what I think about it.¡± I told her, and I knew she understood what I was implying. ¡°So what you are saying is that before you bother Alkelios with this matter, you wish to have more definitive proof?¡± she asked. ¡°Precisely.¡± I nodded. ¡°Very well, I''ll think about it, and I will also tell Princess Elleyzabelle about this.¡± she nodded. ¡°Very well, you have my approval in doing so.¡± I nodded. ¡°When your Majesty finds a clue or needs to procure it, I will lend you a hand.¡± she said with a nod. ¡°Thank you. I appreciate your service, lady Greorg.¡± I told her. ¡°It sounds fun, so why not? Have a good day, your Majesty!¡± she smiled and then turned around to leave the room. ¡°A good day to you as well, lady Greorg.¡± I let out a sigh. Normally, one would wait for me to declare that they are dismissed or that they may leave. Breakthrough-ers, however, didn''t really bother with such formalities. This was why I emphasized more on forming a bond of trust rather than one of subordination. Informing Kataryna of this before anyone else would be the key to attaining her as an ally. As for my grandson, Draejan, there was nothing left for me to do except to send out scouts throughout the kingdom in the hope of finding his whereabouts. Until he made the first move, I couldn''t declare anything either. At most, I could declare that all of these missing soldiers were nothing but deserters and thieves, but even this was a bit tricky, since they could have also left on their own will, choosing another career. The fact that all of those armors and swords had been stolen by them or by one single thief that had no connection with them had yet to be proven. So, until Draejan made a move or those items were tracked down, I had nothing else but an assumption. It would have been rather unwise of me to make an official declaration based on this, especially since there was still that small chance I could be wrong. Chapter 62: Exhibition Fight [Alkelios'' point of view] It has been over a month since my wedding ceremony with Seryanna, and Drakaria was preparing for the beginning of the Grand Tournament of Strength and Honor, which was initiated by Draejan and now reorganized by Queen Elliessara. My friends and I didn''t really care about it. We all had more important things to deal with right now. Besides, I was already told that I won''t be participating in it. I was far too strong for the possible contestants and pinning them against me would have been completely unfair for them. But, this didn''t mean that I wasn''t to have a part in it. There was going to be an exhibition match to start the tournament, through which the Queen hoped to raise the spirits of both those who were watching and those participating. During this month, I had the pleasure of learning more about this world and Drakaria itself. By now there were a lot of people who knew about me. I was the new young Duke who was a Breakthrough-er and also the grandson-in-law of General Brekkar Draketerus. While addressing me as Duke Draketerus wasn''t wrong, most of them preferred to call me Duke Yatagai. To be honest, I had a feeling not all noble dragons and dragonesses were happy with my rise to power. There were a few who looked down on me or avoided talking to me completely. They didn''t dare bully me, but I wasn''t one to keep such matters a secret. When I asked Seryanna about it, she claimed it was impossible not to encounter fools who did not know where they stood or what the difference between us and them was. There were also those who believed they had more authority than they should. In regard to this special type of fools, Kataryna told me a few stories about how certain dragonesses tried to bribe or subdue her with ''words''. The silver-scaled dragoness apparently stripped these noble women of their clothes and tossed them in the Gold Scale River, the one passing alongside Drakaria. Despite the fact that the King scolded her, he didn''t really do much to her. The dragoness was a far more important asset than those nobles who tried to mess around with her. Still, despite all of these incidents, the number of people trying to get their hands on me, Seryanna, or Kataryna didn''t go down. Whenever a fool was silenced, another appeared to take his place, but what did change was their approach. Being tossed naked in the river wasn''t on their priority list. Kleo and Iolaus both continued their training under Kataryna and Brekkar respectively. I had to admit, they were gaining strength fast. It wouldn''t be a surprise if in a few years they were going to achieve a Breakthrough as well. Imagining that black-scaled prankster becoming as powerful as Kataryna or Brekkar sent a shiver down my spine. During this month, I also had the pleasure of briefly meeting Seryanna''s friend, the blacksmith Dregarya Gorrashy. Apparently, she was among the people who witnessed the moment of my rise to nobility, and she was also among those who had a front row seat at my wedding ceremony. I had to think really hard to remember her, but she was indeed there, among all those dragons and dragonesses. To this awkward moment she declared that I probably didn''t remember her because she was wearing a dress, and she hates them, but Seryanna made her wear one. Apparently she was unaware of the fact that dropping by such an important event covered in soot and wearing a blacksmith''s apron was considered rude by some. Unfortunately, we caught her right when she was in the middle of preparing her bags. She was to head off in an hour or so to the Western border, where she would meet the First Prince Charmeill and fix his armor. Despite the fact that she had to go soon, the dragoness had yet to finish off preparing her bags, and she was still covered in soot. This angered Seryanna a bit, who dragged her by the tail to the bathrooms. After she returned, I finally found out that Dregarya''s scale color wasn''t black but white, and her hair was silver with a strand of regal blue color. Seryanna then helped her pack her bags, while I got to chat a little bit with her. My wife forbade her friend from entering the forge and put me in charge of making sure she didn''t try to sneak in. It was a bit tougher than I had expected, she was like a small child who wanted her favorite toy back. She finally settled down when I told her that I made my own armor. In that moment, her eyes sparkled and the rest of our conversation turned to a detailed description about the right angle at which you need to hammer a plate of armor. Most of which I had to agree with. Overall, it was a peaceful time. Once this ''honeymoon'' was over, I had to get started on procuring the ingredients for the Queen''s cure and at the same time research a little bit about the history of this world. I wanted to know what I could find beyond the borders of Albeyater. I wanted to see a world map if I could, and with my newfound friends and authority as a Duke, there was no reason for me not to find one. Until then, however, I had to go through one last small... event. On the first day of the Grand Tournament of Strength and Honor, a lot of dragons and dragonesses gathered from across the entire kingdom. Drakaria itself never had an arena for such events. Draejan had planned on buying several buildings within the Adventurer Area and demolish them to build an impressive Colosseum. Thanks to me, however, this plan came to a stop, so the Queen changed the details. Using her authority as the Queen of Albeyater, she ordered the soldiers to go to the slum area and demolish a part of it. The families who lived there were offered another home in the Workers Area. Those who were in trouble with the law were arrested. During this month, she made a full sweep of the slums and locked away those who were found guilty while helping the others relocate or restart their lives. She wanted to get rid of the slums in a way that would help all the dragons living there rather than to force them to submit. The arena that was built in that location was not intended to be grand and luxurious, just very sturdy and efficient. It was large enough to fit all the contestants on it, a little over 100X100 meters with a height of 3 meters above the ground and 4 bellow it. The thing was made out of sturdy stone and enchanted to survive powerful magic attacks. The audience was placed behind three layers of barriers, but the nobility and royalty had special seats reserved for them. For the King and Queen, they practically built a small tower with a balcony from where they could leisurely enjoy the fights. Meanwhile, the nobles had smaller, wooden platforms placed to the left and right of this tower. Their families and guests had reserved benches, but the high nobility was separated from the lower one through a wall between the benches. The only ones who had to stand to watch the fight were the commoners. For them, a platform with three levels was built, which surrounded the rest of the arena. It was large and could hold with ease anywhere between 500 and 1000 individuals, but this didn''t mean that they were left without options. Those who had wings could fly and watch the battle from the sky. If they knew a spying magic, they could use it as well to get a better view. The whole tournament was going to have quite a decent amount of spectators, therefore, the Queen ordered for a certain number of soldiers to patrol the area and act as guards against those who wished to prey upon the pockets of the unsuspecting people. ¡°Dragons and dragonesses! Welcome to the Grand Tournament of Strength and Honor organized by her Majesty, Queen Elliessara Seyendraugher!¡± said the announcer with the help of a spell that sent his voice throughout the entire area. Countless cheers were raised to the sky, showing the excitement of the people. The announcer waited for them to settle down a bit and then coontinued ¡°We will begin this glorious event through a friendly exhibition match between our King, Feryumstark Seyendraugher, and Duke Yatagai! The rules are simple: If you step out of the ring, you lose! If you are knocked out, you lose! Using anything else other than the weapons and armor provided by the organizers of this tournament is prohibited! Using potions or buffing spells cast by other dragons is prohibited! Of course, killing your opponent is also prohibited! Now, let us wish these two contestants luck and let their match begin!¡± It was a brief and simple explanation bundled up together with the rules for our fight. There was no need to explain how the entire tournament was going to progress, this was information aimed at the participants themselves, not the two of us who were here just to give these people an opening show. Indeed, what I needed to know was just what not to do, so I wouldn''t lose by default. While the announcer explained this, I stepped into the ring. On the other side was the King, with a big grin on his face. So, this was why the old lizard was so excited about this match... I did find it strange that no one told me who my opponent was. Trying to persuade Seryanna didn''t work either... I thought as I stretched my arms a bit. ¡°How are you feeling, youngling?¡± asked Feryumstark. ¡°A bit worried... What if I injure you?¡± I replied as I unsheathed my sword. ¡°Then try! Come at me with all your might!¡± he replied spreading his arms wide and showing me a big grin. ¡°Good thing I was the one who enchanted our items then.¡± I said with a smirk. The first to attack... was me. [Kataryna''s point of view] For this tournament, I was tasked with being her Majesty''s bodyguard together with Brekkar. Seryanna stood besides Princess Elleyzabelle, and I could tell both of them were eager to see this battle between the King and Alkelios. Behind us was a small army of Royal Guards, which laid hidden inside this tower. A good number of them was spread among the crowd as well, just to be sure no one was trying any ''smart'' moves on the royal family. With me here, though, I doubted anyone could do anything, and Seryanna wasn''t one to ignore either. ¡°Was it hard to keep his opponent a secret?¡± her Majesty asked me. With a nod, I replied ¡°Yes, quite. Seryanna especially had a very hard time with him.¡± ¡°Alkelios tried through various means to compel me to say who it was, but I kept my lips sealed... although, I will admit that I did enjoy some of the things he tried.¡± Seryanna giggled. ¡°Is that so? Both of you did good then. My husband couldn''t wait for this match. He wanted it to be a surprise for Alkelios.¡± she said. ¡°I''m sure it was.¡± I nodded. ¡°Everyone, they are starting.¡± said Elleyzabelle. Turning my gaze towards the arena, I saw Alkelios unsheathing his sword and taking a stance. The King, however, spread out his arms as though he wanted to give him a big hug, but the truth was that he showed no openings. He was a powerful dragon, indeed, quite fearsome actually. I wonder if Alkelios can win? I thought. The first to move was the half-human. For normal dragons, it may have looked as though he vanished for a moment, but he couldn''t fool my eyes. His speed, however, was ridiculous... The King as well, blocked the attack with his own sword at the very last moment. A shockwave was formed from this single attack, lifting the dust and shaking the arena. Every whisper and every sound vanished from among the audience. The two fighters caught their attention in a staggering display of might, but this was just the first move. Alkelios jumped back and shot a fireball where the King stood, but the old lizard cut it in half and then launched an ice spike at him. Using wind, he pushed himself to the left and dodged the dangerous projectile. These two attacks took place in a split second. With a big smile on his face, the King rushed towards Alkelios and tried to attack him using a sword skill. When he unleashed it, countless strikes were launched, but his opponent managed to avoid most of them, while those that landed barely scratched the armor. Pushing himself to the left with a wind burst, Alkelios launched a series of fireballs at his opponent, forcing him to dodge them. But the King wasn''t one to back down from this. Just like him, he pushed himself forward with a wind burst and launched from his left hand a series of ice spikes. Alkelios countered with a fire shield and then unleashed a fire breath through his shield, melting his opponent''s magic and forcing him to raise an ice shield. All this time, they kept themselves in the air not with their wings but with a wind magic called [Wind Burst], which had as only purpose of creating a powerful wind that blew from the caster in the direction he aimed it at. If used on the ground, it could push an enemy away, but if used in the air, it would push the user in the air, controlling it, however, required skill and practice. Alkelios landed on the left side of the arena, while the King landed on the other side. Both of them had showed an fearsome combat ability and had yet to even transform into half-beasts.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Ice spikes? Really?¡± Alkelios asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Well, you were the one who attacked me with a fireball first!¡± the King replied with a smirk. ¡°Then I should up my game a bit.¡± he said. ¡°I as well!¡± the other replied. The two of them glared at each other, but I could tell they were having fun with this battle. They were both good opponents to each others, who didn''t break from a single punch. In retrospect, Draejan was nothing but a fly when compared to them. They launched themselves at each other. Their swords clashed in the air, but from the sheer power they put within them, their blades cracked and shattered into a thousand pieces. The impact caused a shockwave to be formed, which expanded towards the barriers surrounding the arena. The first one shattered, and the others trembled. Some of the nobles and spectators were too dumbfounded to react, but seeing this, several dragons began erecting new barriers around the arena. They added a fourth and fifth one, but something told me they weren''t going to be enough if those two went wild. Alkelios discarded the broken sword, tossing the handle away. The King did the same, but neither pulled back. Jumping towards each other, they engaged in a fierce hand to hand combat. The speed of their blows was fast enough to cause even me trouble with reading them, yet the two were locking eyes with each other and didn''t seem to look at where or how their opponent was going to hit. Punch, block, parry, punch, left foot hit, upper torso hit, their strikes seemed endless and quite precise. Each blow sent out powerful shockwaves that lifted the dust into the air and caused the barriers to tremble and crack. If they happened to hit one of them directly with their fists, it would have shattered completely alongside with the rest of them. Still, if I had trouble following their fight, I could only imagine what it looked out for the normal onlookers. They probably saw only shadows and afterimages of them. Even the sound of their strikes was delayed, meaning they were hitting faster than the speed of sound. Watching them fight sent shivers down my spine, and I knew it was the same for everyone else. Just like her Majesty and the Princess, Brekkar and Seryanna were focused on the battle. This didn''t mean we didn''t keep an eye out for other possible threats. Breaking from the flow of the battle, Alkelios covered his left leg with lightning and did a roundhouse kick. The King blocked the hit, but he was still shocked by the attack. It wasn''t enough to push him back. With a grin on his lips, he covered his right hand in fire and his left hand in ice and began a barrage of punches aimed at Alkelios. Using the same elements, Alkelios blocked each strike and launched a counter attack at him. The King grabbed his opponent''s wrists and then headbutted him. The blow was effective and sounded like a thunder. Alkelios retaliated with a knee to the King''s ribs, which cracked the armor. Both of them then used [Fire Breath] at the same time. Their bodies were covered in flames and pushed themselves back, landing on the other sides of the arena. As soon as he stepped down, Alkelios raised 10 stone walls in front of him with an [Stone Wall] spell. The King punched the first wall and destroyed half of them, while the rest were cracked. Alkelios launched a great number of [Earth Spikes] from the ground right at the King, who blocked or dodged all of them. Seeing this, Alkelios flew to his left with [Wind Burst] and cast [Lightning] aimed at the King, which he dodged while running towards Alkelios. At the last moment, he stopped his spell and jumped back. This was when the King jumped at him and punched the place he was previous standing in. As a result of this powerful attack, the entire arena was covered in cracks, and some pieces of it were scattered around it. A crater was formed where the King had punched the arena, but the battle was far from over. The two immediately engaged in another wave of attacks. They both looked equally matched and while they could have used a lot of other spells, if a single one of them went out of hand, it would have caused significant damage to the surroundings. So far, everything they used could be canceled at the last moment. In fact, all of their ice spikes and fireballs that flew outside of the arena were immediately canceled. The ice attacks melted in the air, while the fireballs went ''poof'' and extinguished themselves before any of them reached the barriers. Yet to have such control over them was simply amazing. It frightened me to imagine what could become of Alkelios if he continued to improve at this rate for the next several years... or decades. Conquering the world might not be an impossible feat for him, but then again... what if ALL the heroes from his home world were like him? A shiver went down my spine just thinking about it. This battle had captured the attention of everyone in the audience. It was so intense, so powerful, that it felt like you would miss a whole lot if you so much as blinked. Then, when the battle felt as though it would never end... or more like when everyone had lost track of time, the King made an unexpected move. For the first time since the beginning of this fight, he used his tail to strike Alkelios. As a result of this, he wasn''t able to dodge or block in time. Alkelios received the full blow and was sent crashing into the arena. The King didn''t miss this opportunity and while charging up Ice magic in his right hand, he went for the attack. And just like that... it was over... Alkelios lost. The King was holding an Ice Sword at his neck. Letting out a sigh, Alkelios raised his hands up and the crowd went into an uproar, congratulating the King and simply showing off their excitement after having witnessed this marvelous fight. ¡°Hahaha! It was a splendid match!¡± declared the King. ¡°Indeed, it was.¡± Alkelios nodded and got up, taking a bow towards the winner. Feryumstark was happy, showing his bright smile to everyone, but there was someone next to me who wasn''t so happy... ¡°Feryumstark Seyendraugher and Alkelios Yatagai Draketerus!¡± called out the Queen. They both froze in their spot and with a very slow body movement, they turned their attention towards her Majesty. She was standing and one of her eyes was twitching. Oh boy, she''s mad. I thought and took a step back from her. ¡°While I do appreciate the impressive battle, you two DIDN''T HAVE TO DESTROY MY ARENA!¡± she shouted at them. Looking around, the entire place was a mess. The arena itself was damaged beyond repair, barely holding together because of the enchant cast on it. None of the barriers technically survived and most of the nobles had long since evacuated to a more ''safe'' location. The fury and power displayed was far beyond what they have imagined, and once more they all became aware of why Feryumstark Seyendraugher was the King. ¡°Oops?¡± the powerful dragon showed a wry smile. And at this point, a few parts of his armor shattered to bits. The one Alkelios wore barely hung in there. But to be noted that neither of them were that easy to break. When I first saw them, I could confirm that even someone with a Power over 900 couldn''t scratch it that easily. It was well done, a masterpiece in a way, but still junk in front of their fearsome attacks. ¡°Don''t you ''oops'' me, Feryumstark Seyendraugher! You broke the arena, you''re going to fix it! You too, Alkelios!¡± declared the Queen in a threatening tone of voice. ¡°Yes, dear.¡± the King replied hanging his head down. ¡°I understand, your Majesty.¡± said Alkelios with a bow. And now everyone knew who actually ruled the country. ¡°Good! But for this match, I declare Feryumstark Seyendraugher to be the winner, and now the Grand Tournament of Strength and Honor may commence! As soon as those two fix the arena...¡± declared the Queen. The whole crowd cheered, while Alkelios and his Majesty, the King, started working on it. Considering those two, it wouldn''t take long before everything was back to the way it was. Their powerful magic allowed them this much. However, I had to admit... it was an impressive battle, but I still had to wonder how Alkelios looked like when he went at full power against someone. How powerful is Alkelios really? I thought. [Random participant] As an adventurer, the Grand Tournament of Strength and Honor was something that could grant me the chance at an easy and stable job. Where I hailed from, I was considered to be among the top ten strongest. I was confident in my own strength, and I felt like I had a good grip on magic too. In my mind, this entire tournament was going to be a cinch. I was surely going to become one of the strongest in the entire Albeyater Kingdom. It has been a dream of mine since I was but a young whelp, and in my mind, I always thought the stories about those who achieved a Breakthrough were nothing but idiotic exaggerations, so when the King was called to the ring, I was hoping to see proof of this idea of mine. What I saw, however, shattered my common sense. Those two were monsters. Each blow was powerful enough to make me fear for my life even though I was standing far away from them. Every time they cast a spell, I could only remember how long it took me to chant it, yet they did it faster than I could blink. I thought my spells were powerful, but theirs blew everything apart. Monsters? No, it was easier to say that two demigods were having a go at each other. The fury and power they displayed sent shivers down my spine. When they shattered those rather expensive-looking weapons, I looked at my humble sword, and felt like its blade yelped and ran away, leaving me only with the hilt. I even checked it to make sure if it was still there. When the arena was cracked, I gasped. I couldn''t imagine how much power the King had to have in order to accomplish something like that. Even if a million dragons like me attacked him, they would all be wiped out without too much trouble. For either of those two it would have been like swatting flies. Then the battle ended, I still couldn''t understand what happened, but one moment the two of them were in the sky and then on the ground. It was too fast for me. ¡°You have got to be kidding me...¡± someone said. We were all contestants in this tournament. All of us considered ourselves to be the strongest, but when we compared ourselves with Duke Yatagai and his Majesty, King Feryumstark Seyendraugher, we were nothing but ants... We were weak. ¡°So... you can actually become that strong?¡± one of us said long after the battle had ended. We were all still in shock from what we had seen, but these words struck me deep inside. Even I can become like that? No... even I have more to learn? I thought. Surprisingly, I never thought about it this way. I never believed there was more because I always thought more strength and more power were just a bad rumor. But, there were some of us who couldn''t accept it. In the end, we were separated into those who saw the King and those like him as monsters far more powerful than mere dragons and then there were those who felt a shiver down their spines, a surge of excitement. After all, we had been shown and proven that our potential had yet to be reached... We could become stronger. I can become stronger! I thought and then clenched my fist. No matter if I won or lost in this tournament, I wanted to grow stronger and become better. The King and Duke Alkelios showed me that this wasn''t impossible, and the latter was just a half-dragon from what the rumors said. If a half-dragon could do this, why not someone like me who was born a full-fledged dragon? Chapter 63: Assassination attempt [Seryanna''s point of view] Two months have passed since my wedding with Alkelios, and as Knight in the service of her Highness, Third Princess Elleyzabelle Seyendraugher, I had the responsibility of standing by her side, ready to obey her orders and march into battle the very moment she ordered me to do so. At the same time, I was to protect her and keep her safe. My duty also included patrolling Drakaria or some other settlement and maintaining the law and order there. It was mandatory of me to keep up with my training and if needed be I had the obligation of taking a Squire under my wing and giving them the basic Knight training before they themselves were going to pledge their loyalty to the crown an become respectable Knights. Because until recently I held an Unawakened status, my duties were mere limited to keeping the Princess safe and patrolling here and there. No Awakened dragon Squire was going to listen to me and respect my authority, so I was not pressed with this matter. Even after Awakening, I still wasn''t pressed about it because I requested from her Highness time to grow accustomed with my Awakened status and time to learn how to better become a Knight. The truth was another though, we didn''t know whom to trust. The matter with Draejan at that time was a serious one that had to be settled first before we expanded the Princess'' influence. Then, after that annoyance of a dragon was gone, the matter with my marriage popped up, which granted me a few more months of leeway. Having a squire wasn''t mandatory, but there was a certain background political pressure from dragons and dragonesses who saw this small detail as a weakness or opportunity of sort. With Kataryna and Alkelios who were also serving her Highness, those who knew better shook their heads at the mere thought of our Party being weak. At the moment, Third Princess Elleyzabelle was the only royal, besides their Majesties, with two Breakthrough-ers under her service. This in itself spoke more than enough about the strength and political influence. Thus, I had some a lot more free time on my hands than other knights did. So I spent every moment of it together with Alkelios or my friends. Ever since Dregarya left to the front-lines to ''fix'' the Crown Princes'' armor and equipment, I found myself leisurely taking walks through the capital or visiting Brekkar''s Inn to play with little Askanti. The little dragon was cute enough to make my heart melt, and the more time I spent with him, the more I was thinking about having one of my own. The idea wasn''t new, it popped up in my head and during my pillow talks with Alkelios several times. The subject was also mentioned by my friends and acquaintances when we were chatting, especially now since I was an Awakened and also married. However, both of us felt like it wasn''t the time yet to have a child. We weren''t that much in a hurry. Today was also one of those days when I went to visit Collentra and Bayuk at the Brekkar''s Inn, but I didn''t stay for too long. Two of their maids were already cuddling and spoiling little Askanti, so I resumed myself only to watching from afar. After two tankards of ale, I left the Inn and decided to spread my wings a bit. I took flight into the air and after passing the aerial guards, I flew towards the Gold Scale River. Thanks to a certain silver-scaled dragoness and a certain husband of mine, these dragons and dragonesses had a tough time with their patrols. Every now and then they saw someone rising up and then flying away at insane speeds which they could not follow or give chase after. The first time this incident happened, it caused a lot of panic and wrong reports regarding them. Talks of spies and whatnot spread around like wildfire, but after they learned to distinguish between the two, they didn''t even bother trying to give chase after them anymore. Still, there was a positive point to add to this. Thanks to the trouble Alkelios and Kataryna gave them, the aerial guards became more vigilant and focused on their jobs. From one of the more carefree posts many lazy guards aspired to grab a shift in, it turned into one that required a strict discipline and high awareness. It wasn''t a job for just any dragon who Awakened. It also became mandatory for any dragon who took flight to announce the guards of their intention so as to not be attacked by them by accident. Least to be said, Alkelios and Kataryna were completely oblivious to this rule. They came and went as they pleased without bothering of telling anyone anything. After reaching the Gold Scale River, I landed on its right shore and began to take a stroll. Coming here often calmed me down, and it reminded me of what Kataryna thought me that night. My husband as well was a bit fond of this location as it was also here where he was helped to realize his own mistakes and find the courage to go on the path he desired to. If not for Kataryna, the two of us would have never ended up together. Ever since she appeared before us, willingly and unwillingly, she made use realize how much we loved each other. The silver-scaled dragoness was our matchmaker, teacher, rival, and friend. She was one of the most wonderful dragonesses I had the pleasure of meeting even if our first encounter was on the edge of the blade. That was why, deep inside, I had no problem with her becoming Alkelios'' second wife. It was just that I didn''t want to tell him that polygamy was more or less accepted within the Albeyater Kingdom, especially among nobles. As for polyandry, it was wildly known that a strong dragoness will have multiple dragons around her. Although, as far as I knew, both my family and the royal one kept to monogamy, and maybe out of sheer luck, Alkelios didn''t had the chance to interact with those who practiced either polygamy or polyandry. Letting out a sigh, I stopped at an open patch of grass and laid down on the ground. The sound of the flowing water put me in a serene mood, and a small smile appeared on my lips. As I stood here like this, I remembered the day of my wedding, most specifically, the moment when my grandfather arrived together with his Majesty, the King. I was waiting inside on the left side of the entrance of the temple, just as the custom required. It was from here where I had to start my walk towards the altar. Normally, it should have been my father who took my hand and guided me there, but given my current circumstances, grandfather took up this role. The old dragon burst into tears when he saw me, startling the King, who for a moment thought he had stepped on the old dragon''s tail. While his Majesty went to sit next to his wife, the Queen, grandfather approached me and told me that seeing me like this couldn''t have made him happier and prouder. Secretly, I did ask him if he believed I was betraying our family for marrying one who was born and raised as a human, but to this, he shook his head and told me the following words, which I would always remember and keep close to my heart. ¡°Alkelios is one of the bravest, most honorable, and honest dragons I had ever met! And I''m certain your parents, blessed be their souls, would agree with me. Your grandmother too, she would have loved to see you in this dress and maybe change it here and there as she saw fit. Sendra was a stubborn ol'' dragoness. I''m really proud of you, Seryanna... You did well, and I can only wish for you to have a wonderful life by the side of your chosen mate.¡± he spoke with tears in his eyes. At the end, he made a bow before me. When the time to begin the ceremony was announced by the singing of the choir, grandfather took my hand and escorted me to the altar. There, he made a prayer to Drakartus and then left me in his grace. Rare were the moments when I saw my grandfather shed such honest tears. I also felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders, and I could breath better. Knowing I had my family''s support was a nice feeling, one which I treasured. Then came the time of the party and grandfather sent Alkelios flying outside of Drakaria. All of our guest watched with big eyes the entire scene. ¡°You missed the wall, you old fool!¡± his Majesty pointed out from within the crowd. ¡°Oops! Meh, he''ll survive.¡± the dragon shrugged and burst out into a loud laughter. ¡°Should I go after him?¡± I wondered. ¡°No need to. I sent an official order to allow Alkelios to enter the capital without needing to stay in line or pay the fee.¡± her Majesty reassured me. With a wry smile I returned to the party. It didn''t take too long for my husband to show himself back at the palace. Upon his return, Alkelios was congratulated by everyone and then he gave a speech about how he felt now that he became a half-dragon and my husband. ¡°So a speech, heh?¡± he let out a sigh and then looked at his audience. ¡°When I arrived on this continent, I had the wonderful pleasure of meeting Seryanna. Unfortunately, at that time I was running from a giant hound and was far weaker than I am now. And let me tell you, the Seculiar Forest is teeming with dangers at every step of the way! If you are not strong, you will end up eaten alive in there. And just this fact alone is enough to tell you about the strength and courage my wife had when she ventured inside numerous times despite not having achieved yet Awakened status.¡± he looked at me and showed me a gentle smile ¡°Ever since I first laid my eyes on her, I fell in love with this dragoness.¡± he then looked back at the crowd ¡°It took me more than it should have to accept this, but eventually, thanks to my friends who stood by my side, I came to realize that she was the one I wanted to spend my life with. I don''t regret the decisions I made to reach this point. I don''t regret becoming a half-dragon. If anything, I am grateful for having met Seryanna and for having fallen in love with her. I am also grateful for having such wonderful dragon and dragoness friends around me. They taught me many things and always helped me in unexpected way. Thank you!¡± he bowed his head in front of the crowd and everyone started clapping.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. His speech was wonderful, but after the reception was over and we returned to our room, we both were quite eager to get out of our clothes and under the covers of our bed. In a way, mating season didn''t really mean much for us. Although, he did miss two of mine, but he won''t the third one. It did make me curious to know if as a half-dragon he was going to go through it as well or not. Usually, during this period, our bodies became quite sensible and our sense of smell and touch was heightened, making us aware of the little details we used to ignore up until then. While I was reminiscing about such things, I felt the presence of several individuals approaching me from behind. They were trying to use stealth and take me by surprise, but they had a long way to go before they could get past me unnoticed. After all, I had a prankster little sister who could literally blend herself with the surrounding darkness, and I had to sharpen my senses in the Seculiar Forest, where the giant spiders and the giant snakes lurking within the river were always looking for some unsuspecting prey to attack. Compared to them, these dragons were as loud as my drunk grandfather. ¡°Show yourselves. I know you are there.¡± I spoke in a calm and relaxed tone of voice as I got up and turned around. A throwing knife flew from a nearby bush at me, but I merely tilted my head to the right to avoid it. Afterwards, six wingless individuals jumped out of their hiding spots and circled me. They were throwing their killing intent at me, making their intentions clear, but their outfits hid away their identity. Black hoods covered their heads, casting down a shadow on their face, while the long cloaks over their shoulders hid the rest of their bodies. They were also a wearing a mask to cover their nose and mouth, making it more difficult for me to identify them. I''ll need at least one of them alive in order to get some answers as to why they are sneaking around like this. I thought. ¡°Are you going to introduce yourself at least?¡± I asked them in a polite tone of voice as I unsheathed my sword. They looked at each other and then nodded. Without a warning, they unleashed several fire spells on me. Two of them turned into living flamethrowers, two cast exploding fireballs at me, and the last two poured liquid fire on me. Normally, all of these attacks would have put in danger even the life of a Godlike Adventurer, but for me, they were a joke. I jumped to the left, ignoring their attacks and fire sticking to me, and aimed my sword at the first one of them. He jumped back and tried to block my attack with his dagger, but the difference in strength and quality was obvious. My blade went straight through his weapon and cut him in half. Before his body fell to the ground, I jumped towards the next one and aimed to cut him at the waist. He too tried to block it out of reflex and died while doing so. When the body of the previous dragon fell on the ground, the body of the one I had just attack was separated in two halves. I punched the upper part in the chest and sent it flying toward the third assassin. This one jumped out of the way and unsheathed her two short swords. She was glaring at me, but I found her intimidation to be rather cute. Before she could act, I struck her with my knee in the chin and then headbutted her into the ground. My sword''s blade pushed through her back, sectioning her heart in half. Three were down, three more were left. They stepped back, fear washing over them after my display of power. ¡°This isn''t what we were told! Why are you so powerful?! You are barely a one year-old Awakened!¡± the dragoness assassin shouted at me. ¡°Under normal circumstance, I should have been weaker. It''s clear that all of you are past Power Number 400, but... that''s under normal circumstances.¡± I smirked and swiped my sword through the air one, getting rid of the fresh blood on it. ¡°What?¡± she looked at me in surprise, but I had not intention of revealing her how I became so strong so quickly. This was also the reason why despite the fact that I was originally called to the capital to represent the Third Princess in the upcoming tournament, in the end I wasn''t allowed to participate in it. I was far stronger than the vast majority of competitors and even the Queen saw no reason as to why I should prove my strength in the arena. Thus, my power remained hidden for now. Of course, Alkelios was aware of how strong I was. He was aware of my body''s limitation and even sensible spots. My husband took his sweet time exploring and discovering how I loved to be touched by him. Ah! No good! I must focus on this battle, not think of perverted things... I thought and then let out a sigh. Without further notice I ran towards the dragoness who spoke and punched her right in the stomach before she could run away. She let out a pained screamed and then fell unconscious on the ground. ¡°Now then! Only the two of you are left.¡± I said with a smile as I sheathed my sword and proceeded to crack my knuckles. The remaining dragoness and dragon looked at each other and then nodded once. It made me curious about what attack they wanted to try, but then I saw them turning tail and running away as fast as they could. I was disappointed by this, so I didn''t even bother chasing after them. Aiming my hand at the dragon, I unleashed a [Fire Spear] attack. It was just like an [Ice Spear], but after penetrating the target, it exploded. The man''s armor was unable to defend him from my spell and his body blew up into a thousand pieces. ¡°Next would be her, right?¡± I said and then aimed my hand at the dragoness who was running in the opposite direction. This time, I concentrate more Magic Energy into my spell and unleashed a fireball at a speed faster than sound. It caused a powerful shockwave the moment I cast it, lifting the dust around me. As for what happened when it touched the target, if it didn''t pierce through, it would create a splash of liquid fire. The mere touch of it could melt a soldier''s armor and instantly carbonize their body. As a Superior Draconian of the High Flame, my fire element attacks and resistances were quite high when compared to your average Draconian of the Flame. I learned about this little detail through my own experience as well as from what Kataryna taught me. I can''t feel the presence of any other dragon sneaking around, so I think I''m safe. But who in the world would try to assassinate ME? I thought as I put out the fires caused by my attacks with a few [Water Sphere] spells. I could have absorbed the flames for their energy, but I needed to train my other elemental attacks as well. So, it was a win-win situation for me. Looking back at where the unconscious dragoness laid among the others, I walked over to her and stripped her naked before tying her with a rope. With their kind, it was never certain where they hid a small knife to use to escape. I also looked inside her mouth for anything hidden, like a poisoned capsule or a needle. Afterwards, I used a small, but powerful magnet and searched for hidden blades within her flesh. I found two of them, which I swiftly removed. Normally, I wouldn''t have checked for such things. As a Knight, I was taught that the only way to deal with spies or assassins was by killing them quickly. The reason behind my change in tactics was Alkelios, whom I told a few days ago about how I felt like someone was following me through the city. His first reaction was rather amusing, as he believed it was a pervert who was chasing after my tail. He wanted to find the dragon and beat him to a pulp. Once I managed to convince him that it might be just a silly thief, an assassin, or maybe a spy, he calmed down a bit and asked if I wished for him to take care of him. I refused his help, but he suggested that I should at the very least try to capture one of them alive in order to interrogate him or her. He then instructed me on what I should do to accomplish this. He even provided me with the magnet. After I checked the pockets of the dead assassins for any clue as to why they approached me like this, I took the captured dragoness and flew back to Drakaria. Unfortunately, there were no clues to be found. Chapter 64: Accidents happen [Alkelios'' point of view] At my wedding, I had the pleasure of being introduced to several nobles who were on good terms with the Draketerus family as well as with their Majesties, the King and Queen of Albeyater. Among them was a certain Viscountess named Allevania Reyazes, she was a beautiful dragoness with silver scales like Kataryna, but of a faded dull color when compared to hers, blond curly hair, and a bit chubby when it came to her figure. The territory she managed was to the south of Drakaria and had as a capital the town of Ruyzar. Unlike other such settlements in the Albeyater Kingdom, this one was focused on the trade of paper and writing tools. The reason why this Viscountess peaked my interest was because she had the peculiar hobby of collecting maps of all kinds. The dragoness loved maps of all kind, be them fake or real, all that mattered to her was the skill with which they had been drawn. At the same time, she imported and exported maps of all the continents to various curious or interested nobles on the Dragon Continent. At the wedding, she even explained to me in an almost agonizing detail how much she loved maps and would usually buy one whenever she had a bit of pocket money left. Unlike other dragons or certain human nobles who were used to spending ridiculous amounts of their family fortune on their own hobbies without caring if they went in the red, this dragoness was keeping a close eye on her finances. Even if she were to find the rarest map of them all, if her personal budget wasn''t enough to acquire, she wouldn''t use her family''s fortune or the collected tax money. After talking with her, I agreed to visit the Viscountess Reyazes'' territory as soon as I had the chance in order to procure some of her treasured maps to use during my travels into those other continents. The King and Queen also had a say in this matter and urged the dragoness to accept, as both of them guaranteed for me. Reaching the town of Ruyzar was nothing more than one hour flight in my half-beast form. A Khosinni carriage would have brought me here in about ten hours, which was a lot even when considering the fact that a day had 32 hours. I landed in front of the entrance gate to Ruyzar town early in the morning, around 10 AM by my estimates. After I talked with the guards stationed here, I was led to the Viscountess'' mansion. At this hour, everyone was already awake, and I could see the shops focused on selling paper and writing utensils trying to appeal to passing travelers to buy their wares. Speaking of which, I remembered that Andromeda and Tomeron were mostly focused around selling weapons and armors to all the brave adventurers who wanted to set foot in the Seculiar Forest. Needless to say that the capital had the best wares in the kingdom in all domains. To be honest, I didn''t had the chance to practice writing that much ever since I came to this world. True, Seryanna helped me a lot with it, and so did my other friends, but I was never put in the situation where I had to write a formal letter or something like that. In a way, it was good. I was more of a fighter and a speaker than a writer. Viscountess Reyazes''s mansion was located on the East side of the town. It wasn''t the big building in the city as I had expected. When asking the guards about it, they told me that initially, this town belonged to another family, but after a corruption scandal they were executed and the Viscountess took their place. The building at the center was in fact a garrison for troops led by a dragon captain approved by Viscountess Reyazes and his Majesty, King Feryumstark. The esteemed captain also happened to be her husband, Viscount Leonar Reyazes. Upon arriving at the mansion, I was greeted by a dragon butler, who guided me inside and served me some tea and cookies while I waited for the dragoness to get ready. It didn''t take long and for some reason, he felt the need to apologize for this ''unpleasant circumstances''. I honestly had no idea what he was talking about. I just arrived a bit late, it wasn''t like I dragged an entire parade with me and I was making them do hand stands while I waited. About half an hour later, the Viscountess entered the room. She was as charming as she was when I first met her at my wedding. Viscountess Reyazes was wearing what appeared to be a luxurious white and caramel colored long Victorian dress. The jewelry adorned on her combined with her gentle smile, her elegant mannerism, and silver folded fan in her hand gave her the air of a rich noblewoman with quite a bit of authority. In her current form, she was quite similar to a human in appearance, minus the eyes and the scale on her cheeks and neck, which gave her a strange allure. Her tail was hidden under her dress, but despite being known as a winged dragon, in this form, she showed no sign of them. Compared to her elegant presence, I was currently wearing my prized battle armor and had Heaven and Hell hanging at my waist. ¡°My apologies, Duke Yatagai. It is unfortunate that I kept you waiting, I do hope you will forgive me.¡± she said and bowed her head. She caught me with a cookie in my mouth, which I quickly ate like a hamster and gulped it down without breathing. ¡°No problem! No problem! Anyway, it''s a pleasure to see you again, Viscountess Reyazes.¡± I said as I got up. ¡°The pleasure is all mine, Duke Yatagai. You seem to be doing well. May I ask how is the Duchess doing?¡± she asked with a smile as she walked to the other side of the coffee table and took a seat. I sat down at the same time as her, but when she asked about the ''Duchess'', my brain had a moment of lag. Oh, yeah! Seryanna! I''m a duke, so she''s a duchess! I thought and with a smile, I replied ¡°Seryanna is doing well, thank you.¡± ¡°I personally find it quite strange that she''s so stubborn about keeping her position as a Royal Knight, but that dragoness has never been one to fall in line like the rest of us.¡± she giggled. ¡°Fall in line?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Yes. Most dragonesses her age usually take a part of their family''s territory and begin to manage it while their husbands assume various positions within the army. My husband for example is the Captain stationed here in this town.¡± she said. Did I mishear that? Did she say husbands? As in more than one? I thought and then I asked ¡°Oh? I didn''t know this. Will I have the pleasure of meeting him today?¡± ¡°It''s not impossible, but with you arriving unscheduled like this, he is probably being informed of your presence here only now.¡± she remarked. ¡°I do apologize for my early arrival. It just that it happened for me to have some free time, so I flew over as fast as I could. It was a good exercise for me too. I can''t let my wings get rusty now, can I?¡± I laughed. ¡°I understand you perfectly, Duke Yatagai. I too go for a flight from time to time. But in regard to my previous comment about the Duchess, I hope you don''t take it as though I am against her current active duty, in fact I am quite pleased to see her doing so well. Ever since that tragedy 39 years ago, that dragoness wasn''t the same anymore. It was Duke Yatagai who managed to change her for the better.¡± she said. ¡°Ah, no, I wasn''t thinking about that. But yes, I too am pleased to see her doing what she likes. Maybe after a few decades have passed, we will settle down somewhere and learn to manage the land. So far, we are young and wish to be as active as we can.¡± I smiled. ¡°That would be for the best, indeed.¡± she nodded. ¡°Now, about those maps we talked about?¡± I asked. ¡°Ah yes, certainly! After I returned to my territory, I used my connections to bring in a famous cartographer to make copies of the maps I had. As much as I wished, I couldn''t just part with my unique babies.¡± she said while letting out a sigh. Babies? I thought and then I said ¡°It doesn''t matter as long as I can understand what''s written on it, and I have all the locations of the settlements and other major geographical formations.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Of course. Now as for the payment.¡± she showed me a smile. Nodding, I was about to take out the gold coins I had prepared, when all of a sudden three wingless dragons came crashing in through the windows. They were all wearing some sort of black cloth and leather getup with a hood over their heads and a mask over their mouth to better hide their identities. ¡°[Black Arrow]!¡± one shouted. ¡°[Wind Scythe]!¡± the second one shouted.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°[Poison Cage]!¡± the third one shouted. All three of them aimed three different spells at the Viscountess, who was too surprised by the sudden intrusion to do anything about it. The one who moved to her defense was none other than I. These attacks were all quite dangerous for the simple fact that even one of them could easily kill someone like the Viscountess. The [Poison Cage] trapped its victim with vines soaked in muscle-numbing poison all the while strangling it to death. The [Wind Scythe] was a spell from the Wind element, which created a blade of wind with the help of magic. It wasn''t as powerful as a [Water Scythe], but it was hard to detect and thus dodge. As for the [Black Arrow], it was merciless piercing attack from the Darkness element, which could quite literally create a hole even through the thickest armors. Calling it a piercing attack was a given. However, given how lethal all of these attacks were, the Viscountess wouldn''t have stood a chance against them. Using my speed, I rushed in front of her and took the blunt force of all of these spells. Poisoned vines coiled around my body, the wind scythe struck my abdomen, and the arrow struck my chest. If I was as weak as the dragoness behind me, I would have been killed instantly. Thus, these attacks only irritated me at best. ¡°Annoying.¡± I said as I grabbed the vines with my hands and ripped them out of the ground, canceling the spell. The poison didn''t do anything to me because the vines didn''t touch my bare skin, just my armor. Even if they did, this amount was easily manageable. The other two attacks didn''t even scratch my armor. ¡°What? How?¡± one of the attackers asked. ¡°Show status of target.¡± I said as I looked at him. [Name]: Unknown [Species]: Draconian of the Wind [Level]: 324 [Unknown Stats] Uwaaa! So weak! I thought and then let out a sigh. ¡°Doesn''t matter! Kill him!¡± the other said. Honestly, I didn''t even bother to check his status, just that one was enough to give me a good idea of how powerful they were. As such, I rushed towards the one who shouted and punched him in the chest. BOOM! SPLAT! ¡°Ugh... Disgusting...¡± I muttered. The problem with my punch... if I could call it that, was the fact that I didn''t hold back. It was one of those punches I used against his Majesty, King Feryumstark. More so, it was a punch that didn''t focus on piercing but rather on sending the shockwave and force of the impact throughout the opponent''s body. The end result of this was right in front of me. There was a rather big hole in the wall, and the ground was cracked in several places. The debris was scattered in front of me in a cone area, and the body of the dragon was turned to mush. His remains were now spread in a blood spatter mixed with pieces of flesh, bone, and internal organs. Because of this gory display of power, everyone in the room was now frozen stiff. It was easy to expect the fact that there was nothing they could do to win this battle. Unless I was up against another Breakthrough-er, chances were I wouldn''t need to use even half of my true power. However, if these three were assassins, then I had a limited amount of time before they returned to their senses and ate a poisoned pill or something to keep their mouths shut. Thus, I rushed up to then and punched them in the stomach. This time, however, I used a lot less force, just enough to knock them out where they stood. With these two on the ground, I knelt next to them and checked to see if they had anything in their mouths. They were both holding some sort of pill under their tongue. I took it out and then I wrapped them up in enchanted rope like a pair of Christmas Gifts. ¡°Now then, where were we, Viscountess Reyazes?¡± I asked with a smile. With a wry smile, she looked back at me and then at the splatter of blood that used to be a dragon. ¡°Erm... Take your time to recover then, I will handle these two.¡± I said as I scratched the back of my head. ¡°Yes... I will...¡± she said, but shortly after a butler and two guards came in to find out what was with that loud noise. After a brief explanation, they helped the Viscountess walk out of the room and sent a messenger to her husband, informing him of the situation. Until he arrived, I checked the contents of the pockets of these two assassins and using a magnet, I pulled out the blades hidden inside their flesh. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any note or clue as to why they targeted the Viscountess. My only option now was to wait for them to wake up and then convince them to talk. Before I left the wrecked room, I took a moment too look at the dragon I killed today. Honestly, it didn''t feel like I did something wrong, but I was a bit bothered by the fact that I wasn''t able to properly control my power. This was proof enough that I had yet to fully master my power, and there was the chance that I wouldn''t be able to do so for quite some time now. I''m a bit afraid now that I might harm those far weaker than me... I thought as I imagined myself playing with my future children and accidentally injuring them because of my lack of control. Honestly, just imagining it made my heart shrink in pain, so I was determined to learn how to control my power properly before a tragedy such as this one repeated itself. At the very least, I know that I shouldn''t let this fear control me. I should talk with Kataryna or Brekkar about it as soon as I get the chance... I thought as I looked down at my fist clenching and releasing it. This wasn''t the first time I experienced what it felt like not to have control over my own strength. Back when I was still in the Seculiar Forest and learning the craft of Blacksmithing, I often broken my tools or hammered the heated metal too hard because I wasn''t able to control the strength behind each strike. It took me a while to get used to it, but I was able to do it in the end. Right now, my inability to control my strength wasn''t as terrible as it was several months ago when I was breaking almost everything I touched. As long as I was focused on what I was doing and didn''t forget what my power was capable of, accidents like the one with the assassin would normally not happen. After all, I even checked his status first, I should have been aware of how weak he was, yet I failed to scale down my strength in that split second and went for the kill. ¡°Maybe it was just a slip-up?¡± I wondered as I looked at the stain on the ground. At the very lest I didn''t feel guilty for killing him. I didn''t feel joy either, just a bit of fear and disappointment for being unable to control myself. Letting out a sigh, I walked out of the room and soon joined the Viscountess. We resumed our talk and decided upon a different payment for the maps. Instead of gold and gems, I was to give her one of my mass-produced swords and armors for her husband to use. I was better off like this as well because I honestly had no idea what to do with the items I created and simply donating them to the armory didn''t feel right. Once we finished the deal, Viscountess Reyazes told me that she was going to bring the maps personally as soon as they were finished. Not long afterwards, her husband arrived in tow with a dozen soldiers armed to the teeth and looking as though they were about to head to war. It took us another half an hour to explain to the Viscount what had transcended at his home while he was away. Once everything was clear, and we deemed the area secure, I grabbed the two assassins I had tied up and flew back to Drakaria. Normally, they would have stopped me and interrogated me to see if I wasn''t a part of this crime, but I had the title of a Duke and both of them were well too aware of my connections. Besides, what would I have had to gain from all of this? Still, I did find it odd that someone would try to assassinate the Viscountess. Even she was surprised. Unfortunately, I didn''t have the required know-how and desire to torture these fellows on the spot. If I did, I would have done it. Thus, I decided that bringing them over to Prime Minister Elovius would have been the smarter move. He had a good track record in regard to making dragons spill the beans. Chapter 65: War Meeting [Feryumstark''s point of view] Ever since Alkelios returned from the Seculiar Forest, I have been more active and so has my wife, the Queen. From just occasionally visiting the throne when there was only something important that need to be solved to spending at least one hour per day here listening to various complaints and proposals of respectable nobles. In short, our lives as King and Queen of Albeyater Kingdom were returning to how it was so many years ago before that accursed event took place. Almost losing my best friend and my wife in the span of a few decades because of betrayals and plots against the crown wasn''t something I could easily deal with. As for the ones behind all of this, it still remained a mystery. After all, the assassin had to have had someone inside who made sure he could get past our defenses. The attack on the former Draketerus land was also planned out almost perfectly. They knew when and how to strike. As a King and a military tactician, I found the strategy to be almost perfect. The reason why I thought of it as ''almost'' was because the enemy never considered the true might of Brekkar. He was the only Breakthrough-er who participated in that battle and by the time the others arrived it was already too late. Alkelios called it a Blitzkrieg, a lightning fast war which spanned over several days not months or years. Today, as always, I arrived in the throne room not long after I had my lunch and drank a cup of tea together with my wife. I sat down in my throne and took the stack of papers Elovius had prepared for me. Those were the reports he had compiled, which I was supposed to read today. Normally, this job was meant more for an office or a study room, but I didn''t feel like sitting in front of my desk today. As I read through them, my face turned into a frown. When I was done, I put the stack of papers on my lap and looked at the Prime Minister, who was standing next to me. ¡°Have you made sure the information written here is true?¡± I asked him. ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± Elovius replied and made a bow. ¡°Then... this means that Draejan is a traitor.¡± I let out a sigh. Someone of my own family betrayed me. It wasn''t unthinkable, but for dragons it was an extremely rare event. In the case of humans, however, I heard that their Kings didn''t even trust their own wives let alone their children or nephews. ¡°It would appear so. Prince Kryogan, who is currently an Ambassador of Albeyater in the Embryger Empire, has sent a report within which he claimed that one of the Empire''s political factions was making a move outside of their authority. It would appear they are trying to win points in the favor of the Princess they are supporting to rise to the throne. At the same time, Princess Saluka Fer, who is married to the ducal family Bryghtanar of the Embryger Empire has sent a report with her husband''s signature warning us of this possible movement and that we shouldn''t be quick to judge it as being the Empress or Emperor''s direct command.¡± he explained. ¡°Hm, a faction is it? Are there any factions within our Kingdom?¡± I asked him out of curiosity. The main difference between a Faction and a Party was the fact the the first aimed for the throne, while the latter focused on the political games within the Kingdom, fighting over land and authority while holding their loyalty towards the current King and Queen. ¡°None of which I am aware off. However, as I have mentioned, I personally believe Prince Charmeill to be a strong candidate after your Majesty retires. Although, recently I''m seeing Princess Elleyzabelle and Princess Josephine catching up. They, however, have a lot more to learn, and unfortunately, Princess Josephine is too stubborn in regard to finding a way to end the war against the humans and if put on the throne might neglect our own draconian politics.¡± Elovius explained. Although Charmeill was the first prince and he was the second, he had no interest in the throne and currently enjoyed his position as a Prime Minister. If it was up to me, I would think Elovius was far better than Charmeill, but the latter was a Breakthrough-er as well. In regard to the dragonesses, only the First Princess Natalia was the one who achieved one. Unfortunately, she had no interest in politics and would prefer to spend her time on the battlefield. There was also Baluth who achieved a Breakthrough not that long ago, but his aim was to become a General like Brekkar, whom he revered as a great teacher and model. These children of mine made me worry about the future of my Kingdom and also kept me away from an early retirement. Letting out a sigh, I looked back at Elovius and asked him ¡°So we are to expect a possible gathering of enemy forces within the next months?¡± ¡°Yes, my estimates are sometime within the following six to eight months, depending how long it will take for those troops to arrive at our borders. As for a possible number of their force, I''m guessing somewhere around two Breakthrough-ers and 40000 soldiers.¡± he said while showing me the report of the estimated combat power of that said faction. ¡°Hm, so Duke Hallagan, Marquise Fervanis, and several Barons I have never heard off... No dragonesses?¡± I asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°None, your Majesty. This is an all-male faction which supports a Princess.¡± said Elovius. ¡°Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?¡± I asked him as I lowered the report. ¡°Yes, your Majesty, and that is why neither we nor the Empire itself believes they stand a chance at winning the throne. Unless... of course, they manage to conquer Albeyater by themselves.¡± said Elovius. ¡°Hm... In that case, they can either declare our land as a part of the Empire''s or rule it entirely by themselves as a vassal state.¡± I said while nodding. It was a rather dangerous situation, one in which we could be targeted like a tasty piece of raw meat in front of hungry sheep. ¡°This also means that your estimates are wrong. They have no chance of winning with such a force.¡± I said as I hit the paper with the back of my fingers. ¡°I am aware of this, but the reports confirm those numbers, your Majesty.¡± he replied with a bow. Letting out a sigh, I began to think about how Draejan came into play in all of this. At this moment, however, a messenger entered the throne room and knelt in front of us. His breathing was rough, showing that he ran all the way here without stopping. I took this as a sign of the message being rather urgent. ¡°Your Majesty, I have come to report that Duchess Marchialle has been assassinated by unknown wingless dragons not that long ago.¡± he said in one breath. ¡°WHAT?!¡± I shouted and got up the throne. This was dire news. The Duchess was a close friend of my wife''s, and she was also someone with close ties to the Merchant Guild within the Kingdom. To hear that she has been assassinated made my blood boil, and I could only imagine the pain my wife was going to go through after this. Then, another messenger entered in a similar fashion. ¡°Your Majesty, I have come to report that Viscountess Mercuria has been assassinated by unknown wingless dragons not that long ago.¡± he said in one breath. And another entered soon afterwards. ¡°Your Majesty, I have come to report that Duke Galbarian has been assassinated by unknown wingless dragons not that long ago.¡± he said in one breath. After him, I saw another one entering, and I gulped while wondering what was happening. ¡°Your Majesty, I have come to report that we just received word of Melles Town coming under siege by bandits. The same is happening with Naver Town, Ugen City, and Unvar Town. Within the report, it was written that Onias Town, Nalta City, and Nezv Town have all come under sige by bandits.¡± he explained. I gulped when I heard this news. Looking over at Elovius, he was shocked by what he had just heard as well. For a town to come under siege by bandits nonetheless was absolutely ridiculous. They could never hope to gain or win this battle, however, on the long run it meant forcing the military personnel to stay within the settlement to protect it. The merchants were also forced to stop from advancing with their caravans, which meant a loss of profit and goods, which meant a direct hit to the Kingdom''s economy. ¡°Your Majesty, this...¡± Elovius was at a loss of words. I quickly dismissed the messengers and told them to see what other reports were coming in. ¡°Call Brekkar and see if any other assassination took place today. Make this a priority.¡± I ordered. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± he bowed and then left. Letting out a heavy sigh, I leaned back in my throne and looked up at the ceiling. In my mind, I repeated the words spoken by the messengers and pictured the map of my Kingdom. With these attacks and the threat of the Embryger Empire''s faction making a move on us, I was beginning to see the connections. IF they won this upcoming war, then these bandits who besieged my cities and town at the same time would become heroes of the new age. It was all very troublesome and worrying. My Kingdom''s army was already crippled and most of it was on the Western Front under Charmeill and Natalia''s command, making sure the Humans didn''t attack. However, if I sent Kataryna and Alkelios to those settlements, those sieges would end in a matter of days. This, however, didn''t mean that my troops wouldn''t suffer from exhaustion and reduced morale. If this was the purpose, then it was highly likely that the few months Elovius had estimated may have turned into a few weeks. Because otherwise, there was no gain from besieging all of those settlements. In a few months, all the losses could be recovered. For the time being, I got up and ordered that all urgent reports to be brought directly to the Prime Minister. Meanwhile, I went to see my wife and check up on how she was doing. I also had to break the news in regard to the death of her friend. This isn''t going to be easy... I thought to myself as I left the throne room. Elliessara took the news of the assassination of Duchess Marchialle without breaking down into tears or anything like that. If someone saw her just then, they would have thought she was a cold dragoness, but I knew her better than anyone. The news hit her hard, but this wasn''t the first time she lost a friend or family. It wasn''t going to be the last time either. Throughout the past centuries, we both have lost many of those who were dear to us. It was maybe only through pure luck that only one of our children had passed away so far. Although, we both would have preferred for all of them to have survived, but maybe that was asking too much and the gods took Coshun away from us as a result? For now, I comforted her as best as I could and then several hours later I returned to the throne, where I sat down and waited for Elovius to show up with his report. The first one to enter, however, was Sir Seryanna Draketerus, the wife of Alkelios Yatagai Draketerus. She was dragging with her an unconscious naked dragoness tied up with the rope in a way that none of her private parts could be seen. It would better to say that she literally wrapped her up in the rope from the neck down, all the way to her ankles. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± she said and knelt before me. ¡°Sir Seryanna, what''s... that?¡± I asked pointing at the one she brought with her. ¡°An assassin.¡± she replied calmly. ¡°Huh?¡± I raised an eyebrow. Then, while she was explaining how the attack on her life took place, the doors opened again. This time it was Kataryna who entered while dragging behind her two frozen dragons. They were inside two big blocks of ice, and I could see that the freezing process took place in but a split second. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± the dragoness showed me a smile and then looked at Seryanna. She nodded and said ¡°Good day, Seryanna.¡± ¡°Good day, Kataryna. Assassins?¡± Seryanna asked while I was looking at their ''catch''. ¡°I have a bad feeling about this...¡± I muttered. At this moment, Kleo entered the throne room and greeted me with a bow and a smile. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± she said. ¡°Kleo, is something the matter?¡± I asked of her, seeing how not too long ago I saw her with my wife, acting as a guard. ¡°This.¡± she said. The shadow at her feet expanded in front of her and made a perfectly black disc. From within it, four black hands pulled out four wingless dragons who were scared stiff. They looked as if they had been tormented with pure fear by devils and unspeakable monsters. ¡°And they are?¡± I asked pointing at the poor bastards. ¡°Assassins who thought they could take the Queen''s life.¡± she showed me a calm smile. When those four met my gaze, three of them fainted and the last one soiled himself. I had every right to be furious and mad. Although this change in my expressions was instantaneous, with everything that was happening, no one could blame for being a bit on the edge. Not only are they aiming for important nobles, they have the guts to go after my WIFE?! I screamed in my mind while I bombarded those four with killing intent. At this point, the door opened again, but this time, it wasn''t a messenger, it was Elovius. ¡°Your Majesty, I... erm... what''s happening here?¡± he asked when he saw the scene. ¡°Assassins.¡± Kataryna shrugged. ¡°Ahem... Yes... that.¡± I said and tried to regain my cool ¡°Is my wife alright, Kleo?¡± I asked the necromancer. ¡°She didn''t even know they were there. I took care of them the moment my Black Hounds sensed their desire to take her life. Then, I just summoned the dark fiends of the underworld and sent them loose upon them. I made sure their souls remained intact, but I won''t vouch for their sanity.¡± she spoke in a calm tone of voice while showing me an innocent smile. When she reaches a Breakthrough, she''ll be one scary dragoness... Sooo, I''m going to do my best to be on her good side. I thought. ¡°Thank you, Kleo. I appreciate it.¡± I nodded. ¡°You''re welcome, your Majesty. I''ll just hand these four over to Elovius for questioning.¡± she said and then looked at the Prime Minister. ¡°Is there anything left inside those things that can answer my questions?¡± he asked pointing at the four. ¡°Maybe? I don''t know.¡± she shrugged ¡°I''ll give you a Darkness stick to poke them around and see if they move.¡± she giggled. ¡°Sure...¡± he blinked surprised then looked at me. ¡°Ahem. Your Majes...¡± before he could finish his words, the doors opened again. This time, it was Alkelios who came dragging two dragons beaten until they were all black and blue. ¡°Let me guess... Assassins?¡± I asked with a sigh as I shook my head. ¡°How did you know?¡± Alkelios asked blinking surprised. ¡°Because today of all days, countless assassins apparently chose to go after the important nobles in this Kingdom, a bunch of bandits decided it was the ''Siege the Town'' day, and all of this at the same time. What I want to know is why are you bringing these assassins before me?¡± I asked trying hard to control my exasperated tone of voice. I didn''t even want to think about what all of this meant when put together, but I never felt so strong the urgency to prepare my troops for war. Then, Sir Brekkar also entered the room, bringing with him, six tied up assassins. ¡°You too?¡± he asked as he looked around. They all nodded. ¡°I believe the reason we brought the assassins here was because the Prime Minister knows how to handle them the best.¡± Sir Seryanna answered my question in a polite and knightly fashion. ¡°In other words they have no idea how to do a proper interrogation.¡± Sir Brekkar said with a snort. ¡°Neither do you.¡± I squinted my eyes at the dragon. ¡°Ahaha! Hey! That time was an accident! I swear!¡± he defended himself. ¡°You sent a dragon flying to the other side of the capital and made him lose ALL of his memories because he hit his head!¡± I retorted. ¡°Like I said, it was an accident.¡± he showed a forced smile. ¡°Yes. Yes.¡± I waved him off then looked at Elovius ¡°You heard Sir Seryanna. Can you do it?¡± I asked him. ¡°Of course.¡± he nodded and showed me a kind smile. I was beginning to feel pity for these poor bastards. Maybe this frightening side of his was also the reason why I favored Elovius as a possible next King more than I did Charmeill. That boy was a bit too soft, but the dragoness he picked wasn''t that bad. Although, she wasn''t what I would call Queen material either. In any case, I could always arrange a political marriage for him, so that he had someone by his side with these skills. Or, I could have Elliessara give a crash course to his chosen dragoness. ¡°How did you all came about to capturing them? I heard Kleo''s story and a part of Sir Seryanna''s story. They attacked her on the shore of the Golden Scale River. She fought back and brought the one survivor here, which is the tied up dragoness over there. Going by the order, Kataryna, what about you?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, I was just about to head out with Princess Elleyzabelle when I saw these two idiots entering through the window. I flash froze them and then I was about to shatter them, but the Princess told me it would better to bring them to the Prime Minister, who will know how to get any information he desires out them.¡± she said in a calm tone of voice. ¡°Alright, what about you Sir Alkelios?¡± I asked. ¡°I was at Viscountess Reyazes'' place when three assassins came crashing through the windows and attacked her. I stopped their attacks and then turned one of them into mush. I captured these two, and I sort of flew a bit too low to the ground and accidentally smacked them into trees and rocks because they were being annoying.¡± he showed me a smile. ¡°How is that an accident?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Then they smacked themselves into trees and rocks while I had absolutely nothing to do with it?¡± he asked pointing a finger up. ¡°Sigh, no need to tell me more. Brekkar, what about you?¡± I asked shaking my head. ¡°They attacked me and Iolaus while we were training, so I used Iolaus to beat them up.¡± he nodded. ¡°You what?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°I grabbed the boy by the feet and used him as a club!¡± he showed me a thumbs up. ¡°Hey! Don''t break my future husband! I''m supposed to do that!¡± Kleo complained, and I let out a sigh. At the very least, this bunch had no problem in handling the assassins, but the others... ¡°Elovius, who died today?¡± I asked. ¡°The reports I received so far speak of the following successful assassinations: Duchess Marchialle, Duke Galbarian, Marquise Behavialla, Marchioness Veronique, Marchioness Massaria, Earl Hoghiannis, Countess Merialla, Countess Yehevajere, Countess Mafvajra, Viscount Morus, Viscountess Mercuria, Baron Elforan, Baroness Mejeve, and Baroness Helberya. These being the nobles, but mercenaries and craftsmen have been targeted as well. There are many others who are gravely injured or suffered many losses while fighting back against the attackers.¡± explained Elovius. ¡°How is it even possible to attack so many dragons at the same time? This level of organization isn''t normal.¡± Alkelios pointed out. ¡°It''s not...¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Please, everyone, follow me to the War Room.¡± I said and got up from my throne. When he heard this, the first one to react was Brekkar. His smile turned into a serious expression. The only reason why I would invite them there was because there was a chance that we were facing a war-like scenario. ¡°What of her Majesty, the Queen?¡± asked Elovius. ¡°I will inform her of everything that transpired there afterwards.¡± I told him. ¡°What of the prisoners?¡± asked Seryanna as she looked at the trembling assassin from Kleo''s shadow. ¡°Elovius?¡± I asked as I looked at my son. ¡°If the Duke and Duchess Draketerus would be kind enough to remove any poison pills and hidden blades from them, I will order them to be taken to the dungeons so that I may begin interrogation as soon as possible.¡± he suggested. ¡°Fine. Do it quickly.¡± I said as I nodded. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± the two of them bowed before me. While they began working, several guards were called in by Elovius to take the prisoners to their new ''home''. The whole thing didn''t take long, just a couple of minutes, afterwards, I made my way to the War Room. I walked at the front while everyone else followed behind me. [Brekkar''s point of view] For centuries, the War Room of Albeyater Kingdom has been used only and only when war was imminent. While Seryanna, Kleo, and Alkelios were probably too young to know and understand the meaning behind it, I who have been called here countless times in the past was well aware of what this could lead to. In essence, all War Room summons ended either with a sortie order or a written peace decree. In order for either of the two to be given, a few conditions had to be met. First of all, the King and Prime Minister had to be present. The Queen didn''t need to attend, but she would later give her final approval of any decision they agreed upon here. If she declined, she was going to participate in the next meeting. Besides the two, a General had to be present at this meeting together with at least two other Breakthrough-ers who were loyal to the crown.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Presently, all of these conditions were met at a bare minimum, and the King could give out the order for gathering the troops and setting a strategy in motion. After this first meeting, he would appoint various other military commanders to different posts. He would call the Merchant Guild to discuss the necessary supplies that could be bought, and he would even go so far as to call upon the Adventurers within the Albeyater Kingdom to participate in this battle to defend their land. The Minister of Finance and the Ministers of Naval and Aerial affairs would also be called for a meeting. However, all of these would be based on the initial discussion that took place in the War Room. A second meeting here would take place only in the absurd event where we had been pushed back and a talk about surrendering was necessary. Of course, in case of an all-out war against multiple enemy forces, this room was used almost daily by his Majesty and the Generals who followed him. In other words, being called to the War Room meant that his Majesty, the King, had enough reasons to believe that the Kingdom of Albeyater was in danger of being invaded by a military force. When I entered the room together with everyone else, memories of times long past awoken within me. The ridiculously huge table in the middle with a sculpted map of the entire Dragon Continent''s geographical formations on it. In the far left corner was a big bookcase filled to the brim with various maps drawn for specific areas and with certain purposes in mind. To the far right corner of the room were two bookcases containing scrolls with Treaties and Decrees given by their Majesties ever since they got on the throne. To my left as I entered the room was another bookcase, but this time it was filled with small metal statues meant to depict various troops and battalions. They were the chess pieces used on the big chess board called the Dragon Continent. Even though this wasn''t the first time I entered this room, I still stood there in wonder of how meticulous that map was designed. It was said it took the artist 17 months to make it, most of which was time flying about the entire continent together with several Breakthrough-ers from different countries to act as protection. The artist made seven copies of this map and gave one to the most influential dragonesses at that time, one of which was of course Queen Elliessara. Alkelios was looking at the map with big eyes, and my granddaughters were trying their best to abstain from ogling at it, but I could see their tails wagging. It was that beautifully made. The only ones who were indifferent to it was the King, the Prime Minister, and Kataryna. I could understand the first two but not the icy dragoness. ¡°We are now beginning the official War Preparation Meeting.¡± his Majesty declared as he took an enchanted pointing stick and filled it with magic. He used it then to draw in the air red X-es over several cities and towns on the map. ¡°War Preparation?¡± asked Alkelios confused. ¡°Boy, this place is never used unless his Majesty has sufficient reasons to believe that our Kingdom may come under attack by an opposing military force.¡± I whispered to him. ¡°What? Are you serious?¡± he looked at me with big eyes. ¡°Ssh!¡± Seryanna glared at us. I showed her a wry smile and then we turned our gazes to the map. Almost all the border towns had been filled with X-es, including the capital, but there were none on the Eastern border. ¡°Prime Minister, show me what settlements are currently under siege by bandits.¡± his Majesty asked as he gave the pointing stick to Elovius. ¡°Certainly.¡± he nodded and then turned towards the map ¡°First we have the villages: Pertiko, Myuer, Venya, Samaz, Somber, Essey, Ilvan, Nanera, and Rovie. I received news of this from the scouting unit before coming to see your Majesty. There aren''t as many individuals as there are besieging the towns and cities, but enough to keep the merchants and soldiers from departing in case of a sortie call.¡± he declared. ¡°Hm...¡± I scratched my chin. Not bad. I thought. ¡°Then we have the towns Melles, Naver, Unvar, Onias, Nezv, Ihe, Pustia, Andruka, and Azuvian. Afterwards, we have the cities Ugen, Nalta, Verona, Uhasah, and Nomora.¡± he said as he pointed them on the map. ¡°Hm, are there any settlements that haven''t been hit yet? Oh, wait, Andromeda and Tomeron are still safe.¡± Alkelios scoffed. ¡°The boy is onto something.¡± I said as I pointed out. ¡°Please elaborate.¡± his Majesty asked and the Prime Minister offered me the pointing stick. ¡°Well, almost all the settlements past the Great Chasm have been hit by either an assassination or a siege. It is highly unlikely that the bandits wish to take over these settlements, but they are keeping our economy and military might at a standstill. They didn''t even make an effort to stop the messages of their actions from reaching us, which gives to show that this may also be a bait.¡± I said and nodded. ¡°A bait?¡± Alkelios asked, but it was clear he didn''t see the strategy at play here. ¡°Look, if we are to look at the map, we can see that some rather important locations from the border with Embryger haven''t reported anything unusual. The city of Leone, the town of Luka, the city of Elden''bar, the town of Tes, they are all important economical and military locations, but neither of them sent a report or...¡± I said as I pointed them on the map. ¡°They couldn''t.¡± Kataryna continued my words. ¡°But some of the coastline settlements and even those near the Seculiar Forest around Tomeron haven''t been touched either.¡± Alkelios pointed out. ¡°There was no need to.¡± I said. ¡°If you look at the map, Alkelios, you will see that only the center settlements have come under attack, but a border town like Royar hasn''t been met with either an assassination attempt or a siege from bandit forces. Actually, I find the latter to be rather suspicious. Bandits aren''t that well organized. Keeping them out of a village or town they know they could conquer is like trying to keep a pack of starved sheep from jumping on the piece of juicy meat in front of them. It''s simply not possible.¡± said Kataryna as she shook her head. ¡°They aren''t bandits, they are soldiers claiming to be bandits.¡± Seryanna pointed out, but she was only half right. ¡°I think they are a combination of bandits, mercenaries, and soldiers. The soldiers act as the leaders, the commanders. The bandits are the muscles, and the mercenaries are the leash for the muscle.¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°In short, our troops can''t move and the economy is halted.¡± said his Majesty with a nod. ¡°Hm, I may be wrong, but were those dragons and dragonesses who were killed important for the Kingdom?¡± Alkelios asked scratching his head. ¡°Yes, very. Be it a relationship with an important foreign commercial group, a renowned commander in the army, or a political figure spoken about at the parties for dragonesses, they all had an importance in the well being of this Kingdom. Even those who have survived today''s attempts were important in one way or another, while at the same time being a piece capable of reinforcing our might. Take Viscountess Reyazes for example. Although she is a rank lower than a Countess or Marchioness, she is a renowned authority when it comes to cartography. If she were to have died, we would have lost someone very important from both a military and economical point of view.¡± the Prime Minister explained in a calm tone of voice. ¡°More than that, we would have lost her information network, which is equally valuable in a time of war.¡± said the King. ¡°So they are trying to cripple both the economy and the military of this Kingdom in an indirect way?¡± he asked. ¡°Rather than cripple it, I would say they are trying to stall it. Merchants are sly creatures. They will make a profit no matter with whom and where, but if you stop their caravans, the gold and goods doesn''t flow anymore. This could lead to a late sortie of the army or... as it is in this case, a complete failure of assembly of our defensive military might. The ''bandits'' are taking care of this as it seems.¡± I said with a smirk as I crossed my arms at my chest. ¡°Is it possible that Draejan is a part of this plot?¡± Alkelios asked as he looked back at me. The boy''s words surprised me, but it wasn''t like I haven''t thought about it already. The only thing I wanted to know was if there was something to gain for the dragon? If there wasn''t, then his possible betrayal was just a wrongly placed accusation. At a time like this, such an accusation could easily lead to the downfall of the Doesya house or the death of that dragon. ¡°Reports show that Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya may have in fact betrayed our Kingdom for a faction in the Embryger, which is currently amassing its forces on this side.¡± the King answered as he pointed at the Eastern border of the Kingdom, the area we were talking about just a moment ago. ¡°Your Majesty, if I may.¡± the Prime Minister spoke. Feryumstark nodded and the dragon continued ¡°Currently, our scout has confirmed the existence of a military force gathering and holding under its control the previously mentioned settlements. Those being: Tes Town, Luka Town, Leone City, Elden''bar City, and the villages as well as outposts between them.¡± I gave him the pointy stick, and he used it to draw a line in front of these settlements. ¡°Is there an estimate troop number?¡± I asked curiously. ¡°Currently, we believe for the enemy to have gathered a force of at least 20000 soldiers if we are to include the bandit sieges and assassins as part of it.¡± the Prime Minister said. His words had just turned the situation more dire. No, it was slowly turning into a check mate because while our first move was going to be liberation of all the besieged settlements so that we can gather our own forces, the enemy would have already amassed an army on our own territory. 20000... I doubt they gathered so few. I thought as I looked at the map. ¡°Does this mean Embryger wants to go to war with us?¡± Alkelios asked the one question we didn''t want to get an affirmative answer from. ¡°No. We have reason to believe it isn''t so.¡± the Prime Minister shut down this worry with his words. ¡°Why?¡± Alkelios asked. ¡°Prince Kryogan, who is currently an Ambassador of Albeyater in the Embryger Empire, sent a report within which it was written that one of the Empire''s political factions was making a move outside of their authority. It would appear they are trying to win points in the favor of the Princess they are supporting to rise to the throne. At the same time, Princess Saluka Fer, who is married to the ducal family Bryghtanar of the Embryger Empire has sent a report with her husband''s signature warning us of this possible movement and that we shouldn''t be quick to judge it as being the Empress or Emperor''s direct command.¡± he explained. ¡°Huh? They are some sneaky bastards.¡± I said with a smirk. ¡°Can we really trust those reports to be true?¡± Alkelios asked. ¡°What do you mean, boy?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Isn''t it normal that at a time of war one of your objectives is to fool the enemy''s information network and lead them to think that your strategy and force are different from the actual ones?¡± he asked. Indeed, he had a point. Considering how humans fought, it wasn''t such an outrageous thing to believe that there was the possibility of betrayal. Draejan right now was becoming a lead suspect as the perpetrator of such a disgraceful action, while those two children of his Majesty were, after all, deep within Embryger. There was no telling what the nobles there were whispering to them, or how they were trying to gain them on their side. Still, when I thought about the Empire wanting to fight against us, somehow, I found it hard to believe. A faction or two, maybe, but the current Emperor and Empress had absolutely nothing to gain from such an action. Albeyater Kingdom was also one of the largest countries on the Dragon Kingdom, so a battle against us, who also strived hard to keep the humans at bay would have resulted only in losses for the Empire, and it would have also given our common enemy a reason to begin a second invasion and even succeeding with it. If you were to add the existence of the heroes like Alkelios, then the odds fell more towards our enemy''s side than ours. No, if Embryger wanted to begin conquering anything, it would have went for smaller nations like Trusk, Shion, Otzir, Ozur, Novarak, Parand, and Olvia. Either one of them would have made an excellent target. Hm, maybe not Trusk, Olvia, and Ozur, I believe those two were vassal states. ¡°I understand your worry, Alkelios Yatagai.¡± his Majesty spoke up ¡°Such things are common sense in the human kingdoms, but in the dragon kingdoms, they would be utter madness, especially when the said informants were my own children. Then again, the Crown Princess from the Embryger Empire seems to have fallen in love with my son, so she and her party would definitely oppose this movement. As for the faction acting independently, such things are far more common than what you have just implied.¡± he explained. ¡°What about Solustia Kingdom or Lorak Kingdom?¡± Alkelios asked. ¡°Neither are a threat and have nothing to gain.¡± his Majesty shook his head. ¡°This doesn''t mean that they don''t have a reason of which you aren''t yet aware off.¡± the boy pointed out. ¡°True...¡± the King nodded and closed his eyes for a moment. Given how the situation presented itself, a sign of vulnerability from us could lead to another all-out war. However, there was still a matter of Breakthrough-ers present within the country, something which the boy hasn''t thought of yet. Albeyater had many more when compared to those two. This alone was a decisive factor which kept our nation strong. Opening his eyes, his Majesty then said ¡°If I wanted to conquer Albeyater, destroying its economy would be the first step I would take. If needed be, I would burn the fields as soon as the enemy''s army tried to cross them. Thanks to magic, this wouldn''t pose much of problem, but while the smoke was up high in the sky, it would became a cloak for an aerial assault. Looking at the map, I would aim for an attack either from the south or from the east. The sea doesn''t make any sense, and the north is connected to a dessert. I would lose more troops crossing it than I would if I were to send them by boats from the West. Given the political and military circumstances of all the nations on this map, I would believe that sending all of my Breakthrough forces in one single battle or war would only lead to my own country''s downfall. We already know that a faction within Embryger is moving independently, so at most, I would guess we will face around four or five Breakthrough-ers.¡± Indeed, it was a sound strategy. By destroying or crippling the enemy''s economy, one were to expect that they wouldn''t be able to supply their troops that easily. An army without any supplies constantly being brought in would sooner or later starve or fall in an attrition battle. The same problem was given to us right now. With our economy having come to a halt because of the bandits, we couldn''t gather our troops and provide them with supplies. Worse of all, if the humans attacked us, then the matter was going to end up in a similar matter on the Western Front-line as well. ¡°Then I believe it is safe to conclude that we should prepare for a defensive war. Sir Draejan still holds the benefit of the doubt. The blood running through his veins reserves him this right, but if we are to see him on the enemy''s side, then he is to be considered an enemy.¡± the Prime Minister said, reminding us once again of that scaled bastard. ¡°Ah! That reminds me, that dude who could teleport, erm... I forgot his name, but he was a human like me. So, if that guy offers his powers to the enemy''s side would it be possible for them to move their troops as they pleased throughout the country?¡± Alkelios asked as he struck his palm with the bottom of his fist. I for one was surprised by his words. It never crossed my mind to add that fellow as a possible pawn in all of this. Certainly, with a teleporting ability then all of these strange movements of the bandits and assassins made sense, but... there was one thing that had to be made sure of. ¡°Are you certain his power can move around so many troops?¡± his Majesty asked. ¡°Maybe, I don''t know. Last I saw of him, he could freely teleport himself around. If he could teleport others or not, I have no idea.¡± Alkelios replied honestly. ¡°I understand, but even if he wasn''t used as a means to transport supplies and troops, there was still the chance of him acting as a messenger.¡± I said. ¡°True, this can''t be disconsidered, but even without his help, we cannot forget that''s it''s not at all impossible for everything to have been organized in one big strategy. All they had to do was to give their troops the time, the place, and the how to attack. Then all they would have to do was reach their destination, wait for the appointed time and strike.¡± his Majesty pointed out. ¡°Neither option can be disconsidered, but what has become clear of this discussion is that we have an enemy and a possible battlefield, which is outside of Pustia Town.¡± I pointed out. ¡°All that''s left is for his Majesty to give the order.¡± said Kataryna calmly. Up until now the three dragonesses have been silent and watched the map while listening to us. Although I had no expectation of either Seryanna or Kleo to join in on this conversation, I knew that witnessing first hand how it was done would offer them a bit of insight and experience on these matters. After all, declaring war wasn''t such a simple matter. When a nation did it, they had to be 100% of who their enemy and who their allies were. Making this clear beforehand with the help of treaties and hidden pacts was common sense. In our case, we had confirmation that Embryger wasn''t the enemy, just a faction of it. As such, declaring war against the entire Empire would have been utterly foolish. The best move for now was to declare a Defensive War against an Unknown Enemy Force. This way, Albeyater made it clear that it wasn''t pointing at any of its neighbors for now, but at the same time, it wouldn''t have any problems not doing so. ¡°Politically speaking, if this war is won by us, then the neighboring nations may try to send supplies in order to gain favors from us as well as strengthen their bonds with our country. If we lose this war, then they might declare war and try to seize Albeyater''s lands for their own before the invading enemy claims the country.¡± said the Prime Minister. ¡°In other words, this could lead to either possible alliances in the future or the complete annihilation of our Kingdom.¡± said his Majesty. ¡°I honestly wish we won''t lose this war. More so, I wish Albeyater Kingdom won''t gain any new enemies as a result of this faction''s stupid movement.¡± Alkelios said with a sigh. When we heard him, we looked at him surprised and then all of us burst into a loud laughter. ¡°Huh? What? What?¡± the boy acted surprised. He probably said those words without even realizing it, but somehow, I regained both the courage and the hope I need in order to believe that victory was on our side. After all, he was the dragon with 100 Luck and a Breakthrough-er above all. With him on our side, this war was our guaranteed victory. ¡°Such a good wish! I like it!¡± his Majesty laughed. ¡°Then, your Majesty?¡± the Prime Minister asked. This prince was the only one who didn''t laughed. Event that icy Kataryna tossed a giggle. ¡°I declare a Defensive War against an Unknown Enemy Force! I want all the reserve and active troops from within the Kingdom to be gathered at Pustia Town! Meanwhile, I want Alkelios Yatagai, Seryanna Draketerus, and Kataryna Greorg to go to all the besieged settlements and remove the bandits! If none surrenders you are free to kill them all! General Brekkar Draketerus will lead the army, and I will call to battle all the available Breakthrough-ers scattered throughout the Kingdom!¡± he declared in a powerful tone of voice. ¡°Yes, your Majesty!¡± we all called out from the bottom of our hearts. It was an order to march to battle. It was a declaration of war! It made my old blood boil again with the desire to head off to the battlefield and unleash my wrath upon the enemy forces. I was getting a bit tired of beating up Iolaus too, and this would prove to be a grand training scene for him! I couldn''t wait to see how much he had progressed in the past several months when compared to other Paladins. [Feryumstark''s point of view] With the declaration of war, everyone obeyed and headed out. I stayed behind in the War Room together with Kleo and the Prime Minister. ¡°Why was I told to stay?¡± she asked innocently. ¡°Fufufu! Starting tomorrow, I''m going to start training you until your body breaks!¡± I laughed. ¡°Ew... Your Majesty, I have a fiance, you know?¡± she said as she pulled back from me. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked and looked at her confused. ¡°Ahem. Not that kind of training, Kleo. His Majesty is talking about combat training, but the way he put it could have someone with your lewd mind think of other inappropriate things.¡± said Elovius while looking away. ¡°What are you two talking about?¡± I knitted my brow. I had a feeling they were making fun of me. ¡°I wonder... ehehe.¡± Kleo looked away. ¡°Huh? What in the blazes?!¡± I was starting to get angry and glared at Elovius. ¡°Just... let it go.¡± he said. ¡°Let WHAT go?!¡± I glared at him. ¡°Well, I think the Queen''s calling me... I''m going to be off... See ya!¡± Kleo slipped away without explaining herself. ¡°Ahem! Your Majesty, let us proceed with the official documents. Salaries must be decided upon, letters must be written, and a lot of procedures must be done before we assemble our forces. Hopefully, faster than the enemy does.¡± he said and then let out a sigh as he avoided my question again. Glaring at him, I decided to let it go and treat the matter as some youngling nonsense. Then... not even a week after our meeting in the War Room, news from the Western Front-line arrived. It was a report written by my son, Charmeill. ¡°The Human Allied Forces are attacking... This means we can''t pull troops back from that front...¡± I said in a worried tone of voice as I was reading it again. So far, no Breakthrough-er answered my call to arms either. At the very least, Alkelios'' group managed to quickly and safely dispatch all the bandit forces across the map. The lad''s speed was outrageous and with each victory, he was proving himself to be a power to be reckoned with. On the other hand, dragons from all across the Kingdom were starting to call him the Black and White Knight, while his wife, Seryanna, was recognized as the Flame Knight. Kataryna apparently froze anyone who dared call her the Ice Princess or Ice Queen. When I heard of these ridiculous names, I could feel the embarrassment they were going through. As for me, I was once called the Golden Disaster. Contrary to me, Elliessara was the Snow White Angel. These were troublesome nicknames, but as stories of one''s deeds and might spread across the Kingdom, the commoners and nobles alike would pick a silly way to call us by. Sometimes it worked out, sometimes it didn''t, and in the case of the long lived there was the chance that it would change depending on their achievements. This was the unofficial title the young dragons and dragonesses could identify us by. Going against this flow was in the end... troublesome. Although, in Kataryna''s case, it was understandable because with a nickname like Ice Princess or Ice Queen, she could easily be accused of lese-majesty. Or in other words, treason against the crown. Although what idiot would accuse the terrifying Kataryna Greorg of such a thing? I pitied the fool. Still, seeing the situation of our current affairs, thanks to them, the armies were starting to move and gather, but this report from my son made it clear that I had to fight on two fronts. It was a terrible situation, one which pointed more and more towards the possibility of us losing. Actually, even with Alkelios'' luck I was doubting our chances of success. After all, he wished for us to win the war, but at what cost would it come? And how many battles would we lose before we would win the war? Such thoughts plagued my mind from time to time. Putting down the report, I let out a sigh and leaned back on my throne. The humans are attacking, an unknown army is gathering, a lot of the important nobles of my kingdom are dead, the Breakthrough-ers didn''t reply to my summon... and bandits besieging the settlements... What a complicated and troublesome situation. I thought as I looked up at the ceiling. A few minutes later, I got up from my throne. With the report in my hand, I went up and visited my wife. She was the only one who could sort out this mess right now. Or rather, who could clear up misunderstandings and possible information manipulations. I knocked on the door and then entered the room. ¡°Are you awake, my dear?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she replied with a charming smile while lowering the book. ¡°Here.¡± I said and then handed her the report. When she laid her eyes on the piece of paper, her gaze turned from one filled with love to an icy glare of a Queen who ruled over the entire Kingdom. ¡°The Breakthrough-ers didn''t send a reply message. Not even Charmeill or Natalia replied to my letters.¡± I told her. ¡°I see.¡± she spoke in a cold tone of voice. ¡°Someone is aiming for these letters, or to be more specific the outgoing ones. They are trying to make sure we can''t get in contact with our Breakthrough-ers while at the same time being aware of the situation on the front. By the looks of it, I would say they are trying to deceive us in thinking that our Breakthrough-ers are willingly ignoring my Call to Arms. Actually, I''m certain that if I didn''t send Alkelios'' group to handle the besieged settlements, the armies there wouldn''t have received the Call to Arms order either.¡± I said. ¡°I see.¡± she showed me an icy smile which sent a shiver down my spine all the way to the tip of my tail. ¡°Can you use...¡± I gulped ¡°That?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm?¡± she tilted her head to the left while keeping that ice-cold smile of hers ¡°So you are implying that a dead rodent not even worth being squashed by the boot of a commoner dared to betray us?¡± she asked. I gulped. My wife, although as lovely as she was charming and kind had a bit of a dark secret. She was a dragoness who absolutely hated betrayals and showed no mercy towards them. All the nobles who acted against me or her, including the one who poisoned her, were now nothing more than bony remains scattered in a field somewhere even I didn''t know about. As for the assassins, they were still alive, but she never aimed her anger at them. An assassin, she understood. A mercenary, she understood. But a traitor who willing tried to foolishly go against her was a dragon who could only count the seconds until his decided moment of death. There were a type of traitors she did pardon though, those were the misguided fools tricked by the real traitors. They still had a chance to survive when facing her IF they acted wisely. ¡°I''ll make the call.¡± Elliessara said with a nod. ¡°Although, I really wish to find the one who kept trying to destroy my Kingdom. Huhuhu!¡± she showed me a smile that sent a shiver down my spine. ¡°Please, my dear.¡± I nodded. One could say that it was also because I feared this side of hers that I didn''t want to find a concubine. I would rather try to have as many children as I could with Elliessara than see her plotting against the second wife. May the gods have mercy on me and keep me away from such a horrible future. Then again, I never could find a woman to love just as much or more than Elliessara, and I never bothered to either way. Getting out of bed, I gazed at the curves of her slim body as they were given shape by the thin nightdress sticking to her. ¡°Breakthrough-ers of Albeyater, listen to my call!¡± she said as she began to focus her magic within a spell that sent out her voice towards those who had pledged their loyalty to us. No one else could hear it. ¡°Our Kingdom is in danger. Your Queen is in danger. I give order to the Breakthrough-ers who lay in wait or who are traveling the lands to come to my side and lend me their strength in this battle! All but those who see the flames of the Western Battlefield march towards Drakaria at once! This is the order of your Queen! This is my Summon!¡± With her final words imbued with Magic Energy, she cast the spell and sent it across the nation. In a matter of moments, all those whom she deemed worthy of receiving her call would hear this message. Then all that was left to do was to wait for them to arrive. This spell wasn''t something our enemies could block or easily detect and decipher. Because it took mere moments to reach its destination and wasn''t categorized as an attack spell by the magic armors or defensive equipment one may wear, there were no means of either blocking or repelling it. However, it couldn''t be used in war against the enemies. It was limited to how many it could be sent to and also how much it could be said through it. Unlike my letters, which could have been intercepted along the way, this [All-Call] spell could reach our Breakthrough-ers without a problem. The fact that my wife, the Queen of Albeyater, made the call also showed the urgency behind it. This wasn''t a simple tea party call. It was a call to war. ¡°You should take a rest now, my dear.¡± I told Elliessara as I went over and pulled her in my arms. ¡°Hm, maybe a bit later, right now...¡± she gazed at the door then back at me ¡°Tell the guards not to disturb us... I wish to be embraced by you.¡± she then kissed me gently on the lips. Chapter 66: A Heros Skills [Alkelios'' point of view] Flying up in the sky, I laid my gaze upon the battlefield stretching between Pustia town and Elden''bar city. The once beautiful fields of ripe cereals had been scorched and turned to ash. The dragons on our side struggled to keep to the flames contained while countless others put them out. The animals that once lurked around underground or above it have been turned to charcoal alongside a woods up north. This wasn''t my doing or that of any dragon on our side. It was the act of the enemy. Their cheers for victory reached all the way up into the sky and across the plains to our side. 364000 dragons and dragonesses had been gathered to oppose our 26000. The difference in might was as clear as day. We were overwhelmed by sheer numbers and never before have I felt such an impeding doom... except maybe for that day when I accidentally stumbled upon the Queen while she was changing. The door was unlocked, and it wasn''t like I came to meet her specifically. I was there because I wanted to bring his Majesty some of the jam I made seeing how he asked for a taste. That day, I ended up running a full-length marathon around Drakaria while being chased down by a certain dragoness'' royal pain in the behind husband. Letting out a sigh, I aimed my hand at the opposing force and thought about shooting a nuke at them, however... ¡°The bastards are standing too close to the city and if I shoot it, this land will be irradiated... The main trade road between Embryger and Albeyater also cuts straight through the middle of the battlefield.¡± I said and then lowered my arm. That was my biggest problem so far. I couldn''t attack with my most powerful weapon because then I would end up not only poisoning the land but also heavily damaging the economy of the Kingdom. They could easily recover from a war like this one, but if the land become uninhabitable even for a decade or two, it could lead to a heavy blow for our side. If this was uninhabited or unused land, it would have been something else, but both to my left and right were fields of cereals. This area was part of what the dragons called the granary of Albeyater. Because they burned the crops here, the merchants were certain to raise the price of the cereals attained through import. However, they were bound to have a plentiful crop next year. That was, of course, if I didn''t drop a nuke on it. ¡°If the battle was closer to the border of Embryger, I may have used this attack...¡± I said. Still, even that was the case, I still wouldn''t have used this skill unless his Majesty, King Feryumstark Seyendraugher, agreed with this sort of strategy. As it was, however, we were forced to use less destructive means. On our side, most of our troops were looking with worry at the enemy, seeing how in the upcoming battle, every soldier from our side had to defeat fourteen from the enemy''s. It was a ridiculous number seeing how these weren''t the Kingdom''s elites. However, what we could say we had as an advantage was the fact that we had more Breakthrough-ers than the enemy. According to the scouts, we were facing six. Our side had ten, including the King, me, and Kataryna. Brekkar had yet to reach Breakthrough status again, Seryanna was far from it, and Kleo was at the same level as Iolaus. All of them were strong, true, but I had no idea if they were capable of surviving against a Breakthrough-er or not. Overall, our stats looked liked this when I was within 100 meters of them: [Name]: Seryanna Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Flame [Awakened Status]: 4 of 4 Conditions met. [Level]: 861 [Strength]: 6845+1821.1 [Speed]: 5138+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 4810+1915.4 [Magic]: 7804+2768.8 [Luck]: 60 [Magic Excellence]: 76.4%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Flame Whisperer] [Thermal Vision].> [Name]: Brekkar Draketerus [Species]: Draconian [Awakened Status]: 2 of 2 Conditions met. [Level]: 961 [Strength]: 8640+1821.1 [Speed]: 4310+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 5670+1915.4 [Magic]: 3840+2768.8 [Luck]: 24 [Magic Excellence]: 64%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Name]: Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus [Species]: Superior Draconian of Darkness [Awakened Status]: 3 of 3 Conditions met. [Level]: 541 [Strength]: 2470+1821.1 [Speed]: 3240+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 4120+1915.4 [Magic]: 10000+2768.8 [Luck]: 34 [Magic Excellence]: 56%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Dark Mistress] [Name]: Kataryna Greorg [Species]: Superior Draconian of the Ice Spark [Awakened Status]: 6 out of 6 conditions met [Level]: 1336 [Strength]: 7229+1821.1 [Speed]: 8775+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 7860+1915.4 [Magic]: 5450+2768.8 [Luck]: 41 [Magic Excellence]: 31%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Wisdom of the Old One] [Name]: Iolaus von Striggnyark [Species]: Superior Draconian of Light [Awakened Status]: 4 of 4 Conditions met. [Level]: 681 [Strength]: 3670+1821.1 [Speed]: 3110+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 4170+1915.4 [Magic]: 4720+2768.8 [Luck]: 44 [Magic Excellence]: 36%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Light Master] [Name]: Elliessara Seyendraugher [Species]: Superior Draconian of the High Light [Awakened Status]: 6 of 6 Conditions met. [Level]: 1207 [Strength]: 2245 (6556)+1821.1 [Speed]: 1040 (7868)+1918.2 [Dexterity]: 3810 (9378)+1915.4 [Magic]: 7940 (12980)+2768.8 [Luck]: 55 [Magic Excellence]: 43%+13.69% [Current Buffs]: [Dragon Tamer] <10X Life Force and Magic Energy Absorption from kills/Learning Speed. 10% of hero''s overall stats gained while they are within 100 m of him.> [Wisdom of the Old One] [Debuffs]: [God''s Demise Poison] And then there was me... [Name]: Alkelios Yatagai Draketerus [Species]: Half-Human Half-Draconian (Superior Draconian of the High Flame, High Light, High Darkness, and High Authority) [Level]: 1346 [Strength]: 7588+2053.5+2592+741+2168.7+1101+1966.8 [Speed]: 9450+1541.4+1293+972+2632.5+933+2360.4 [Dexterity]: 8760+1443+1293+1236+2358+1251+2813.4 [Magic]: 14250+2341.2+1152+3000+1635+1416+3894 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 45%+22.92%+19.2%+16.8%+9.3%+10.8%+12.9% [Skills]: Show? Y/N [Skill Points]: 16 [Stat Points]: 0 So rounded up, all of these stats were: [Strength]: 18211 [Speed]: 19182.3 [Dexterity]: 19154.4 [Magic]: 27688.2 [Luck]: 100 [Magic Excellence]: 136.92% And to think his Majesty, King Feryumstark, managed to defeat me despite these outrageous values. Well, it was true that I wasn''t using my full strength... I didn''t want to kill everyone there. The King was most likely wasn''t using his full strength either. If I were to guess, then both of us stopped at values around 8000 points and then let it all to skill and experience. A department in which I was heavily lacking when compared to him. Even so, my stats had some insane values when compared to the first time I arrived in this world, but something rather interesting happened with the [Magic Excellence] stat once it reached 100%. Its total reached 136.92%, so technically, my attacks weren''t only insanely strong now, but I also got a free attack. If I for example cast a [Fireball], it was going to be free of charge on my Magic Energy pool, but the Magic Energy in the air around me would diminish a bit. In other words, I was using the Magic Energy found naturally in the environment, which was awesome! If I cast two [Fireball] attacks one after another, the first was free of charge, while the second one was at a cost of 36.92% of the original cost, but the basic raw damage they had was about the same. The countdown would then reset, and I could once again cast an attack at no cost at all. In other words, when I first came to Drakaria, I could have just used this nifty little trick to spare myself of some Magic Energy, but the infernal cost for the [Itsy Bitsy Boom!] was 10000 points! I could have easily ended up sucking the area dry of all of its Magic Energy and his Majesty, the King, could have seen this as a ''change of plans''. Or he could have thought that I had truly decided to betray the dragons and thus attack me to defend his Kingdom. There was something else I noticed about this. If I did suck the area dry of Magic Energy, my own pool would not regenerate that fast or at all, which led me to believe that the amount consumed from the environment was far greater than the internal one. Well, it did restore over time, but I couldn''t go for it if I was in the middle of a battle. Using it as some sort of anti-mage skill was also not possible UNLESS we were both trapped in the same room. Thus, it could only be used in a fast moving battle... or on a battlefield like this one where I was certain not to stay in the same area for too long. Now the funny part was that even the stats of my friends were rather absurd. They were the type which were usually gained only after decades of training, however, because of my [Dragon Tamer]''s effect, such a process was accelerated to an absurd level. According to Brekkar, it was like doing max performance training 10 times faster. From my point of view, it was a rather broken effect, but just as Kataryna once told me, it didn''t matter the amount of stats as much as how good one was at using them. As evidence of this claim was the relatively low level when compared to their stats. In this war, it was going to be crucial for them to be able to use as much of their points as possible. But, to be fair, it wasn''t only that... My second advancement had the uncanny option of adding 10 stat points wherever I desired after every time they leveled up in my presence. Seryanna being the longest with me and level up the fastest ended up having a LOT of points. To be exact, they had together over 4000 points. However, individually, there were various values, but I did my best to distribute those points in a way that would benefit their combat style the most. These points were something akin to a reward for being my friends, but how exactly they worked in the natural way of things, I had no idea. The abilities of a Hero were completely broken and ridiculous in some situations. My [Dragon Tamer] made no sense in several regards, or maybe... I was just too stupid to understand the complex process behind it. If I didn''t know the laws it was based on, I had no idea how exactly it worked and could only observe its effects. Speaking of which, when I upgraded [Dragon Tamer] to [Level 5], my Level was reset to 1, and I could gain more stat points and skill points as a result. If I didn''t spend ANY skill points after this level up, I would have had at this point about 1388 points, out of which 42 were from before. This meant I could gain another 138 skills and make 277 improvements. At this point, I honestly didn''t bother keeping up with those numbers. They were just too ridiculous! Who would bother going through a list of 138+ skills?! Well, going from the very start, my Hero skills were the following: [Hero]: This is a passive skill which grants the user the ability to gain 10 Stat Points and 1 Skill point for each level up, allowing the upgrade and physical advancement of the individual without needing to actually train for it. This one couldn''t be leveled up and it offered me an insane boost when compared to the regular inhabitants of this world, that was if I knew how to use it wisely. Then there was the: [Dragon Tamer] [Level 5]: This is a passive, buff type skill. When a Hero develops any sort of friendly or intimate relationship with someone of a Dragon origin, this skill will allow the creation of a special bond between the two of them. The bond is indestructible by any other skill unless the Hero wills it. The Hero has his species permanentlychanged from Human to Half-Human Half-Draconian. The Variant of Draconian is chosen depending on one''s personality and skills. This change makes the Hero immune to any other FORCED species or variant changes. The Hero gains respective variant''s special traits as well as all Draconian species traits and retains his Human species traits. The Hero gains 30% of the Dragon''s Stats, and the Dragon will gain the ability to level up 10X faster wherever the Hero might be. The Dragon will gain the equivalent of 10% of the overall buffed stats of the Hero when they are within 100 meters of them.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Advancement I]: The Hero can sense the direction in which he can find his [Selected] Dragon friend. Number of Dragons that can be sensed at the same time: 5. Current targets: Seryanna; Kataryna; Thraherkleyoseya; Brekkar; Elliessara. [Advancement II]: All Dragons gain 10 stat points upon level up and every 10 levels gained in the presence of the Hero allows the Dragons to gain a random improvement in any of their skills. The Hero can choose where to add the stat points at any given time. If the bond is broken before applying them, they will be added automatically to the stat with the highest value. [Apply Stat Points] [Advancement III]: The Hero may choose to share a part of his own gained XP with up to 3 selected Dragon Friends. Current selected Dragons: Seryanna; Kataryna; Kleo. [Advancement IV]: Allows one Dragon friend to know the Hero''s current location and general direction. Current Selected Dragon: Seryanna. [Send Location]. Needless to say that I used the third Advancement quite early on, but apparently it was highly dependent on my distance from them. The farther away from them I was, the less XP they received, and it was also level dependent as well. The higher the level, the lower the amount of XP. However, just by looking at Seryanna''s stats, I could tell just how hard she had been training while I was in the Seculiar Forest. Iolaus as well made an exceptional progress under Brekkar. Even Kataryna advanced several levels. Leaving aside whatever bonus XP Seryanna, Kataryna, and Kleo received from me, their efforts were visible through the numbers in their status windows. Now this skill had cost 25 points to upgrade to level 5, and another 16 for those other two advancements. If I were to presume that I never spent a single skill point after becoming a Half-Draconian, I would have had now 1347 points. [Kitty Eyes] [Level 5]: Changes the Hero''s irises to those of a feline when this ability is used. Can see anything in a 10 km radius around the Hero. Cost: 50 Magic Energy points for initial cast and another 100 Magic Energy points per kilometer traveled with out of body perception. [Advancement I]: The Hero''s perception can pass through walls up to 1 meter thick. [Advancement II]: The Hero can cast [X-Ray] to see through any surface with a thickness of a maximum of 10 centimeters. Cannot be used on Living Beings. [Advancement III]: The Hero can share his sight with another selected individual. [Select Individual] This spell was leveled up quite early on in my journey because I needed it to spot any potential prey or troublesome enemy which I wanted to avoid. This one costed a lot, it was 10 points for Level 3, 15 for Level 4, and 30 for Level 5. The first advancement was only 2 skill points, but the second one was 8 and the last one was 16. Bringing me to a total of 81 skill points. My total thus dropped to 1266. [Identificus Processus Juridicus]: This skill allows the Hero to Appraise anything. Cost: 10 Magic Energy points. [I R Roboticus!]: Allows the Hero to mine anything. Allows the Hero to gather any type of herb. Allows the Hero to harvest any material. Passive. I didn''t try to upgrade and improve either of these two because they were already at their maximum value. They were skills which made an Appraisal skill and a Specialized Gathering skill worthless since they worked with Godlike materials as well. Speaking of which, I noticed that normally, my [Bartender] skill required me to have the correct types and amounts of ingredients before intuitively offering me the formula, however, [Identificus Processus Juridicus] made this thing obsolete or rather it worked as an extension of it, making my job A WHOLE LOT easier when compounding new potions I never tried before. All I had to do was identify the an ingredient with [Identificus Processus Juridicus] and then look at the [Bartender] comment. As for this skill, I did upgrade it to [Level 4] back at Brekkar''s mansion, but I added the last level and all of this skill''s advancements in the Seculiar Forest, and it became something like this: [Bartender] [Level 5]: Allows the Hero to create all existing types of potions up to Godlike Rank. Requires Alchemy Laboratory. For Godlike Potions this skill requires a Divine Alchemy Laboratory. Requires the correct Amounts and Types of ingredients before intuitively offering the formula of the potion. Requires a Storage type Item or Skill. Cost: Depends on Potion. [Advancement I]: Once a formula for a potion was identified, the Hero an gather all the ingredients without the need of a specialized gathering skill. [Advancement II]: Difficulty in processing the formulas for each potion reduced by 50% [Advancement III]: All the positive effects of potions on the Hero are up to 50% more powerful. All the negative effects of potions on the Hero are 50% weaker. [Advancement IV]: Spawn the Divine Alchemy Laboratory. The [Level 5] was worth 25 points, while the advancements went from 2 to 4 to 8 and lastly to 16 points. Making this a 55 points upgrade, which brought my total down to 1211. [Speedy Rooster]: Summons Gragh''jaggar, the armored giant chicken mount of level=Hero, stats Hero-100 points except Luck. Can carry up to 5 persons. Cost: 250 Magic Energy points. [Advancement I]: Gragh''jaggar now has a comfortable 5 seat saddle with shock dampener enchant and a coffee cup holder unit for the driver. This was the only Advancement I could add to this skill and that cup holder was totally worth the 20 points I spent for it! Total went down to 1191. [Lightning Chicken!] [Level 2]: Summons a giant Lightning Phoenix of min level=999, max level=Hero. Cost: 237 Magic Energy points. 1 hour initial duration, afterwards it costs 100 Magic Energy points per hour. [Advancement I]: The Lightning Phoenix can now remain summoned for as long as he or she wants, but the initial summon cost is now 2337 Magic Points. Of course, I couldn''t forget about Jophiel Thunderash. I upgraded this ability to max as well, and she was a great helper during my time in the Seculiar Forest. Although, I would have preferred if she took some other form than she did... But well, it all came down to fighting efficiency and Magic Energy consumption. With my increased pool and this upgrade to this skill, her time together with me was longer, and she could unleash her full potential. As for the cost, it was 100 Points to Level Up and another 30 points for the Advancement. With this, the total went down to 1041 [The Spartan Hamster] [Level 5]: A passive ability which grants a defensive aura to the individual. 40% of any sort of physical damage is dampened. 40% of any sort of Magic Attack is absorbed and turned into the equivalent value of Magic Energy. [Advancement I]: Adds an active ability which temporarily raises All Defenses to 80% at the cost of 100 Magic Energy points per minute. Chant: I am the Spartan Hamster! After [Lightning Chicken!], this was the second skill I upgraded to max. It was cheaper, and its effects saved my tail more times than I could count, especially that beautiful advancement of it. It cost me a total of 40 points. Now I was left with 1001, but all all those 300+ points were well spent. [The Effect of Tzuika] [Level 5]: Grants expert magic ability to the individual. Currently in control of: 6 elements. The amount of spells usable with this ability are 1 for each element at the same time. Available Spells: [Fireball], [Firewall], [Fireblast], [Flamethrower], [Flame Tower], [Earth Spike], [Earthquake], [Earth Arrow], [Earth Spike Tsunami], [Meteorite], [Water Ball], [Water Wall], [Water Gun], [Water Jet], [Tsunami], [Breeze], [Air Barrier],[Air Scythe], [Air Push], [Air Scythe Tornado], [Shadow Ball], [Shadow Wall], [Shadow Arrow], [Darkness Swallow], [Light Negate], [Light Ball], [Light Barrier], [Light Arrow], [Rapid Fire Light Arrows], and [Illuminate]. [Advancement I]: Increases the affinity with one selected Element. Currently: Fire. [Advancement II]: Increases the affinity with one selected Element. Currently: Darkness. [Advancement III]: Increases the affinity with one selected Element. Currently: Light. [Advancement IV]: Allows the user to learn any spells of the controlled Elements. (These Spells are not listed under Available Spells) This one was one of my most used skills and also the one which allowed me to gain the affinity towards several elements. The Fire was for attack, Darkness was for going stealth, and Light was to heal myself. But this was also because these elements represented my primary ones, so adding a bit more power to them didn''t seem like such a bad idea. Because they didn''t compliment each other that well, it also made it quite hard for anyone to counter me. The total amount of points I spent on this skill was: 70 points. Points remaining: 931 [Super Chihuahua Style] [Level 5]: Grants Master Skill with any and all bladed weapons, one-handed or two-handed. Grants the following Combat Skills: [Dash], [Ten Strikes Attack], [Side-Step], [Block], [Parry], [Dodge], [Double Jump], [One Hundred Strikes Attack], [Blade Dance Counter], [Taunt], [One Thousand Strikes Attack], [Air Jump], [Side Dash], [Afterimage], [Unlimited Strikes Attack], [Mirror Attack], [Slow Time], and [Weakness Perception]. [Advancement I]: Allows the Hero to continue training and developing his Combat Skills with bladed weapons. [Advancement II]: Allows instinctual use of each skill. This Advancement turns [Super Chihuahua Style] into a Passive type skill with Magic Energy and Stamina consumption elements. This was another skill I upgraded to the max as soon as I could. It''s combat skills were what I was looking for, but because of my insane strength and speed, I often ended up breaking my sword, which left me frustrated and annoyed. Good thing I brought a lot of spares... The total for this was 16+20 for the levels and 4+8 for the Advancements, meaning 48 points. Total remaining was 883 points. [The Shiny Artisan] [Level 5]: Grants the Hero the ability to craft any type of jewelry up to Godlike Rank. Depending on the desired item to be made, it may require a Jewelry Crafting Workshop. Requires a Forge. Requires an Anvil. Requires a Smith''s Hammer. Godlike items require a Divine Jewelry Crafting Workshop. Cost: Depends on the Item. [Advancement I]: Allows the Hero to identify any Jewel and unprocessed Metal Ore. [Advancement II]: Polished Jewels can now be granted the ability to store Magic Energy or Spells. [Advancement III]: Magic Energy production cost of all items is reduced. [Advancement IV]: Spawn the Divine Jewelry Crafting Workshop. [Pony Power!] [Level 5]: Grants the Hero the ability to enchant and imbue with magic any item up to Godlike Rank. Enchants require an undamaged item or a test object for a temporary one. The Hero must have a clear understanding of the desired enchant if it is to properly work (this does not apply to Godlike Rank Enchants). Imbue of an item can be done only during the process of making the item and require the Hero to shout out the skill''s name. The strength of each Enchant depends on the amount of Magic Energy poured during the enchanting or imbue process. [Advancement I]: Allows the creation and testing of new enchants based on the already know ones. [Advancement II]: Allows the Hero to Enchant damaged items. [Advancement III]: Enchants applied by the Hero may be focused on the core of the item so that outside damage does no affect them as much. [Advancement IV]: Godlike Enchant List is now unlocked. [Godlike Enchant List] [Rock Hard!] [Level 5]: Grants the Hero the ability to create any armor or weapon up to Godlike Rank. Smiting requires a Forge, an Anvil, and Smith''s Tools. Leather Crafting requires a Tanning Rack and Leather Crafting Tools. Godlike Rank items require a Divine Forge, a Divine Anvil, and Divine Tools. Cost: Depends on the Item. [Advancement I]: 50% less chance of breaking an item while crafting it. [Advancement II]: Can now imbue items with Magic Energy to increase their durability. [Advancement III]: Spawn the Divine Smith''s Tools. [Advancement IV]: Spawn the Divine Forge, the Divine Anvil, and the Divine Leather Crafting Tools. All of these three skills were acquired at the same time, and they were absolutely crucial for my survival in Seculiar Forest, but I didn''t upgrade them to the max until I was 100% sure I could spare the points and I wasn''t going to need them for anything else. Their cost was also mostly the same, meaning 30 points for buying them and 2+4+8+16+32=62 to upgrade them. Each Advancement was worth 2, 4, 8, and 16 respectively. This meant that each skill cost me 122 points to buy and upgrade to the max and all three of them in total were 366 points. It was an insane value, but thanks to them, I could now craft Godlike items, which was totally worth it! My total points went down like this to 517 points. [Black Hole]: Grants the Hero access to a unique magic Item Vault with a total volume of 25 km3. Upon death, the items within the Item Vault are randomly scattered across the land surface of the planet. Immune to any sort of Steal Magic. Cast Cost: 50 Magic Energy Points. [Advancement I]: Can allow temporary and limited access to a specified selection of items to one other individual. Current Selected Individual: Seryanna Draketerus. This one was an all round important spell, I couldn''t just skip on. I spent 50 points to buy it and 10 points to upgrade it. As for its use, it was obvious. I acquired it long before I maxed out any of the previous crafting skills. This brought my total to 457. [Shadow Play]: Grants the Hero complete mastery over the Darkness and Light Elements. All negative effects from both elements are reduced by 30% and all the positive effects are increased by 30%. Unlocked Skills of the Darkness Element: [Summon Fiends]; [Shadow Hunter]; [Darkness Cloak]; [Dark Meteorite]; [Shadow Blades]; [Curse]; [Defile]; [Darkness Corruption]; [Shadow Spike Hell]; [Darkness Blade]; [Silence Barrier]; [Shadow Barrier]; [Darkness Shield]; [Darkness Mammoth]; [Shadow Whip]; [Soul Eater]; [Rupture]; [Negate all Light]; and [Sinister Laugh]. Unlocked Skills of the Light Element: [Purify]; [Heal]; [Area Heal]; [Restoration]; [Illuminate]; [Light Sphere]; [Light Bug]; [Summon Light Spirits]; [Calm Mind]; [Blind]; [Exorcise]; [Light Beam]; [Light Blade]; [Light Scythe]; [Tornado of Light Blades]; [Light Explosion]; [Light Burn]; [Light Barrier]; [Illusion]; [Light Shield]; [Light Giant]; and [Let there be Light!]. [Advancement I]: Allows the Hero to easily learn spells pertaining to either the Darkness Element or the Light Element. This ridiculously broken spell was what I would call an unexpected win. It was the jackpot in the box for me which allows me to turn the specialties of my previous skill to: Fire, Light, and Darkness. As for the massive amount of spells it unlocked guaranteed my survival in the Seculiar Forest until I reached my Breakthrough and I didn''t need to worry that much about anything. To buy it costed me 100 points, while the advancement was 1 points. Yup, insane skill cost with a joke cost for an advancement. It was the only one too... Thus, my total points reached the value of 356. [Fatty McFat]: Grants the Hero the ability to infuse with Magic Energy any Spell before it was released. This ability was worth only 10 points to buy, and I couldn''t upgrade it any further, but it didn''t feel like it needed to either. As for what it did, this thing was basically an insane buff for any of my spells. If I infused my Dragon [Roar] with this skill, I could make it reach over an insane area. However, the most dangerous use of it was to infuse the [Itsy Bitsy Boom!] skill, which could double or even triple in power like this. Erasing a mountain all of a sudden didn''t sound like an impossibility. But to be honest, I was way too afraid to use it. Its destructive power was too insane, and I wasn''t a madman to do it either. The normal version, OK, but not this amped up buffed version! With this, my total reached 346. [Grandma Fu] [Level 6 ¨C Practitioner]: Passive ability that grants the Hero the knowledge needed to perform a special hand to hand martial art that can be used ONLY by species with a tail. This skill can be leveled up by using it in combat or by practicing. Because I got a half-beast form as a dragon meant that I had to learn a way to do combat like this, right? One night, while remembering some martial arts movie scenes from Earth, I got the idea of searching through the skills for something that could be used by my other form. That was how I stumbled onto [Grandma Fu]. Needless to say that I did practice it quite a lot and used it as often as I could, that was why it was now at [Level 6]. Regarding its ranks, from Level 1 to Level 5 was the Apprentice. Then followed the Practitioner until level 10, and I had the feeling that from Level 11 to 15 was going to be the Master Rank. I couldn''t wait to reach that one. As for how the skill work, it was all 100% instinctual. It was like I already knew what to do and how to do it. This one cost me 60 points, bringing my total down to 286. [The Pope] [Level 5]: Grants the Hero the ability to Project Elemental Beams from his palms. Unlocked Elements: Water; Fire; Air; Light; and Darkness. Damage has been doubled for each element. The Hero can now use the beams to move himself through different elements. Cost: 50 Magic Energy points for the initial cast and 10 Magic Energy Points to maintain the Beams for 1 second. [Advancement]: The Hero suffers no damage as a result of projecting the beams. Now this skill... this one was... how should I say... a surprise? The buy price was only of 20 points, while the upgrade to [Level 5] was 1+5+10+15+20=51, and the advancement was only 4 points. On the bright side of things, I turned into a living flashlight or a walking laser cannon. I could also use the Air elemental one to propel myself through the sky to fly and the Water one to swim faster through water. Unfortunately, it wasn''t an endless cast. This brought my total points to 211 points. [Dictionary of Turnips]: Passive ability that grants the Hero the ability to learn new languages 10 times faster than he normally could. The Hero is now able to differentiate between languages with ease. This was a skill I acquired one night because I began to worry about what I will do when I will meet other humans and won''t be able to communicate with them properly. It didn''t really solve the problem, but with a bit of hard work, I would be able to understand them and avoid any possible translation misunderstandings. At that time I didn''t consider the fact that learning another country''s language was also a sign of respect from me who now held the title of a Duke in Albeyater Kingdom. As for the cost, this one came quite cheap. It was only 10 points. So my total was 201 points now. [Senilicus Perveticus]: Passive ability that allows the Hero to improve his sex skill and offer more pleasure to his partner. This skill is not gender or sapient species restricted. This... Well... I do believe that as a man I had every right to look through that long-ass skill list for over two hours until I found it. Luck and perseverance were the key to acquiring it. As for the cost of it... 50 skill points. My total dropped down to 151 skill points now. [Constipated Grandpa]: Passive ability that grants the Hero the blade dance dual sword mastery. By shouting: ¡°HYOH!¡± and taking a combat stance, the Hero can use the following active skills: [10 meters long Cutter]; [Shadow Swords]; [Blade Tornado]; [Unlimited Shadows]; [Enraged Blade Storm]; [100 meters long Cutter]; [Steel Cutter]; [Meditate]; [Inner Warrior]; [Reflect Projectile]; [Mirror Play]; [10 meters long Impale]; [100 meters long Impale]; [Moonlight Slayer]; [Elemental Sword]; and [King Grandpa Blade Runner]; With my creation of Heaven and Hell, I had to obtain a skill which could benefit the most from this skill. Even more surprising was the fact that Chaos also benefited partially from it. If I held onto a handle of a sword, this skill was activated, and I could use some of its abilities with my two-handed blade. This was a small bug or glitch I discovered by chance. Either way, with Chaos it was incredibly powerful, but with Heaven and Hell, it was insane. If I were to describe my fighting style, then two swords meant that I was going full out melee combat, while a two-handed sword meant that I was aiming for slower but far more devastating attacks. It also meant that I combined magic with sword fighting. As such, this one was a good investment as well. 80 Skill Points it cost me. My total dropped to 71 points now. [Moonlight Eraser]: Grants the Hero the ability to spawn a pencil, a piece of paper, and an erase with the word ''Moonlight'' written on it. The items disappear after an hour. Cost: 10 Magic Energy Points and 10 Point for a time extension of another hour. This was the most absolute useless ability in my list. No, it was the most useless ability EVER! However, this was true only for combat. For someone who had lost their voice, this could be a very beneficial skill since it could allow them to write their thoughts on a piece of paper that vanished in one hour... I, however, found other uses for it. My crafting skills benefited the most from it by drawing doodles and ideas and practicing my hand. The other use was... as toilet paper. Either way, it cost me 5 points to buy it, so... I was still debating if it was a loss or not. And now I had 66 points left. [Sparkling Unicorn]: Grants the Hero the ability to create an Area Attack around him in the form of a sphere that extends outwards. To activate this ability, the Hero must shout the skill''s name. Cost: 160 Magic Energy Points initial cost. The spell can be increased by another five levels, each level costs 100 Magic Energy Points and increases both the range and overall damage of the attack. [Butt Kissing Champion!]: Grants the Hero the ability to quickly increase his charm towards another individual. This skill offers a 10% Charm increase to the Hero as a passive. This skill can target specific individuals. Upon activation, the Hero''s charm towards the affected target drops to a max negative. To activate this skill, the Hero must shout the skill''s name. To deactivate this skill, the Hero must say: ¡°It''s a joke!¡± or a something similar. Cost: 50 Magic Energy Points. These last two skills were at the peak of embarrassment. While the first one was usable in certain situation and had quite a devastating effect, the later was only usable in a party in which the members couldn''t run away from you. It was the type of skill you could use only and only if everyone already pretty much hated you. If I were to use [Butt Kissing Champion!] in a formal political meeting, chances were I was going to end up running out of there with people throwing swords after me. I actually asked Feryumstark''s advice about it, and when I described it, he begged me never to use it in a political meeting. If the opposing party were to ever reach a negative value in regard to charm, it was quite possible the meeting itself wouldn''t last long enough even to reach a neutral value. There were many times in history when political meeting were put off just because the King or Queen didn''t like the face of the ambassador. At the very least it gave me a passive ability as well, which was better than nothing. They both cost me 25 points, adding them up to a total of 16 points left. [Itsy Bitsy BOOM!] [Max Level]: Creates a CONTAINABLE Thermonuclear explosion with the equivalent of 100 Megatons TNT using the fission of a Magic Energy Core boosted by the fusion of a Deuterium and Tritium gases. [WARNING! This skill will cause nuclear fallout on a 25 km area around Point 0 of the Blast.][CONTAINMENT is achieved through the usage of 3 specialized barrier domes. The first one will contain the Fireball, which can reach a maximum of 16 km in radius from the Point 0 of the Blast. The second one will contain the heat and a part of the shockwave, spanning at 20 km in radius from the Point 0 of the Blast. The third and final dome barrier spans at 25 km in radius around the Point 0 of the Blast and has the purpose of stopping any Radiation that may spread farther than this.][WARNING! DO NOT use INDOORS!!! Like seriously! It''s a pain to stick continents back together, so do this God-like a favor and don''t pop this thing inside a cave or a dungeon!][Cost: 10000 Magic Energy Points] Of course, I couldn''t upgrade this skill at all. It was one of those maxed out skills from the very start. Looking over my entire list, I had gained quite a lot of abilities. My power was far greater now when compared to how I was when I first arrived on this planet. I also had control over four elements as a dragon: Authority, Fire, Light, and Darkness. The first one was rather weird, and I didn''t get a full understanding of it yet, however, what I found out so far was that it had an effect of sorts on those around me. It made them recognize me as a force to be reckoned with and even a leader to follow. If Draejan also had control over this Element, then this explained why he could amass such an army in such a short time. It also explained why everyone followed him. Either way, looking over this whole battlefield, and more specifically at my group of friends, I had a feeling our side was well prepared for the upcoming battle. We were fewer than them, but we were far stronger. I alone was not someone they should take lightly, and even if by chance they tried to, I would make them regret it. Chapter 67: The sound of the horn [Kataryna''s point of view] Looking at this battlefield where the smoke trails of those fires rose up high into the sky made me wonder just how long had it been since I last found myself pointing my blade at an army? Around me, I had allies and friends, in front of me, I had an enemy I could freely strike down. They were all dragons who maybe had families somewhere, who were maybe kind and honest, who had dreams and felt the world like I did, but in a war, they were just slabs of meat who wouldn''t hesitate to kill me if I didn''t kill them first. Did I have to feel bothered by this or worried or sick? When one first steps onto the battlefield, they should... If they felt joy or happiness when they took another dragon''s life, then they weren''t soldiers acting upon orders, they were monsters. A soldier would lay down his sword if given the order to do so, but the other would continue to pursue a quest drenched in innocent blood. Closing my eyes, I could hear my allies talking among each other; the superiors giving orders and their subordinates following them. For now... there were no sounds of clashing swords. We were preparing for the imminent attack. The one which was impossible to avoid, at least not with the cards we were currently holding in our hands. On this battlefield, the dragons would be the one show their might and the dragonesses their wisdom, but me and my friends weren''t part of the norm. We were dragoness who could also fight not just lead. Speaking of which, Alkelios told us while we were heading here to stick within 100 meters of him during our battle to receive a bonus of strength from him. It was true, while I stayed by his side, I felt stronger, faster, capable of wielding more magic. The sensation I got from him was one of safety? That too, but it was also receiving a rush of energy, a spike of adrenaline while holding the feeling that I could do more than usual, that I could push my limits further and further. All of us who were Alkelios'' friends felt this... At the same time, I witnessed it myself how fast everyone grew in power. He said it was just ten times the normal rate, a ridiculous value, but in reality, it was far more. How would it be best for me to describe this buff of his? If a dragon could train for ten years and attain just 100 Power Numbers, then in that time, he would experience moments of slow, normal, or fast improvement rate. Well, Alkelios'' buff simply broke through this concept. Every single drop of life force we received from a monster or every time we trained our skills it was like doing it at maximum performance and fastest improvement rate, no matter how our actual states were. I could kill an injured Dayuk by accident and receive the experience equal to one obtained after a life and death battle with it. If this wasn''t enough, then all of this was amplified by ten times. It was ridiculous, but thanks to this, I, who didn''t increas in Power Number for who knew how many decades, also became stronger. The ones who showed the highest improvement, however, were of course Iolaus and Seryanna. Both them went through a hellish regime of training in which they pushed themselves beyond their limits. They didn''t take the boost for granted and instead thought of it as if it was never there in the first place. At this rate, those two would become Breakthrough-ers in a year or maybe two? Mentally speaking, they were already close to this state. Seryanna also had a nice boost thanks to the fact that she was a Superior Draconian of the High Flame. Still, all of them could most likely handle a Breakthrough-er on their own. Just because one reached Power Number 1000 didn''t mean that they had the strength to back up this status and if you didn''t train properly, it was normal for your skill to rust. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Seryanna asked me as she approached me from behind. She was wearing the armor made by Alkelios together with a weapon made by him. It was a ridiculous item that could heal the wearer and offer incredible defense. Above all, it was designed both to improve Seryanna''s skills and be used by her personally. I couldn''t even fit in the darn thing, let alone use it. Her weapon was called [Drachenkrieg]. I had no idea what the name meant, but neither did Alkelios. Apparently, when he made a very powerful weapon, its name was given by the gods just like the ancient rumors said. It was the same with my weapon, a two-handed longsword with the name [Ledyanoy Potseluy], but if I were to guess, maybe it meant Ice Kiss? Alkelios told me he was reminded of the time I kissed him when he made it, but this sword, when held, emanated a cold aura which for me was warm to the touch, but for anyone else it was biting cold. It was indeed like an Ice Kiss, warm when shared with your beloved and biting cold when given to a foe. This weapon could also amplify my ice magic, but I could also feel it synchronizing with my lightning magic. When I tried to use an elemental combo spell, I channeled it through the blade perfectly and it was cast faster than I ever could before. Seryanna''s sword was similar in regard to fire, but I understood that if completely unleashed it would turn everything around her into a fiery inferno where only she could step safely. I also received an armor from Alkelios. It was blue with white plates here and there, unlike Seryanna''s which was a mix of red and black, but just like her''s mine boosted my defenses by a ridiculous number and also made it incredibly easy for me to move in. I relied a lot on my speed for my attacks, and this armor was perfect in this regard. It could also boost my elemental magic as well, allowing me to use ice or lightning body strengthening techniques. To be honest, I felt like my power had doubled, at the very least, with his gifts. ¡°About this war... and Alkelios.¡± I replied to Seryanna. ¡°It''s his first, isn''t it?¡± she said as she stepped next to me and looked into the far reaches of the battlefield. ¡°Depending on how he will act and feel after this, we will know for certain whether we need to tame a monster or heal an injured saint.¡± I told her. ¡°Heh. Alkelios is no saint, he won''t have problems killing dragons, but what I''m worried about is how he will react towards the human if he shows up.¡± she scoffed and closed her eyes for a second. ¡°I''m just glad he isn''t one of those idiot noble children who tremble in their tents yelling back at the soldiers and saying that in wars dragons die. Or if you kill someone they die... Heh, it''s like claiming you just discovered that water is wet or fire burns.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I guess you heard the baron''s son wailing in his tent?¡± she asked with a wry smile. ¡°Unfortunately, yes. So I decided to freeze him up to his neck and then tell him that if he doesn''t want to fight he can stay like that until the end of battle, but if the enemies breach through and they end up killing everyone he cares about back in his home town, he should know that it could have been all his fault.¡± I snickered. ¡°Isn''t that a bit over the top?¡± she asked me. ¡°Nah! Over the top would have been to freeze him completely and then give his father an ice pick to get him out.¡± I shrugged. ¡°You should come in. The King is ready to share his battle strategy with us. It needed to be revised after we saw what the enemy did to these fields. The Queen''s already taking measures of importing more food from the nearby kingdoms and boosting the productions in the unaffected areas.¡± she told me. ¡°Is she now? Well, it''s a good thing she''s taking measures in regard to dampening the damages done as much as possible, however...¡± I said and then narrowed my eyes towards the enemy line ¡°who would have guessed that Dankyun managed to gather 364000 dragons to fight for him?¡± ¡°And six Breakthrough-ers...¡± Seryanna pointed out. ¡°It''s not that bad, we have ten on our side and you could be considered to be the 11th.¡± I showed her a smile. ¡°I wonder about that.¡± she made a wry smile. ¡°Have more confidence in your power.¡± I told her and then walked over to the Headquarters Tent. [Alkelios'' point of view] It was a good thing I revised my skills earlier. The values in my friends'' stats were impressive and mine were downright ridiculous, however, I still didn''t have the confidence that we could get out of this fight unscratched. In the first place, this was a war. Anything could go wrong no matter how powerful one was. A single moment of distraction was enough to make even a Breakthrough-er succumb to the blade of a simple, ordinary soldier. All they had to do was to get close enough and be ready to strike, to land a blow in that exact moment. Back on Earth it was the same thing. It was called the Stray Bullet Effect or something like that. Basically, people ended up getting injured or killed by stray bullets that went flying all over the place because of a shootout or an accidental unload of the neighbor on the other side of the town. Actually, I heard the same thing about a certain military shooting range in Romania where the bullets flew over the protection wall and landed in the backyards of civilians, breaking stuff and leaving holes there. Luckily, no one died yet, and thanks to the media, the army was forced to make amends. Because I didn''t want something like this to happen and I feared my friends getting seriously injured or killed during this war, I made several Luck-based wishes meant to keep them safe from stray arrows and spells. If a normal soldier from Earth heard me, he would have probably laughed in my face and told me that I was worrying too much. Death on the battlefield was unavoidable no matter the side you were on, and this was one of the risks you had to take when you went in. To hope or pray for no losses was an idealistic point of view which was never to come true. Yet, I still pursued that ideal with the power of my Luck. When I landed back on the ground, I walked over to the Headquarters Tent where a strategy meeting was going to take place. All of my friends were already there, and they wore the armor and weapons I made for them. They were thankful for them and quite impressed when I told them what they could do. ¡°Alkelios, you are the last to arrive.¡± said Feryumstark who stood on the opposite side of a big table with the big map of this area spread on it. Unlike me, all of the dragons and dragonesses here were in their humanoid form, not their half-beast form, which forced me to look down at them from above. ¡°I apologize, I went to have a look from the sky at the enemy''s force.¡± I told him as I made a respectful bow in front of him and everyone else there. It was never polite or a wise thing to have your superior wait on you. ¡°No need to apologize, but tell me, how do things look from up there?¡± he asked and narrowed his eyes at me. Queen Elliessara was also here, standing next to him together with Princess Elleyzabelle. The Prime Minister Elovius was back at the capital. During this time of war, having no one in power at the center of the state would be absolutely foolish. I closed my eyes for a second and told him ¡°Using a boosted version of ''that'' skill, I could wipe out a big majority of their force, but this would only result in me damaging the area to the point where a full scale reconstruction would be needed as well as poisoning the lands for decades to come. Do you wish me to use it?¡± I asked as I opened my eyes and looked straight into his. ¡°No.¡± the Queen promptly replied in his stead. ¡°I agree with my wife on this one, but I would also like to hear everyone''s opinion on this one.¡± said the King as he cast his gaze on all those present here. ¡°If this dragon has such a terrifying power, then why don''t we just toss a weaker version of that attack on them as a warning? It would lower their morale and boost our forces''.¡± a dragon with dark-brown scales and a full-plate Dregaryum armor suggested. This dragon with a fierce gaze and a two-handed sword sheathed on his back went by the name of Reyades Undrakan. He, just like all the other six here, was one of the many Breakthrough-ers under the King and Queen''s command.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Because this area is part of the kingdom''s granary. If we win this war, the crops will reemerge in one year or two and the losses would be recovered, but if I use this attack, then the respective area will have no chance of recovering for decades to come.¡± I replied, showing my desire not to use the [Itsy Bitsy BOOM!]. No matter how good a nuke would be to win an easy war, if I had no means of taking care of the fallout it would be the same as poisoning my own land. Besides, there were innocent in these areas and maybe not all soldiers in that ridiculous army came to this battlefield by will. I could imagine Draejan conscripting the local able dragons into his forces while taking the weapons and armors from the dragoness fighters. ¡°I don''t see the problem? Can''t we just not plant there?¡± Reyades asked scratching the back of his head. ¡°If we can''t find a way to win without relying on Alkelios'' powerful spell and harming our own lands, then it would be best not to claim we are proud dragon warriors who uphold to honor and justice!¡± Feryumstark declared. ¡°Sigh, his Majesty has always been someone who would prefer not to employ underhanded means unless absolutely necessary.¡± The one who spoke was Leone Sylvara, a dragon of the wind element with light-green scales, a beautiful long silver hair tied into a bum at the back, and who wore long blue robe. He was this kingdom''s communication specialist. Underhanded means? Well... you could say that it is indeed a cowardly way to attack... Although when in war, does one really need to care so much about the means used to end it? Wouldn''t even the slaughter of thousands of innocents be then justified as an unfortunate casualty by the victor? I mean, I did use it on that insect army and didn''t really feel any guilt about it, but that was an army in the middle of a wasteland... I thought as I tried to find inside of me a reason to use it. In the end, this wasn''t a wasteland with an alien-looking army in the middle of it... There cities and towns nearby, villages with innocent dragons living there, hoping and praying to the gods for this war to not take away their loved ones. Killing them in cold blood or destroying their means of survival by irradiating these plains wasn''t something I could do... ¡°I do agree with this decision. In a matter of strategic war, it is indeed wise to poison the enemy''s supply of food and water, but in this case, they are invading on our lands. Poisoning our own supplies would be the same as granting them a temporary win.¡± said the dragoness standing on the left side of the Queen. She had long silky black hair that went down all the way to her waist and contrasted her pure-white scales. As a dragoness of the light element, she was well renown healer, or at least so she claimed. Ah yes, this land doesn''t belong to Embryger. Those settlements are part of Albeyater in the end. I thought as I let out a sigh of relief in my mind. I was happy I had found another reason not to use my skill. ¡°I would prefer to win this war through steel and blood, not some spell that seems to do more harm than good.¡± scoffed Moros Onias. This dragon had gray scales and was a double elemental: Ice and Earth. He was the type to let his swords do the talking, that was why when he first met me, he immediately requested a duel with me. I respectfully declined. Fighting against an allied Breakthrough-er right before a war started wasn''t what one would call smart. ¡°I too agree with Onias here, no matter how much my words surprise me.¡± Berros Mandrakea let out a sigh and then squinted his eyes at the dragon in question. This guy was a vanguard all in all. His big build, tough armor, large shield, and spear as a weapon made him to be one who was most suited at taking the brunt force of an attack. He was a dragon with brown scales, which pointed out the fact that he was of the Earth element. ¡°I don''t really care as long as I get to chop off some heads and let my summons go wild! Hihi!¡± said Mendeles Unvar. This dragon was of the Water element, and his blue scales were shiny and well maintained. Mendeles was as he said, a dragon who specialized in summoning magic, which he reinforced with long range spells. What had me worried about him was his rather childish personality. Despite being a rather old Breakthrough-er, he behaved more or less like a 12 years old, however, Feryumstark assured me that when it came to battle, he was quite the sneaky dangerous little devil. He was not a dragon who should be underestimated because of this. ¡°As for me, I''m more curious about what this strong dragon can do in bed.¡± said Novias Oshika with a soft purr in the tone of her voice. Her armor left little to the imagination. Her green scales and voluptuous body could bring out any man''s inner desire, but this was exactly her purpose. Oshika was a seductress of the Wind element, who used the sweet caress of wind to entice dragons and dragonesses alike in order to make mistakes during their battle and leave an opening through which she could land a fatal strike. I was also told that she was also quite good with range attacks and binding spells. She could bring to a halt thousands of dragons if she wanted to and then strike them mercilessly with her ranged magic. ¡°Watch it!¡± Seryanna glared at the dragoness as she placed her hand on the hilt of her sword. ¡°Oh my, the wifey is scary! But...¡± Oshika winked at her ¡°I don''t mind a threesome with you.¡± she purred. ¡°You should stop it unless you want to find out how it''s like to be both frozen and cooked alive.¡± Kataryna glared at Oshika. ¡°Everyone, please calm down.¡± Feryumstark said and the two dragoness turned their backs at each other with a loud ''hmph!''. Seryanna chose to ignore her as well. ¡°Good, now Brekkar, what is your point of view in all of this?¡± he asked. ¡°I do believe, your Majesty, that the rest of us are going to follow Alkelios'' judgment on this one. He knows his skill better than anyone and if he firmly claims that it would do more bad than good to us, then I oppose the use of it.¡± the red-scaled dragon said with a nod of his head. ¡°I see... In that case, the vote has been given. Alkelios, you are to use this skill of yours only and only if it is our last resort. I don''t want to destroy and poison my lands to such a degree either. It would have been something else if we were talking about the enemy''s territory.¡± Feryumstark said and then let out a sigh. ¡°Speaking of which, what happened to the human invasion?¡± asked Sylvara. ¡°Yeah, I heard about it too. The only reason me, Leone, and Malavan returned from our quest to find a cure for the Queen was because of the [All-Call]¡± he said. I see, so there was a group that was sent to find a cure after all. I did think of it as a bit strange that there was no one looking for it, but didn''t they get the memo that a cure had been found? I thought and then I asked ¡°How did that go?¡± ¡°Lots of dead ends, unfortunately.¡± he said shaking his head. ¡°I have the recipe if you want it.¡± I shrugged. ¡°What?¡± the man looked at me with big eyes. ¡°We are going off-track here. Speak of my cure later, now let us focus on this battle. Also, I did send several letters to you three, but thanks to some spies, they never reached you it seems.¡± Elliessara said as she unfolded the fan she held in her hand and looked at Leone Sylvara. ¡°I have heard of this as well... But nonetheless, it is most fortunate that someone found a cure, but in regard to the human invasion, I am wondering whether or not it was a distraction to keep our forces separated?¡± Sylvara asked in a calm tone of voice, but his tail was wagging like that of a happy dog. ¡°That is exactly what happened.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°With the sudden mobilization of our army on two separate fronts, I had to write a lot of letters and gather a lot of proof to be sent to the neighboring countries. The last thing we would want would be to end up attacked by them as well because they believed we had started an invasion campaign.¡± Elliessara explained. ¡°Your Majesty, but how can you be sure those letters will reach the destination?¡± Verona asked. ¡°As a matter of fact, they already reached their destination. I had made use of Kataryna''s flight speed for this.¡± she replied in a calm tone of voice. ¡°You sure made me fly a lot...¡± the silver-scaled dragoness let out a sigh. ¡°Once I found out that my letters never reached their target, I had to change my strategy. For this, as I said before, and I will reinforce this statement once again in front of everyone here, Kataryna Greorg, I am indebted to you.¡± said Elliessara as she gave her a nod. ¡°Sigh, don''t bother.¡± Kataryna shruggged. ¡°Your Majesties, what is the plan of attack?¡± Brekkar asked, making sure the conversation wasn''t side-tracked again. If this was a meeting between regular dragons, this meeting would have reached the main point long ago, and their Majesties would have done all the talking so far, however, everyone here was a Breakthrough-er or not far from it. Our general state of mind and the way we saw things was rather leaned back. ¡°Let us do a small recap of our enemy''s forces. They have six confirmed Breakthrough-er. One of them is a mercenary from Ozur; two were sent by the faction in Embryger; one is from the vassal state Novarak; one is a wandering mercenary without a home country; and the last one is from Olvia. However, these are only the known and confirmed Breakthrough-ers reported by our spies. I have reasons to presume that Draejan and his men may have brought others or he himself is now a Breakthrough-er.¡± the King explained as he placed a wooden carving in the form of a dragon soldier on the map. ¡°I heard we were up against 364000 dragons. How do you wish for us to fight against them with our 26000?¡± asked Brekkar. ¡°Attacking head-on would be a mistake. They can overwhelm us with sheer numbers, and this was probably what they were aiming for from the beginning.¡± Feryumstark replied. ¡°I wonder if my history will repeat itself?¡± Kataryna wondered with a smile on her lips. ¡°It is possible, but I want you and Alkelios to take care of the Breakthrough-ers. You two will form a Breakthrough-er Hunting Team. The Draketerus sisters together with Brekkar''s apprentice will aim for the dragon Commanders of the enemy''s army. As for me and Brekkar, we will form a group and act as the Generals of this army as well as Commander and Breakthrough-er Hunters.¡± he explained. ¡°What about the rest of us?¡± Undrakan asked. ¡°Reyades Undrakan, Leone Sylvaran, and Malavan Verona will act as the guards for the Queen of Albeyater Kingdom. They are to defend her with their lives and if things turn to worse, you are to retreat with her to Drakaria and enforce a defensive strategy.¡± Feryumstark ordered in a firm tone of voice. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± all three of them replied at the same time and saluted. Why do I feel like my group is receiving a different treatment when compared to these other Breakthrough-ers? Or maybe we aren''t that used to orders or the standard procedure? It could be this as well... I thought. ¡°Berros Mandrakea, Mendeles Unvar, Novias Oshika, and Moros Oniar, you four are to advance and support our army of 26000 which will be separated in four different groups. Do not engage in battles with Breakthrough-ers unless absolutely necessary. The Hunters will try to take them out before they become a problem for you. In this battle, we hold a disadvantage in soldier numbers, but we hold and advantage in Breakthrough-er numbers.¡± said Feryumstark as he looked at all of them. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± all four of them replied at the same time and saluted, just like the previous three. ¡°Erm, if you wish, your Majesty, I could offer my mass-produced armors and weapons to our army''s commanders and more important officers?¡± I offered raising a hand up. ¡°That would be helpful. You have already proven yourself to be an excellent blacksmith and enchanter!¡± Feryumstark praised me and nodded. ¡°Indeed, them dragonesses do have some fine weapons and armors. Yours too is quite the impressive beauty!¡± Unvar pointed out and then let out a sigh. ¡°They are my best work so far.¡± I replied. ¡°But is it wise to do a change of gear so late? Will they be able to use it to its maximum potential?¡± wonderd Sylvara. ¡°They will have to, although, true, it would have been better if you did this earlier.¡± said Brekkar. ¡°Sorry, it just occurred to me.¡± I replied as I scratch the back of my head. Dragon claws made very very good back scratchers. ¡°It is better if they have a sturdy sword in battle even if they aren''t fully used to it yet than to have it break after the first strike.¡± pointed out Unvar with a nod of his head. ¡°Then I see no problem with having our Commanders and Captains change their gear. As such, I call this meeting adjourned! May the gods watch over us and guide us on the path to victory!¡± declared Feryumstark in firm tone of voice. ¡°May victory be with the Albeyater Kingdom!¡± we all replied in a loud tone of voice and saluting the King and Queen. After I left the tent, I visited every commander and captain in our army and gave them each an armor set and a weapon made by me. They were far superior to what they had until now and was supposed to keep them safe against most attacks around levels 500-700. I doubted they would be able to face off against a Breakthrough-er though. There was little to no chance of that happening. Regarding the armor and weapon, I did tell every dragon and dragoness I gave it to that it was a loan from the Albeyater Kingdom and not to think of it as a present or gift. When this war was over, if his Majesty judged that it was alright for them to have it, then I didn''t mind if they gave me the materials for it as payment. Of course, I wasn''t worried that they might not accept this offer. Once they saw my loaned items in battle, they were certain to place orders even for more! Turning this into a nice profit and then getting myself a big pile o'' gold to sleep on didn''t sound that bad. Well, I just hoped no annoying little dwarfs would drop by to steal my treasure. And then, not long after I equipped the last commander, I heard the sound of the horn which announced the incoming attack of the enemy. ¡°So it has begun...¡± I said as I flew over to where my friends were. Chapter 68: Legendary! [Alkelios'' point of view] ¡°That''s a lot of them...¡± said Kataryna. Draejan''s army was advancing with roaring dragons soaring through the skies and soldiers numbering in the hundreds of thousands marching towards us in their half-beast forms. Their were all roaring for victory, making me feel a pressure on my shoulders and soul. We can''t win this... I was led to think, but I refused to let this false thought take hold of me. My wife had me by my side, and in her eyes I saw the burning will to fight and push back this invading force. Next to her was Kleo, and although Iolaus was holding her hand, I could see the determination and desire in them to fight together and not let the enemy separate them. On my right was Kataryna, and her tail was still. She was looking at the tsunami of fire-breathing enemies with serious eyes and planning on how to take them out. To say that this was nothing for her would have meant to overestimate her abilities. I knew of her past, but back then she faced a smaller number of foes, and she was lucky she didn''t suffer from the [Berserker''s Burst] like Brekkar did. There was a lot tension in the air around. There were a lot of whispers of worry, and even I felt the looming possibility of defeat. ¡°I really don''t like this...¡± I said. Looking back, I saw the Queen surrounded by her three Breakthrough-er guards: Reyades Undrakan, Leone Sylvaran, and Malavan Verona. Her Majesty was sitting on a chair while hiding her face behind the silver fan she carried. Only her eyes gazed upon the battlefield. This white-scaled dragoness was the top figure in the Albeyater Kingdom. Her voice and will governed over everyone, including the King. Normally, I would have thought that letting her stay out here in the open was a very poor choice of strategy, but through this risky action of hers, the Queen not only showed bravery but also her will to stand by her people. This brought courage to the dragons and dragonesses who stood in front of me, the simple soldiers brought here by the orders of the nobles they were under on. Honestly, I felt like the only reason they didn''t flee despite seeing the overwhelming wave approaching us was only because of Queen Elliessara Seyendraugher. How could they turn tail and run when she was here to watch over them? They wouldn''t allow themselves to run away, but still... it was scary to look at this mass of dragons who were running towards us only with the intent to kill us. All of us felt more or less overwhelmed and worried. One thing was the theory, the planning, the simulation of a battle you did in your mind, and another was to stand there on the battlefield, staring in your enemy''s eyes and wondering how and when you have to pull the trigger. ¡°Dragons and dragonesses of Albeyater Kingdom!¡± the Queen called out ¡°It is time to fight to defend your land, families, and your freedom! It is time to show those wretched fools that simple numbers are no match for our will and strength!¡± she folded her fan and lifted it up. The gaze in her eyes was one of absolute determination and resolution. ¡°Children of Albeyater! March forward and bring home victory!¡± she shouted and lowered her fan, pointing it at the enemy wave. ¡°FOR ALBEYATER! FOR ALBEYATER!¡± the soldiers shouted at the same time, raising their swords and shields up. ¡°You heard the Queen! Let''s show those bastard dragons that they can''t mess around with us! Follow me to battle and glory! Follow me to victory!¡± Feryumstark shouted and then let out a roar. This unique roar was powerful and felt like a rush of energy. It was a skill limited only to those few dragons from the Authority element. It boosted the morale and gave courage to those who lacked it. ¡°FOR ALBEYATER! FOR ALBEYATER!¡± the soldiers shouted again. ¡°MOVE OUT!¡± the four Breakthrough-ers tasked with leading the army of 26000 gave out the order. All the soldiers advanced, ready to collide with the enemy forces. Seeing so many dragons and dragonesses move out to fight a number far higher than theirs gave me a strange feeling. Maybe it was because of Feryumstark''s Authority roar, but I felt, deep down, in this soul I carried, that this battle was going to be... legendary. It was going to be something worthy to be mentioned in history books and retold by bards all around the world as the most breathtaking battle that ever took place. And those stories... were more than likely going to be about me and my friends here. They were going to be about those who turned the tide of this battle. Then, as I watched the two forces approaching each other, I felt like my breath had stopped. The shouts came from both sides. The roars were spread all over the place. There were no humanoid dragons, only half-beasts and full-beasts. Staying in their weaker forms would have been foolish. All of us except for the Queen were turned to half-beasts forms, clenching the hilts of our swords, ready to jump into the fight, ready to slash and show them all what we were made off. ¡°It started...¡± said Kataryna when the first swords clashed together and the two waves met. Blood was spilled in that moment from both side. Yet, the enemy who outnumbered us still pushed forward. I gulped. ¡°It''s time.¡± I said. ¡°Everyone, let us show them our fangs!¡± Seryanna said and she changed to her full-beast form together with everyone else. They did not need to worry about my armors and weapons, they were meant to take the form of a protective layer around their more sensitive parts, while the weapons turned into a claw armor. I was the only one who would not be able to change, but for me, this half-beast form was enough. I unsheathed Heaven and Hell right when everyone''s transformation stopped. Seryanna was a beautiful dragoness with rose-red scales and short spikes flowing down her spine. Her wings spread far and wide, showing that she was more than able to tame the winds, and her armor covered her chest, her stomach, her spine, and her neck. The weapon I gave her had turned into bright-red claw armor on the pointing finger of her right hand. Kataryna was a dragoness covered in silver-scales, but with shorter spikes than Seryanna. The gaze in her eyes and the way she presented herself gave her an elegant, almost royal feel, but just like in the case of my wife, her blue and white armor covered her stomach, her chest, her spine, and her neck. The sword I gave her took the shape of a blue armor claw around the pointing finger of her right hand. Kleo''s beast form was the first one I got the ''pleasure'' of getting a ''close encounter'' with and it was the same: big, majestic, scary, and completely covered in black shiny scales. Next to her was Iolaus who was looking like a surprisingly thin and scrawny dragon when compared to Kleo, but his neck and tail were longer and his wings were a bit smaller too. He was the only one who was covered completely by my armor because his was the full-plate max protection type. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± I asked. Seryanna puffed a cloud of smoke. Kataryna nodded. Kleo showed a sinister smile, and I could swear I saw something moving in her shadow. Iolaus snapped his tail and nodded. ¡°Then...¡± I took a deep breath in and closed my eyes. The sound of swords clashing and dragons fighting... Who knew I would get to see such a ridiculous scene, no... participate in this ridiculous battle? Ah, but... I''m one of them now, ain''t I? I thought and opened my eyes. From the bottom of my lungs, I let out the most powerful roar I could muster. ¡°ROOOAAAR!!!¡± It was far more powerful than the King''s because I amplified it with [Fatty McFat] skill, which allowed it to spread all the way to the end of this battlefield. All those near me would feel its full effect. My roar would also affect those I thought of as allies and those I thought of as enemies in different ways. One of the reason I flew all the way up into the sky earlier was in order to mark them all as enemies and accept those on this side of the camp as allies. My roar would boost the strength and morale of my allies and drop those of the enemy. However, I also added [Intimidation] to it, which under this amplified effect would make the strong ones stagger and the weak ones even freeze in spot for a few moments. When it was over, I could see my friends smiling and taking flight. I followed them close behind, while I took a peak down below. My allies were fighting with an energy and determination they didn''t show before. Thanks to my roar, the tables had turned completely... Actually, if I were to be specific, the morale of our troops was affected first by the Queen''s speech, then by the King''s roar, and I joined last as a booster. ¡°That was one hell of a roar, Alkelios!¡± Kataryna complimented me. ¡°I feel like I can take on the entire army now!¡± Seryanna claimed. ¡°Please don''t... Leave some for us.¡± I said to her. While we flew, I took a hop and rode on her back. It was probably the most badass image I could think off... A half-dragon who wielded two crazy powerful longswords of completely opposite elements: Darkness and Light, while wearing a powerful sleek-looking armor of black and metallic silver colors and flying through the sky while riding a powerful red dragoness and surrounded by three others. We flew above our army like this and then clashed into the hoard of enemy flying dragons. ¡°LEAVE NONE STANDING!¡± roared Seryanna. Kataryna let out a breath of ice which froze three dragons and Kleo shattered them with black spears. Iolaus let out a blinding flash of light at one of the dragons and then smashed into him, sending him crashing into his allied troops below. Creating a spear of light, he then tossed it at the dragon and skewered him. I jumped off Seryanna and flew up towards a massive red dragon with dark-red scales. It opened its mouth filled with razor sharp teeth and formed a barrage of fireballs which he shot at me. I dodged them all and made Hell eat all those who would have hit my friends. The dragon then prepared to roar, but I flew past his neck and with Heaven, I made a clean cut into his flesh. The massive head was separated from his body and fell to the ground. Using [Air Jump], I pushed myself back and avoided the massive halberd aimed at me. With [Slow Time], everything moved around me much slower than it normally did, about ten times slower. I identified my target and as soon as I canceled this skill, I used [Tornado of Light Blades] on him, which was one of my most powerful attacks from [Shadow Play]. The attack created a swirling tornado of light and swords of light which engulfed the brown-scaled dragon. His screams of agony ended quickly and only pieces of chopped up meat rained down from the sky. Looking down, I saw Seryanna jumping on one of the white-scale dragons and forcefully opened his mouth with both of her clawed hands before letting out an unstoppable breath of fire. The dragon wailed in pain before he perished carbonized from inside out. She let go of his lifeless body and then used a [Fire Sword] to cut a nearby dragon in half. Grabbing the remains with the head, she tossed it at a group of dragons on the ground who were pushing back our allies. ¡°I''m gonna'' kill y-¡± a dragon shouted at me and tried to attack me in my moment of distraction, but a huge [Ice Spike] flew from below and skewered the dragon, killing him instantly. It was Kataryna. She showed me a smirk and then released a breath of ice on the enemies below, thousands were frozen in place, letting our allies kill them with ease. I nodded back and then looked at several dragons flying at me. It was my turn to use that skill... ¡°HYOH!¡± I shouted and took a fighting stance. The next moment, I targeted one of the incoming dragon''s chest and used [100 meters long Impale]. When I released the skill, I pushed Heaven forward in a perfect martial arts strike which sent an invisible strike through the air and cut my foe''s heart in half. Of course, if he was skilled, he would have seen the clouds between us parting and avoided the strike or make it not hit a vital spot. Fortunately, he wasn''t. With Heaven in my left hand and Hell in my right hand, I activated [Mirror Play], which caused three illusions of me to appear around me. Each of them advanced in a different direction, while the real me attacked the target at the back, a silver-scale dragon. He tried to defend himself with his claws, but Hell wouldn''t be stopped by something like this. The dragon fell to my blade and his remains crashed down on top of his allies found on the ground. The next one was a green-scale dragon, whose wings were detached with Heaven and his heart pierced with Hell. From him, I jumped to the white-scale one, who just noticed that the one he was fighting against was nothing but an illusion. When he turned around, I scissored his neck with my swords and let his lifeless body fall on the ground. The final one was a blue-scale dragon. When he saw himself in front of me, he trembled and then tried to flee. I lifted my hand up and thought about taking him down, but I stopped. True, this is a battlefield... This is war... But killing someone who already lost his will to fight and only tries to flee is a cowardly act. No... it''s inhuman. Or... indragon? I thought and then shook my head and let out a sigh. I would fight those who attacked me and kill those who crossed blades with me, but I didn''t want to take the role of the hunter for those who turned tail and flee. If I did that, I feared my heart would break and I would end up walking on a path I shouldn''t... When I''m older, I don''t want to be the type of father who has to explain to his children why he killed in cold blood an enemy who fled. I thought. I just didn''t want to be one of those guys... CLANG! CRACK! ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised when I heard that sound. Looking back, I saw a full-beast dragon with brown-scales who was holding a big greatsword in his hands, but it was broken at the middle. I titled my head to the left, and he showed me a wry smile.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Did he hit me with that? I thought. I didn''t feel a thing... Dropping the remains of the sword, he began to cast two lighting spells, but I aimed my hand at him and cast [Shadow Arrow] amplified with [Fatty McFat]. The projectile went straight through him, stopping him from casting. Looking down at the hole in his chest, he began to lose strength in his wings and fall down on the ground. ¡°Alkelios!¡± shouted Kataryna as she flew over. ¡°I''m here!¡± I replied. ¡°There are two Breakthrough-ers incoming!¡± she warned me as she flew to my side and then looked in their directions. One of them had blue scales and wielded two giant swords, while the other had light-green scales and was already charging up some sort of magic. ¡°What''s with these dragons and big weapons?!¡± I complained. ¡°Full-beast soldiers are the heavy units, while those on the ground are the light units.¡± Kataryna explained before jumping to engage the green-scaled one. ¡°In the name of Novarak, I''ll have you die here!¡± he shouted. ¡°And you, little one, will die by my blades!¡± said the blue-scaled one. I blocked with Hell and Heaven the attack, but the power was quite something, and since I never had that many aerial battles, I didn''t know how to compensate for the force. Thus, I was shot into the ground. How I didn''t fall when that dragon smacked me with his greatsword earlier was a mystery! ¡°Hahaha! What a weakling!¡± he said as he looked down at me. I landed in the middle of the enemy troops, but thanks to the shockwave released upon my impact, they were dispersed a bit. There was some space between me and them, so I just got back up on my feet and released an [Earth Spike Tsunami] around me. The screams of the dying dragons were soon heard, and using this moment, I used [Weakness Perception] on the enemy above me. The skill told me where I should attack. I wasn''t shown something like an overlay over the dragon with areas marked as red or green, but rather I instinctively knew that hitting one place might inflict more damage. Experienced warriors had no need for this skill, their instincts were already formed in regard to this, but I couldn''t be so foolish as to believe that after spending not even 2 years in this world, I already knew how spot the weak spots in my enemies. With a serious look on my face, I jumped off and flew up straight towards the dragon I was fighting against. Our swords clashed again. A small shockwave was released and sparks flew in all directions. ¡°That''s some sturdy blades you have there!¡± he smirked. ¡°You''re the mercenary, aren''t you?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah, so what of it?¡± he asked with a smirk as he tried to push me back, but using [Air Jump] and my own wings for stability, I didn''t let him. ¡°How much is Draejan paying you?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh! A business dragon! Sorry kid, but this old scale doesn''t go by who pays more but who hires first! I have a reputation to live up to, you know?¡± he showed me a grin. ¡°Can''t blame me for trying, but may I ask what you were hired to do?¡± I jumped back from him. ¡°Well, it''s simple. I was told to kill all the Breakthrough-ers that stand in my way, the King, the Queen, and any other dragon or dragoness who stands in my way. Something like that?¡± he laughed. ¡°That''s quite an expensive sounding contract, but if you turn tail here, I won''t kill you. How about it?¡± I asked. ¡°No deal kid. Turning tail from a battle would be just an insult to me! So please... just die?¡± he lifted his hand up and cast [Water Spear] spells like a machine gun. I avoided two of them and the others used my [Wind Barrier], [Shadow Barrier], and [Light Barrier] to stop them. Using fire would have been the most efficient, but it would have created steam, which would have blocked my view, giving my enemy a free shot at killing me. As for the spears that I dodged, they struck the soldiers bellow, Albeyater''s soldiers. The results were two craters, each with an eight meters diameter. There were several killed and lots of wounded. The spears were designed to detonate upon impact as well. The only way they wouldn''t was if blocked by a magic barrier. Of course, one could also detonate them before impact, but this was not the case. Seeing that his attack wasn''t doing anything to me, he stopped and charged me with his two swords again, but this time, he used [Mirror Play], causing three other illusions to form. I clicked my tongue, but instead of engaging them all, I used [Enraged Blade Storm], which caused me to get a bit angry and raise the temperature around me, but at the same time my swords moved at speeds which made them extremely hard to see even for those like me. After all, all of my sword skills used my Strength, Speed, and Dexterity stats as well. ¡°Wh-What''s this?¡± the dragon stopped in his tracks as he looked at me with big eyes. ¡°[Negate all Light]¡± I chanted and made it so that only my allies weren''t affected by it. When I cast this spell, which was amplified by [Fatty McFat], half of this battlefield turned completely black. The enemy would see the world around them as if they had gone blind, while the allies would see the world around them as if someone turned off the light but forgot to tell the light not to shine or reflect off the bodies of objects. If this wasn''t made by magic, I would think it would be absolutely impossible to replicate in real life. On a computer maybe, but definitely not in real life. The laws of physic simply didn''t work that way. ¡°What did you do?!¡± the blue-scaled dragon shouted. ¡°Cookies!¡± I replied. ¡°Huh?¡± he made a stupid sound, but the next thing I would hear from him would be a groan. My blades slashed at his body, cutting his armor and flesh, letting his blood spill. ¡°T-This... is cheating...¡± he groaned as he tried to attack me, but I was already gone by the time he struck there. I was smaller than him, but I was faster, and I could see. Before he focused his senses, I planned on injuring him enough to either kill him or force him to give up. As for his remark, no, this wasn''t cheating, it was using your own skills to fight a foe with all you had. ¡°THERE!¡± he shouted and then slashed at me. I parried and brushed the sword to my right. I slipped through the gap and pierced Heaven in his neck. This was a split second attack, an unpredictable moment. ¡°M-My... loss...¡± he said, and I pulled the sword back. The attack sectioned his jugular but not his windpipe. Without immediate healing, he would die, and considering all the injuries I gave them until now, this big dragon was most likely not going to see the day of tomorrow. Looking at his body plummet to the ground, I let out a sigh and closed my eyes for a moment. I wasn''t praying to him, I was just... a bit disappointed. I was hoping for more from him, but maybe Kataryna and Feryumstark were in a different league than him? ¡°I guess I should summon her as well...¡± I thought and looked up. The darkness around me was a good cover to keep everyone from seeing what I was doing, so before it expired, I raised my hand up and called out to Jophiel Thunderash, the Lightning Phoenix. ¡°[Lightning Chicken!]¡± I shouted as I cast the spell. Normally, I would have seen a bright blinding light followed by a wave of heat, but this time, thanks to [Negate all Light], I only felt the latter. What I saw instead was a fire portal opening before me, and Jophiel stepped out of it. ¡°How are you doing, master? And who turned off the sun?¡± she asked with a bright smile on her face. Unlike before when she looked like a bird, this time, she was a winged little girl with bright red hair flowing down her shoulders. She looked adorable, but clearly not human. Her wings were covered in beautiful feathers with gold lines at the end. Their wingspan was twice if not triple the size of her whole body, and they radiated in a strange, mesmerizing aura. The dress she was wearing was rose-red and decorated with gold markings. Her irises were gold in color, but they were surrounded by a bright red ring. ¡°Jophiel, good to see you. How was the Tournament of the Sacred Flame?¡± I asked her. ¡°Can''t you see?¡± she made twirl in the air and then showed me a bright smile ¡°I won!¡± Is the dress the proof? Last time she was wearing a blue one. I thought and then said ¡°Good for you. So does this mean you aren''t apprentice anymore?¡± ¡°Yes! Thanks to master, I''m now a full-fledged Phoenix! This means I will be allowed to travel to other worlds and even spend more time with master!¡± she said with a giggle as she flew over and sat on top of my head. ¡°I see you still use my head as a perch.¡± I let out a sigh. ¡°Your noggin has to be good for something, doesn''t it?¡± she giggled. ¡°Anyway, I summoned you now because I''m in a war.¡± I told her. ¡°A war you say? Those guys are the allies and those are the enemies?¡± she asked pointing at Albeyater and then at Draejan''s forces. ¡°Yes, how can you tell?¡± she asked. ¡°Master already marked them as such, didn''t he? The buffs that work for your other spells work for me too, just never use [Fatty McFat] to summon me... NEVER AGAIN use that one!¡± she shook her head and patted my forehead with her tiny hand, but the strike was akin to a Breakthrough-er''s slap. ¡°Ouch! Ouch!¡± I complained. ¡°I''m sorry! I''m not going to use it again! I promise!¡± I told her. ¡°Sigh! Good! I spend two hours in that hideous form because of you!¡± she leaned over and glared at me right in the eyes. The incident she was talking about happened in the Seculiar forest not long after I acquired [Fatty McFat], but when I used it in combination with [Lightning Chicken!], I summoned a VERY VERY fat Jophiel. For two hours she couldn''t move and just literally rolled around the room while complaining and calling me names. Meanwhile, I tried my best not to laugh. The blackout caused by [Negate all Light] reached the end of its timer, and everything returned to normal. ¡°Jophiel! Go!¡± I shouted. ¡°As you wish, master!¡± the little girl replied with a bird squeak at the end as she plunged towards the clashing armies. When she was at about ten meters away from the ground, she spread her beautiful wings and flew towards Draejan''s soldiers, who were getting pushed back now despite their superior numbers. The Phoenix who was of the same level as me unleashed her might and let loose a wave of inextinguishable fire. The screams of pain and horror reached out to the sky, while she ignored them and charged up in her tiny hands a spell of lightning and one of light. Targeting two different group, she let loose her spells. To her right, the dragon soldiers who waited for their turn to kill an Albeyater soldiers were zapped by forked lightning which jumped around from one to another. Magic was what created that powerful intensity and also the ''wire'' through which it had to travel, otherwise, I was sure it would have stopped at the first soldier. They didn''t know what hit them. The powerful electricity toasted their brains and stopped their hearts. The nauseating scent of cooked meat could be felt spreading from their dead bodies. On her right, the dragon soldiers were pierced through their chests by powerful light spears. Each one struck its target right in the heart with pinpoint accuracy. It was a like a move executed by an expert marksman, but then again, Jophiel had the same level as I did now, and she was far from showing her true might. After she killed the soldiers in her immediate vicinity, she flew up and then dove towards another mass of dragons. From her hands, she unleashed several fireballs of one meter diameter at them. With the last one cast, she pulled up and flew towards the sky again, repeating the dive maneuver again. In other words, she was bombarding them because those fireballs of hers weren''t some simple New Years firecrackers. When one of those things hit a target, it alongside everything around it would be blown to bits, leaving only the burning ground behind. The screams and shouts of the dragons reached the skies as they tried to flee from the Phoenix who looked no different than a winged child. With her help, I was certain the number of our enemies would go down fast. Meanwhile, I didn''t forget about Kataryna. She was toying around with the dragon from Novarak. The green-scale Breakthrough-er was trying his best to attack her with wind magic, fire magic, water magic, and darkness magic combos, but she was able to skillfully dodge all of them. It was also clear that he was doing far better in Wind Magic than the others because that one was the strongest. Now, this didn''t mean that this guy was weak. Those attacks of his ripped to shreds an unfortunate dragon who was flying to intercept our allies. He didn''t even scream. It was an instant kill. As for the fire magic attack, that one landed on top of a group of our soldiers, and they were all burnt to bits. She''s hanging in there... What about Seryanna? I wondered as I took my eyes off Kataryna''s battle for a second and looked down at my wife, who was staring down a dark-brown scaled dragon. They were both in their half-beast forms, which meant that she was forced to revert to this size to battle him. The reason why she was in this situation was because not long after I finished my battle with that mercenary dragon, I saw her avoiding some long range Earth Spears attacks. The caster was the guy below. When I cast down the darkness on the battlefield, Seryanna killed off every dragon enemy around her and then carved her way through bone and flesh all the way to him. Now, it was time for their one on one battle. To my left, Iolaus and Kleo were rampaging on the battlefield together, barely staying within my 100 meters field. They were hunting down the commanders as ordered while taking out as many enemies as they could. A bit farther to the right from where Seryanna was, the King was also in the middle of a battle with another dragon, while Brekkar covered his back from the enemy troops. Everywhere I looked, the battle raged on, and we were steadily winning. I don''t think they can do anything to stop us now. I thought as I saw all of them being onn the verge of winning their individual battles. Then, right as I looked ahead, I saw a dragon who wore a black and gold armor flying straight at me. There was rage in his eyes, and he was releasing a lot of killing intent aimed at me. At first, I didn''t recognize him, but as he got closer, I realized who he was... ¡°ALKELIOS!!!¡± shouted the dragon. ¡°Draejan...¡± I replied in a calm tone of voice as I prepared myself for our final... confrontation. Chapter 69: Their battles [Kleo''s point of view] When the Alkelios'' dragon roar spread through the entire battlefield, I felt a surge of energy rushing through me. Any fear and doubt I had about this upcoming battle vanished completely. Iolaus took my hand and showed a reassuring smile. In this war, we could fight together only thanks to our friend, Alkelios. He brought us together when we thought we were sworn enemies. He helped us grow and showed us that even opposing elements could love each other. A dragon with black scales and one with white scales flew over the battlefield. Two lovers engaged who wished to carve out a future for each other... That was who we were. Iolaus was my vanguard, and I cast my spells from a far, taking down the dragons who dared stand in our way. Thanks to my grandfather''s training, my fiance was now far more powerful than he was before. With one slash of his sword, he cleaved a dragon in half, while my shadow spears stabbed those who tried to attack him at this moment. When one attacked, the other defended. The two of us fought with perfect harmony bashing dragons with shields of light and piercing them with spears of darkness. Our battles though were nothing when compared to our friends. They ruled over the battlefield like defiant gods, smashing to pieces all those who stood in their way. The cries of agony of their victims were all that remained of them as they got lost in the echoes of clashing swords and roars. But just when we thought we were gaining the upper hand, I heard a shout that pierced the heavens. ¡°ALKELIOS!!!¡± It was that despicable dragon Draejan rushing towards us with a wave of countless dragons. The ground turned dark from the shadows of the flying ones, while the earth shook from the stampede of those below. I gulped when I saw the amount of dragons, yet I could still see those few who were designated as commanders. ¡°Sister...¡± I said as I turned my gaze towards Seryanna, but she just finished her fight against a dragon with dark-brown scales and two axes in each hand. I looked up at Kataryna and saw her struggling against two dragons of blue and white scales. My grandfather was with the King, facing off against a red-scaled dragon. An explosion caught my attention and when I turned back, I saw the Queen''s guards repelling a sneak attack. There''s nowhere to turn for help... I thought as I looked ahead at the mass of dragons approaching us with the desire to kill us all. Can we win this? I thought and felt my body trembling. While I was starting to panic, Iolaus flew in front of me and showed me his smile. A dragon in beast form didn''t have the best of smiles, but he at least tried. ¡°I''m here, my love. We''ll get through this.¡± he told me and then licked the tip of my snout. It was a little dragon kiss. I showed him a smile and nodded. ¡°Let''s go!¡± I said with a smile. There was nowhere to run and no turning back. This was my battle as well even if I felt a bit disconnected from all the dragons below me. I was a black scale, not the most loved of the dragons, however, the Queen didn''t show me any hate, neither did the King and most of the dragons at the palace. They knew I was there as a special guard and because their Majesties had faith in me, so did the others. Maybe the hate towards black scales would never go away, but at the very least, I had to stop the hate against me... I had to prove them all that I had a place at the side of my friends! ¡°[Darkness...¡± I began to chant. ¡°[Light...¡± Iolaus began to chant. ¡°...Tornado]!¡± we both shouted at the same time as we held hands and released the magic energy in the form of the spell. We flew towards the wave of dragons while rotating in the air. From my body, shadows created by darkness magic began to spread, melding together with the light emanated by Iolaus'' body. Our magic energy danced together. Light and darkness began to mix like water and oil, without losing their own essence and shine. As we got closer to our enemies, the magic energy around us began to spread, taking the shape of a vortex with us at the center. It was a tornado of light and darkness which edges were sharper than the blade of any sword. ¡°Kill them!¡± shouted the enemy, but when we crashed into them, their voice was silenced. The blades of light together with those of darkness slashed through their armor and flesh. Their bodies fell down onto the troops below us, but we didn''t stop. We carved our way through their blood and meat as we aimed for the commanders who led this heard of dragons. ¡°Gah! NO!¡± the first one of them died as he was ripped apart by the light and darkness tornado. It was incredibly hard to cast a defense against this attack because it was made up of two opposite elements. One could guard against darkness, but then light would cut them. Once we felt our magic depleting, we pulled out of the mass of dragons and stopped the spell at a safe distance from our enemies. ¡°It''s not over yet...¡± Iolaus told me through heavy breaths. He was tired, and so was I, but I still had enough magic energy within me to bring those fools to their knees! ¡°Fiends of darkness...¡± I began to chant, calling upon my familiars who lived within the shadows. [Seryanna''s point of view] Once I separated from Alkelios, I jumped into the battle against several flying dragons. My strength far surpassed theirs, and their attacks didn''t even scratch my armor. The more I fought, the more I felt my blood boiling and my whole body filling with a burning energy. I want to fight! I thought as I plunged towards a dragon below me. He screamed and struggled, but as we plunged towards the ground, I bit his wings and ripped them out. My claws then slashed at his back and pierced his flesh upon impact. He was dead, and my hands were stained with blood. There were several dragons in half-beast form in front of me, trembling and looking at me with eyes filled with fear. I took a deep breath, and I unleashed a torrent of flames upon them. They screamed in pain as they died one after another. A dragon tried to attack me from behind, but his sword broke in half upon contact with my armor. I grabbed him with both hands and then ripped him half. ¡°M-Monster!¡± one dragon shouted as he tried to get away from me, but I tossed the remains of the dead dragon at him, causing him to tumble down. With one leap, I landed on him and crushed him under my claws. I let out a roar and then spread my wings to fly up in the sky. An earth spike flew at me, but it bounced off my armor. When I turned my head to see who dared to attack me, I saw a dragon in half-beast form wielding two axes. He was smirking. In the next moment, I saw several earth spikes forming from the ground. They were all aimed at me. ¡°DIE!¡± he shouted. I let myself drop to the ground and dodge the incoming attack. One of the spikes hit a dragon who was trying to attack me from behind. It went straight through his chest, leaving a hole there. That''s not a normal [Earth Spike]. I thought. My enemy was most likely someone close to a Breakthrough or an actual Breakthrough-er. I smirked. When I was in bed with Alkelios last night, he told me how my stats looked like. Although my level wasn''t that far from being considered a Breakthrough-er, my abilities were most likely on par with one. Even grandfather pointed out this little detail. Still, I can''t go around and assume that I can face off against one... I thought. It was a bit hard to fight in my current form. It wasn''t the one I was most used to, so I closed my eyes and returned to my half-beast form. Bright red scales covered my body, and while I still retained a reptilian aspect, I was nowhere near as big as before. My height now was of a 3.4 meters tall, with 20 centimeters smaller than my husband. With Drachenkrieg now in my hand, I was ready to fight. This two-handed sword was just perfect for me. Not as long as Kataryna''s, but just right for me to wield it with one hand and a shield if I chose to. ¡°Kill her!¡± the dragon who attacked me ordered and more than 50 dragons charged at me. I smirked, and fire spread from my sword, licking my armor and covering my whole body in its flames. ¡°What the...¡± one dragon said as he stopped before attacking me. His friend wasn''t so smart. I dodged and then slashed him with my sword, cutting him in half. The fire on my body spread to his, but this time, it burned him to cinders. While continuing the motion of my sword, I turned and then used the momentum to decapitate another dragon. I spread my arm and grabbed another one by the throat, crushing it and turning his screams into drowning gurgles. An earth spike came flying towards me, but I dodged it at a hair''s length. Stepping to the side, I cut in half another dragon. Drachenkrieg was a beautiful sword with a merciless blade. It cut with ease through anything like it was butter. It was then when Alkelios'' magic fell upon the region and light was stolen from my enemy''s eyes. I laughed. ¡°Now then...¡± I said as I pointed my hand at the my enemies and used the chantless [Inferno Storm]. Flames rose around me, reaching up to the sky, spiraling around me like hungry demons. With my targets set, I unleashed the attack upon them and countless swords of fire washed down upon my enemy. It was like a flood of blades made out of fire. They burned, they cut, the rend, and shred their weapons, armors, and flesh right off their bones. ¡°GYAAA!¡± ¡°IT BURNS!!!¡± ¡°HNGAAAH!¡± Their screams, all varied, yet all sung the same song of pain and horror. I did not enjoy this hell which I created, but this was not the end, for among them there were those who wielded fire and managed to protect themselves from my flames. So I took Drachenkrieg and lifted it up to the level of my eyes. My tail swayed behind me, and my eyes locked onto my targets. My wings were folded on my back, and the scent of burning flesh surrounded me. ¡°Here I come...¡± I whispered as I lunged towards the first victim. My sword cut him in half, but before his remains fell on the ground, I jumped towards the next one and opened his chest with one slash. I turned and extended my hand, keeping the blade parallel to the ground. The sharp edge met the neck of another dragon and then his head was separated from his body. I continued to run through the burning flames of my previous attack and cut down all the red-scaled dragons who survived it. Then, when I reached their leader, the unharmed brown-scaled dragon, I took Drachenkrieg and stabbed it in the ground at just a few meters away from him. ¡°Unleash!¡± I shouted as I poured magic energy within my sword. ¡°What the?!¡± the dragon asked in surprise, but those may have been his last words. From the ground around me, geysers of fire erupted towards the sky, burning away everything in sight. A wave of heat and burning flames surrounded me and then extended forward. Every time I used a fire magic, I could feel it whispering to me, telling me that it wasn''t going to harm me, but it was going to burn everything else around me. Uncontrolled, it could spread as much as it desired, and through my magic, the fire within me could do just that, extend its flames to the far reaches. Fire? It could be controlled, it could be tamed, it could ordered to do what one desired to, however, the best part of it was when it was left unchained. I trusted my flames, and in return, they didn''t burn me... Maybe this was what being a Superior Draconian of the High Flame meant... I had a special relationship with my element, one of trust and friendship... ¡°ARGH!¡± the brown-scaled dragon groaned. I lifted my head up and saw a big stone cocoon. I see... He hid inside there. I thought, and so I twisted the handle of Drachenkrieg. If my flames could smile, they would probably look like madmen. When I told them to focus on the cocoon in front of me, all the flames around me swept through and slammed into its hard shell. DON! DON! DON! This was the sound of my fire pounding at the armor of the dragon in front of me, yet that armor of his was quite good. It could sustain so much heat and survive such explosive force... No wonder he''s a Breakthrough-er... A normal dragon would have died before he could have even put up this shield. I thought. Well, I did have a bit of help from my husband as well thanks to this darkness which surrounded us. I pulled Drachenkrieg out of the ground and then dashed towards cocoon, through those infernal flames. They didn''t burn me, they caressed me... they embraced me and helped me gain the strength I needed to cut down that shell. ¡°HA!¡± I shouted and slashed with Drachenkrieg at it. The blade cut through, leaving a hole through which my flames could slip in and cook that lizard inside, but then I felt something. It was the instinct I trained in the Seculiar Forest, the one which kept me alive when I was surrounded by all those spiders. I jumped back. At that exact moment, the cocoon turned into a spiky ball. In my previous spot were needle-like protrusion coming out of the ball. ¡°Don''t think you won!¡± shouted the dragon from inside as he jumped out wielding a big axe in each hand. He was aiming for me, and I could see the fury and rage in his eyes. His armor was burned, and his body was lit up by my flames, but he still moved... Even in that state, he could still attack me. No wonder Earth Element dragons were thought to be the sturdiest out of all of us. ¡°Even so... It was a mistake to attack me like this...¡± I said in a calm tone of voice. I let the attack hit me. The blades clashed with my armor and I was tossed back several meters, yet... ¡°As expected...¡± I said and showed a gentle smile on my lips. I was unharmed and looking up, I saw Alkelios summoning Jophiel. My beloved husband sure gifted me with one crazy armor... I thought and then got up. The dragon who attacked me was breathing hard and could barely stand up. He was covered with an armor of earth, an attempt to stop my flames from burning him. ¡°Futile.¡± I said as I took a stance with Drachenkrieg in my hands. Flames covered my blade, and I dashed at him. Although he couldn''t see me now, he could still hear me and maybe feel my approach thanks to the ground I was stepping on. It was now when light was starting to return as well. The dragon turned his head at the last moment to look at me. I wonder how I look to him? I thought as I slashed. He tried to defend himself with his axes, but Drachenkrieg''s blade cut through them like butter. The brown-scaled dragon was cut in half, and I finally calmed down the flames around me. As his body fell to the ground, I looked around and saw the scorching ground around me. When it was dark, I couldn''t estimate how much I had burned down, but now... I could see it clearly. All around me, on a fifty, maybe sixty meters radius, the ground was burnt until it turned black, and everywhere I looked, I could see the remains of all the poor souls who fell prey to my flames. ¡°ALKELIOS!!!¡± I heard the voice of the idiot dragon who once tried to claim my heart and body. Alkelios, please end the life of that miserable fool who tried to take me as his wife... Kill him, for I belong only to you, my love. I thought and smiled softly. [Kataryna''s point of view] Novarak''s Breakthrough-er didn''t even introduce himself. Just like many other dragons from Draejan''s side, they saw no honor in battle nor cared for confrontations between strong enemies. In their eyes, we were all weak, but the amount of bodies from their side seemed to disapprove of this fact. Although Alkelios wasn''t keeping an eye on the whole battle, I did. Berros Mandrakea was the farthest from us, and he was keeping the enemy dragons at bay with his mighty spear while skewering the unsuspecting ones with his earth magic. In one blow, tens of dragons fell, but he wasn''t striking seriously. This battle was one of attrition. The less magic we used while defeating our enemy the better. Unfortunately, not all of us were used to this or were in a situation where they could afford to fight with less power. Such was the case of Kleo and Seryanna''s battles. The two made the best use of their elemental magic and countless dragons fell to their might. I would have said the same thing for Mendeles Unvar, who summoned around one hundred water elemental warriors and had them engage the enemy. As long as he supplied them with magic, they were almost impossible to defeat unless one managed to evaporate, freeze, or completely scatter the water they were made out of. This dragon, although he looked the youngest out of all of us, was having fun while slaughtering hundreds of foes. His water blades were also something dreadful as they sliced through any armor and weapon that stood in their way. Meanwhile, that dragoness, Novias Oshika, was turning the enemies into blundering fools with her overexposed armor. Her enchantress spells mind controlled those who fell in her trap and made them turn their weapons against their allies. Instead of Albeyater fighting against enemy soldiers, the enemy was fighting with each other. Those strong enough to resist her influence were also cut down with wind spells or by the Albeyater soldiers. Lastly, the one who stood at the opposite end of the battlefield from Berros Mandrakea was Moros Onias. He wielded dual elements like I did, only his were Ice and Earth. With enchanted swords and casting fast and precise magic, this dragon was killing enemy dragons left and right. His skill with the sword was certainly far better than the others, but his spells lacked in strength. Even so, I heard that his achievements on the battlefields and against various foes earned him great fame, enough for a small town to change its name after him. These four Breakthrough-ers while leading the Albeyater army were like meat grinding machines. Any dragon who dared to cross blades with them would end up losing their life, but it wasn''t like the enemy was just sitting around waiting to be slaughtered by them. There were those who went around the Breakthrough-ers and clashed with the soldiers from Albeyater, however, the latter''s might was higher. After Alkelios'' roar, they were all filled with energy and used it to take down their enemies. Our commanders and captains who had their weapons and armors changed were also holding their ground against multiple foes. It was like watching an army of veterans clashing against one of beginners.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. At this point, I felt like the number of 364000 soldiers was nothing but a joke, but we had yet to kill off even half of them. This battle was going to take a lot longer, especially if Draejan played his cards right. Then again... his first mistake was sending this Novarak dragon after me. He was weak. Not only did he make the foolish mistake of attacking me in his full-beast form, but his attacks were sluggish and didn''t even connect. Only his spells were a bit stronger than average, but even if I fought him naked, I could still take on several of those attacks without a problem. With Alkelios'' armor, it felt like I was toying around with a child. In a battle between Breakthrough-ers it was normal for one to take the form in which they fought the best, which was either the full-beast one like the one who engaged Alkelios in battle, or a half-beast form like Seryanna''s foe. In my case, it was my half-beast form, and I was suspecting it was the same for this dragon in front of me, but for some reason, he didn''t change. If he had, maybe he didn''t look so pathetic. Oh well, it''s not like all dragons are taught to fight with their head. Some of us reach their Breakthrough without even understanding what happened. I thought and then flew towards my foe just as Alkelios'' darkness was cast around me. I stopped midair and watched as the blinded dragon began to shoot his magic like crazy all around him. ¡°I don''t know what trick you used, but I''ll kill you!¡± he shouted in anger. Are all Novarak dragons such fools? I wondered and titled my head to the left. I didn''t even need to dodge right now, but I did come to the conclusion that he might not be the only Breakthrough-er who was aiming for us. Using this moment of darkness, I changed from my full-beast form to my half-beast form. The blue and white armor given to me by Alkelios was a perfect fit on my body''s curves, and I didn''t feel my movements restrained at all. I could freely fly and attack like I was barely wearing anything on me. It was a bit flashy in looks, but definitely the best armor I had the pleasure of wearing. As for my sword, the Ledyanoy Potseluy was beautiful two-handed sword, bigger than Seryanna''s and of a completely different element. With a blade that showed no mercy to my foes, and handle that made it feel as though I had gripped it from birth, this weapon surpassed even those deemed to be national treasures. To be honest, I felt like even if I was standing alone against all these 364000 dragons, I could still come out victorious. Although, if I had to fight Breakthrough-ers while at it, my chances of winning were a bit low. Even so, they were still there, which meant that with the backup of so many other dragons and Breakthrough-ers, it was impossible for us to lose. Looking up at Alkelios, I saw him summoning Jophiel. I think if he was to fight alone against this entire army, he would still win, but unlike me, I doubt his mind would come out unscratched. After all... you can''t say that killing a dragon on the battlefield isn''t killing but justice or some other nonsense. As long as their warm blood flowed on the edge of your sword, you will remember their last breath for the rest of your life, or until you learn to accept it as it is and move on. I thought. ¡°Where are you?!¡± the Novarak dragon shouted. ¡°I''m here.¡± I replied in a calm tone of voice as I flew towards him. The darkness around me faded, and I attacked. With Ledyanoy Potseluy, I slashed at his side and cut through his armor while leaving an ice burn mark behind. He screamed in pain and released a wave of heat from his body, a fire shell most dragons of the fire element used to create an attack that spread all around them, but against Ledyanoy Potseluy, it was useless. I jumped forward, moving over his back and cut the muscles on his back with one slash. Because he was such a big and slow target, it was easy for me, who was in half-beast form, to make my way around and cut him. Still, I was only toying with him now. He tried to attack me by launching a series of spells at me, all of different elements. I guess this was his forte, magic, but used like this, it was rather idiotic. He ended up killing even dragons from his own side. Let''s finish this. I thought as I flew under him and then stabbed Ledyanoy Potseluy into his chest. The sharp blade cut through his armor, scales, flesh, and bone until it reached his insides. There, the ice spread around, freezing his inner organs, however, I didn''t plan on letting him go just with that. With a smile on my lips, I released an electric shock through my sword. ¡°GRAAAH!¡± he screamed before his organs ceased to function. Half of them were now frozen solid, while the rest had been fried by my lightning. I twisted the handle of the blade, and I heard the crack of his bones and the shattering of ice. He''s dead... I thought and then pulled out Ledyanoy Potseluy. I flew from under him and let his giant body fall on top of the enemy soldiers below. ¡°ALKELIOS!!!¡± I heard Draejan''s shout. I guess he''s not as smart as he thought or did anger finally got to the best of him? I wondered. Even the greatest generals were known to make mistakes when they let their emotions get to the best of them. In this case, Draejan let his hate for Alkelios cloud his mind. While I was thinking about joining him in battle, I was attacked from a long range by a water spear and a wind scythe. I dodged them in the nick of them and the I turned to see who dared to attack me. Two dragons stood in front of me, one who wore a beautifully decorated black armor and another who wore a plate mail armor painted brown and white. These two were definitely Breakthrough-ers. ¡°I am called Johanas Lovarad! I hail from Ozur as a mercenary hired to fight in this battle. I state that this is a paid contract and as such my home country''s king has no say in this matter!¡± the dragon wearing the brown and white armor declared. His scale color was brown, but it was possible that he was a dual element like me. A dragon with a bit of honor or did he say this just to make sure he didn''t bring trouble to the nation of Ozur? I wondered. ¡°And I am Vanaziarum Baldagash! I hail from Embryger at the orders of the one I recognized as my lord!¡± the one in the fancy black armor declared. His scale color was dark-green or blue? It was an unusual color that made it hard for me to guess his element, but it was quite common for serious dragons with a strategy in mind to hide their color behind a layer of paint. ¡°I am Kataryna Greorg. I am a simple knight from Albeyater who joined this battle because of a friend.¡± I said with a smile as I slashed Ledyanoy Potseluy through the air. ¡°You will die here!¡± Vanaziarum Baldagash declared. ¡°And we will enjoy killing you!¡± Johanas Lovarad declared. ¡°Oh! What shall I do? I''m so afraid~¡± I said with a giggle. It was time for another battle, but this time, I had to be a bit more serious with my enemies. They were both Breakthrough-ers who were stronger than the Novarak anonymous dragon. [Feryumstark''s point of view] It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but Alkelios'' roar was far more powerful than mine. To reach all across this battlefield wasn''t something any dragon of the Authority element could do, however, this in itself became a problem. True, Alkelios was only a half-dragon now, and he wielded four different elements. He also possessed the best crafting skills in this entire kingdom, and he was also a Breakthrough-er. All of these factors made him a tasty target for all the noble dragonesses. My kingdom did not forbid polygamy or polyandry, but their intent wasn''t one of love, it was one of greed. With him as a husband, they could reach the strings where they couldn''t until now. Well... this is a problem, but I''ll have to solve it later. In the meanwhile, I''ll just order that all marriage proposals be sent to me instead. This way I can put a stop on them before they become a bother to him and Seryanna. I thought as I looked at the battlefield in front of me. With the two armies clashing against each other, it was no time for me to idle around and think about such matters. I branded my sword and rushed at the front with Brekkar by my side. ¡°Just like the good ol'' days!¡± said the old dragon. ¡°Yes, my friend!¡± I replied before we engaged the enemy. The fools who rushed at me thinking they could defeat me fell under my blade, and their blood stained the ground. Brekkar showed no mercy either. All of his moves were precise and struck with unmatched strength, shattering his foes'' armors and weapons. It was like witnessing the old Breakthrough-er again, but I knew that part of his strength came from that dark-red armor Alkelios made for him. Witnessing it in combat, I felt a bit envious of him, but once everything calmed down, I was going to ask that dragon to make an armor and a weapon for me as well. As we fought, darkness descended upon us, blinding our enemies but not us. Who could have done this? I wondered, and at first I thought it was Brekkar''s youngest niece, Kleo. She''s couldn''t have been the one, she''s casting another spell now... I thought when I saw the whirlwind of light and darkness as it cleaved through the mass of flying dragons. My eyes then fell on Alkelios, who fought against an enemy dragon, a Breakthrough-er most likely. So he did it... I thought. Taking a deep breath, I shouted towards my troops ¡°MAKE THE BEST OF THIS OPPORTUNITY DUKE YATAGAI GAVE YOU AND CRUSH OUR ENEMIES!¡± ¡°FOR ALBEYATER!¡± came their shouts in reply, and with them the cries of our slain foes. I too did not fell short to my friend Brekkar and let my sword taste dragon blood with each attack I made. There was no need for me to use my magic, these foes of mine were unworthy of it. My fists, my claws, and sword were enough for these bastards. Then as the darkness around us faded and light returned to our enemy''s eyes, I found myself standing in front of a big dragon with blue scales. He wore a thick blue armor plate and showed me a grin all the way to his horns. In this half-beast form of his, he was wielding a halberd almost two times bigger than him. No doubt it was a weapon meant to be used against more than just one enemy or while in full-beast form. ¡°I am called Garravian The Great! My master is the Embryger Empire, and I have come here to claim the head of one Brekkar Draketerus and one Feryumstark Seyendraugher! Be happy, for the great ME shall kill you both!¡± he declared and then laughed out loud. ¡°Another fool who wishes to kill me... Sigh.¡± I said and shook my head. ¡°Your Majesty, he''s strong.¡± Brekkar told me as he knitted his brows at him. ¡°For you, maybe. But you have yet to recover, my friend. Keep my back safe, and I will deal with this whelp!¡± I declared as I took a step forward. ¡°As you wish, your Majesty!¡± Brekkar declared and made a bow. With him keeping the flies at bay, I could unleash a bit of my true power. I wasn''t able to do so against Alkelios, but with this dragon, maybe I could? ¡°Here I come!¡± I announced as I rushed towards him at a speed greater than the eye could see. I didn''t aim with my sword but with my fist, and it connected before Garravian knew what hit him. My punch cracked his armor and sent him flying back, but he landed on his feet and coughed. That was a punch stronger than the one I used against Alkelios. I''m glad he didn''t die in one hit! I thought and showed him a smile. ¡°Wh-What''s with this strength?¡± the blue-scaled dragon complained. ¡°What? You think that was strong?¡± I blinked surprised. Did I overestimate this fellow? I wondered. Clenching my fist, I rushed up to him again. He saw me and tried to guard his face with his right hand, but I side-stepped to the left and punched him in the jaw. The blow was powerful enough to send his helmet flying off his head and him with it. I looked at the dragon who was trying to get up and wondered why he would come pick a fight with me when he was so weak? ¡°ALKELIOS!!!¡± Draejan voice was heard from above. When I raised my head up to see the little coward who started this entire mess, Garravian took this as a moment of distraction and tried to kill me with his sword. I dodged with minimum movement and then kicked him in the side. The dragon went flying across the battlefield towards Brekkar. Noticing him incoming from the corner of his eyes, the old dragon brandished his sword and slashed at him. The cut was perfect and the body of Garravian was split in half. ¡°Ah! That was my prey!¡± I complained. ¡°Huh? I thought it was flying garbage. My apologies, your Majesty!¡± the dragon bowed to me and while doing so decapitated an enemy who tried to attack him from behind. ¡°For this, you''ll spar with me later!¡± I declared pointing at him. ¡°WHAT? Please spare me, your Majesty!¡± the old scale complained. ¡°No excuses! It should be an honor to get beaten by me!¡± I shouted back. ¡°Who would be honored by that!¡± he complained and cast a fireball to his left, turning another enemy soldier into charcoal. I let out a sigh and looked up at Alkelios. The boy will win, certainly, but... is it just me or were these Breakthrough-ers we faced rather weak? No... I thought and then shook my head It''s not them who are weak, it''s just that we are far more powerful than our enemy thought. After all, even I don''t think I could win if Alkelios and his friends were to attack me all at once! Well, if Elliessara did, then she could make me give up with a kiss! I laughed and then looked back at the horde of dragons coming at us. ¡°No time to idle around!¡± I said and then let out another roar to boost the confidence of my troops. [Elliessara''s point of view] What was the best way to describe this scene unfolding before me? A massacre played out by gods of legend? Initially, I thought it would be a rather close fight with our side barely managing to capture the win, but none of those who received equipment form Alkelios died and all the Breakthrough-ers from the enemy side felt like flies when compared to ours. There was also a matter of that roar of his. A dragon with such a powerful Authority wasn''t one that should escape my grasp. True, Alkelios was already married and although he had sworn loyalty to our kingdom, this wasn''t enough. Embryger would definitely send over a princess to try and conquer Alkelios'' heart or use this battle as a way to make us sure he wasn''t going to fall in our hands. He''s too much of a precious Breakthrough-er to allow anyone else other than the Seyendraugher family to have him, at least from the royal families. I thought and then closed my eyes, thinking of a plot to make him ours. ¡°Seryanna''s the problem...¡± I muttered. ¡°What is it, mother?¡± Elleyzabelle asked me. When I opened my eyes and looked at her, I asked her ¡°My daughter, have you decided upon a husband yet?¡± ¡°Huh? Is this really the right place to talk about this?¡± she asked with a wry smile. ¡°GAAH! IT BURNS!¡± a dragon shouted in pain as he was being burned by some dragon''s flames. He must have been of the wind elemental, otherwise, his voice couldn''t have reached us. Such things happened from time to time with those dragons, but what perfect timing he had! Nonetheless, I didn''t move my gaze from my daughter''s eyes. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied with a smile. She took a peak to the left where our troops were massacring the enemy and then looked back at me. ¡°No, mother, I haven''t.¡± she told me. ¡°Is that so.¡± I replied and then looked up at the sky. ¡°Why do you ask?¡± she knitted her brow. Looking back at her, I told her with a smile ¡°You should know why, but are you willing to play this dangerous card or not?¡± I asked her. Elleyzabelle was one of my daughters who had yet to accept any dragon to be part of her life. At the same time, she did her best in the complicated political world of our kingdom. If it was her, then certainly she knew what I was talking about. ¡°Will he be the only one?¡± she asked me. I shook my head. ¡°No, it''ll be just a formality to keep other nobles and princesses from trying to snatch him away from us. This way, Seryanna and maybe later Kataryna can both enjoy their monopoly over him.¡± I told her. ¡°If it''s like that, then I do not mind, mother.¡± Elleyzabelle nodded. I knew I can count on her. I thought. BOOM! An explosion occurred not far from me, but Reyades blocked the shockwave and debris before they reached us. ¡°What''s going on?¡± I asked as I covered my mouth with my sleeve so I wouldn''t breath in the dust. ¡°It appears we are being under attacked, but... strange... I was certain I secured the area not too long ago. How could they have sneaked passed me?¡± wondered Leone as he approached me. ¡°It must be the teleporting human Alkelios mentioned.¡± Elleyzabelle said. ¡°Tch! That rotten Draejan and his petty tricks!¡± grumbled Reyades as he kept his eyes on the enemy, ready to defend me from any incoming attack. ¡°KILL THE QUEEN!¡± shouted one of the enemy soldiers. There were a few thousand that rushed out of the forest and clashed with the soldiers stationed in this camp. Normally, this would have been a wise move which would have ended with them taking my life, but I had three of the best Breakthrough-ers in the Kingdom with me. ¡°Kill them all.¡± I ordered them and covered my mouth and nose with my fan, so the enemy could not see me cast defensive magic. It was true that the poison had weakened me, but thanks to Alkelios, I felt better with each passing day. If I had to, I could even step in and fight with them, but it was far too early to reveal this card to my enemy. ¡°How dare you!¡± Malavan shouted as she charged up several hundreds of light spears in one go. She was my best healer and someone who usually showed a calm demeanour, but when someone stepped on her tail, this black-haired dragoness could prove to have a very nasty bite. As she skewered the enemy with her spears, I could see Leone casting several wind scythes and preparing to attack with a volley of wind arrows. He was good at spreading my voice across the field, but also an excellent range fighter. Leone was not the type of dragon one should underestimate just because of his calm demeanour. One the battlefield, he was the best dragon who could cast long range magic. His wind scythes and arrows could pierce any armor and fly across an entire battlefield with pinpoint accuracy. His best spell was called [Snipping Wind Arrow], and with it, he could kill a dragon from up to two kilometers away, but the further the target, the weaker the attack. That was why it wasn''t the best to use against commanders or high ranked dragons unless we knew for certain that this attack could kill him or her. From short range, however, it had a piercing attack. ¡°[Snipping Wind Arrow]!¡± Leone cast and the spell made a hole in at least twenty dragons who stood in line. Afterwards, he cast his [Wind Volley] and more than a hundred dragons fell to the ground, their bodies pierced and cut by his arrows. ¡°Leone, make sure to tell my husband what happened here. I do not wish for him to come running back to check if I am alright.¡± I told the dragon. ¡°As you command, your Majesty!¡± he said with a bow of his head. ¡°[Earth Spike Tsunami]!¡± Reyades shouted as he cast one of his most powerful attacks. From the ground, spikes as sharp as needles and up to six meters long each sprouted up towards the sky, piercing and skewering any poor dragon who stood underneath them. Countless dragons fell to this attack as it spread farther towards the forest like an unstoppable wave. Malavan didn''t give our foes any moment of rest and immediately attacked them from range with light arrows aimed at their vitals. Leone followed suit with his wind scythes. Meanwhile, I remained in my seat and waited patiently for their battle to be over. It wouldn''t last long. After all, they were three Breakthrough-ers who were assigned with protecting me, however, even if through some absurd chance they managed to slip through, I still had a few tricks up my sleeve to escape or kill my opponent. If Alkelios'' darkness persisted even now, then this sneak attack would have been dealt with with tremendous ease. Like this, they still had the chance of dodging or blocking one or two attacks. It was a waste of time for them though because I was going to make sure none of them survived. My order was quite clear, after all. Now then, I wonder how Alkelios will deal with my grandson? Will he kill him or will he spare him? I thought as I gazed up and watched the two dragons clashing swords in the distance. [A random soldiers'' point of view] I joined this war because I wished to protect my family. I wanted to fight and show that I am a dragon worthy to be called a father and a husband, but when I looked at the hoard in front of us, I couldn''t help but shiver in fear. It was then when his Majesty''s roar reached us. It filled us with hope and energy. I could feel myself willing to clench my sword and push away the fear inside my heart, but I still found it hard to step forward, and I wasn''t the only one... Everyone around me marched with an unsteady step because we didn''t know if we could win this battle. What could we do? There were so few of us... and so many of them... It was then when the second roar came. Like a wave of pure energy, it rushed over us, ripping away any sort of fear and doubt from our hearts. My hands were trembling and my heart was beating fast, but not because fear, no... this was confidence and eagerness to fight. I''m... I''m smiling? I thought as I felt the corners of my lips rise. Everyone around me was like that. There was an unstoppable energy inside of us, a rush of adrenaline which told us it was impossible to lose, and so we shouted at the top of our lungs: ¡°FOR ALBEYATER!¡± As we ran towards the enemy, I looked up and saw a scene I would never forget for my entire life. On top of a red dragoness in her full-beast form, surrounded by a dragoness of black scales, one of silver scales, and a dragon of white scales, a single half-beast dragon stood wielding two swords of darkness and light. When I saw him charging towards the hoard of enemy dragons like that, I felt like I was seeing a hero, no... a living legend. Without fear, without doubt, with unmatched strength, and the will to conquer armies, this dragon marched to battle. Were there any words that could describe this dragon? Was there any way to explain his greatness? More than the King, more than the Queen, I felt that if I were to follow him, to charge into battle after him, we would win. This dragon was like an untouchable star, an unreachable peak... or so I was inspired to believe, but I felt like I wasn''t the only one. When I looked around me, I saw countless others looking up at the sky, following those brave dragons with their eyes, wondering who they were, and how could they be so heroic? ¡°FOR ALBEYATER!¡± I shouted again, but this time while looking at them as they clashed with the enemy. With them having our backs, I felt like this battle would be our guaranteed win. We had legends on our side while our enemy had traitors. No matter their numbers, we would win in the end! Chapter 70: Against Draejan [Alkelios'' point of view] The moment I saw him charging at me through the air, I used Hell and Heaven to block his attack. Sparks flew as the three swords collided, and I was pushed back at a great force. His blow was heavier than that of all the previous dragons I fought against so far, forcing me to strain myself so I could resist it. ¡°HAAA!!!¡± Draejan shouted as he pushed all his magic into his sword. BOOM! A powerful shockwave was created at the contact point between his sword and mine, and I was sent crashing down into the ground below. A cloud of dust rose up in the air, and a crater formed around me. My armor protected me from any danger, but I had to admit, I didn''t expect this dragon to be so powerful. It was ridiculous even. ¡°Hahaha!¡± he began to laugh as I coughed a few times and got up. ¡°You see?! I''m far more powerful now than you! With this strength even killing the King will be a cinch!¡± he bragged. Is he sane? Does he understand what he just declared? I wondered, but then again, he was the one who incited Embryger and Albeyater to war. Thinking that he was planing to kill the Royal Family shouldn''t have been that much of a shock to me. Flying up in the air, I maintained an altitude at the same level as him and kept my guard up. Considering the blow I received earlier, I had to admit that he was stronger than all those other Breakthrough-ers who faced me so far, but it really made me wonder if he could indeed defeat the King. It sounded no different than a beginner adventurer believing he could take down a Demon King just because he could defeat a Goblin King. Even so, if Draejan would have used that attack against Kleo, Iolaus, or Seryanna, I doubted they could have survived without the help of my armor. ¡°Hmph! I have to admit, Alkelios, you are the only fool who managed to anger me in such a way, that''s why I will take my time defeating you!¡± he said and then charged at me, but as I lifted my sword up to block his attack, he vanished. What?! I thought in surprise, but then I felt a killing intent behind me. When I turned around, it was too late to block and Draejan''s sword struck my chest armor, sending me crashing into the ground again. His attack felt like I got slapped by one of those giant monsters in the Seculiar Forest or the Northern Desert. The only difference was that the latter were cuter... As I got up from the crater and patted my chest, I was relieved to see I didn''t receive a single scratch on it. My currently equipped items were forged with my Godlike Blacksmith skill, but this didn''t guarantee a no-damage policy. They weren''t indestructible items, it was just very very hard to put a dent on them. His weapon has to be at least Beginner Legendary in order to have such a powerful effect... I thought and as I looked up at him, I activated my [Identificus Processus Juridicus] on his armor and sword. (Armor of Legendary Sacrifice): Draconitium and Zaradin armor made by a Legendary Blacksmith. The other name it carries is that of (Armor of Blood). It dampens all Physical Attacks by up to 50% of the force. It can absorb 89% of the Magic Energy from a spell cast at the user. Burst Enchant: It consumes the accumulated Life Force inside the armor in order to exponentially increase the power of the user. Chance for Mental Instability as a result of this process: 56%. Strength, Speed, Endurance, and Magic Energy Damage receive a significant boost. Once all the Life Force stored in the crystals embedded in the armor is consumed, all of its enchants are disabled. Life Force remaining: 96%. Boost Set at 4000+ All Stats. Status: Activated. (Two-handed Falcion of Corrosion): Dregaryum sword enhanced with Magic Crystals. A Dungeon Drop item which enhances the strength of the user proportionate to the amount of Life Force fed to it. Current Conversion Rate: 36% of total Strength at a rate 1.2% Life Force per Minute. As a someone who made Godlike tier weapons and armors, I couldn''t help but feel disgusted by what I was reading. Usually, the more powerful weapons were, the more savage the penalty it came with it. In this case, what was written there as Life Force meant more than what Seryanna once explained to me. Back when I was still training in the Seculiar Forest, I came to the understanding that Level, Experience, and each Status point represented something in real life. Experience, in it''s most simple form, it could be defined as an individual reflexes gained through combat and added to the increase of strength and speed. A level was gained only when the said individual surpassed his own limits and his body adjusted to the gained strength. By this definition, those like me who had skills and abilities which increased the speed at which we leveled up and gained strength could only be considered as abnormal monsters. Meanwhile, what these items which used Life Force to enhance the body did was to temporarily enchant the user''s body. After all, if items could be enchanted with Magic Energy, shouldn''t it be possible to do the same with a flesh and blood body? The truth was that it was quite possible to do so. The difference was that a living being''s body consumed and released this energy at a much faster rate than an inanimate object. At the same time, one had to wonder: was Life Force really the same as Magic Energy? The answer was simple: no. Life Force was a complex construction of not only Magic Energy but matter and maybe soul energy as well. Some called Experience as Life Force, others their total Vitality, while others just the strength they gained from killing a monster. The truth was that it was all of the above, but when applied on an item, in order for Life Force to be written in its description and not Vitality, Strength, Speed, Experience, or the like, it had to do one of two things: either consume the user''s flesh and body as a form of energy or use that of another living being. As I flew up again, I asked this fool of a dragon ¡°How many lives have you fed to that cursed armor?¡± ¡°Hooo? So what Kronius told me was correct. You do have some sort of appraisal skill? Did you gain it from that God-like?¡± he asked with a wild smile on his face and then laughed. ¡°Mental instability...¡± I said in a low volume. In the description it did say that using the armor had a chance of doing this to the user, after all, when inserting the Life Force of another being in this manner, there was the chance you would absorb its last thoughts as well. This would result in the user either hearing or seeing things that weren''t there. It was a temporary insanity, if I had to give it a name. Still, I wasn''t surprised by the fact that he knew of the God-like. The human he kept in his leash had probably told him everything he knew of Earth and the circumstances through which we were sent to this world. That being said, if that fellow also had gaming experience, then he certainly knew how to handle his status and skills as well. Although, only if he practiced them in actual combat situations could he master them and learn to use them wisely. ¡°Do you really want to know? Do you reeeally reeeally want to know?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I replied narrowing my eyes at him. Although this is a battlefield, no other soldier is taking advantage of this situation to attack me. From what I can see, I''m guessing that they are all trying to give us as much room as possible... No, they are making a circle around us. Draejan''s men are making sure I don''t get any reinforcements... Several of them are already tossing themselves in front of Seryanna''s blade trying to stop her from advancing as well. I thought as I peeked from the corner of my eye at the countless battles that took place around us. ¡°I''ll let you know, then! But first die!¡± he laughed and then cast a powerful light attack. Hundreds of spears of light formed around him and then flew at me. I picked up Heaven and slashed at the area in front of me, sending a wave of light at them. Half of them exploded in front of me, but then Draejan appeared to my left side and tried to stab me. I dodged in the nick of time and used my tail to strike his exposed stomach.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. The dragon coughed and flew up in the air before he vanished again. I''m quite certain now that this isn''t his skill. Is the human the one who is teleporting him around? I wondered as I tried searching the skies for him. ¡°Kuh! That was some strike... But you sure are a monster... Hehe.¡± Draejan said from somewhere in front of me and wiped his mouth with the back of his gauntlet. Flying forward, he revealed himself with that strange sword covered in a green aura. His armor matched the color scheme, as it was a combination of dark-green and black. ¡°At this point, I can''t tell if you have really achieved a Breakthrough or if you are just depending on your items.¡± I said. At least he''s not carrying around a hundred Health Potions... It''s so frustrating when you end up encountering a Boss that keeps healing back to 100% after you reduced his HP to a pixel! I thought and then let out a sigh Even that''s a strategy worth considering. Although, it''s no different actually than the chinese novels where the heroes consume more pills than a national hospital during a health crisis! I thought. At this point, I was certain he wasn''t going to tell me how many he killed to fill up his armor''s Life Force storage, and he definitely didn''t care that his sword was literally eating up his body the more he used it. I can only beat him up until his armor stops functioning and his sword shatters... I thought and then said to myself ¡°Hell, Heaven, let''s go have some fun!¡± I smirked and the two sword hummed. Taking a pose, I shouted ¡°HYOH!¡± and activated my [Constipated Grandpa] skill. Magic Attacks were useless against this guy''s armor, so I just had to hammer at it with physical attacks until it shattered into a thousand pieces. With [Inner Warrior], I entered a combat trance and then activate [Unlimited Shadows] together with [King Grandpa Blade Runner], which allowed me to use some rather insane moves. Thus, I began my assault against the traitor dragon who wished to bring down my home and family, the one who sought not prosperity but destruction. His armor and weapon brought his speed and strength way past my base stats, but not total ones. Even if he had 12000 points in Strength, I had over 19000, and I knew how to use them all. Unlike me, Draejan also had an unstable state of mind given by the use of his items, for which he compensated with a combo attack together with the human hero with teleportation abilities. The moment I flew towards him, my speed increase was clear, and I had yet to begin to use the enchants on my own armor and weapons. So far, it was only pure brute strength. ¡°What the...¡± he said, but by the time he was about to say the third word, I slashed at him. Draejan was teleported away right in the nick of time, but I turned to my left and shot a fireball at a slow speed then an ice spear right at its center. The two spells collided and exploded, forming a cloud of steam. I rushed into it, using it as a cover, while Draejan, who as on the other side of it, had no idea where I was. In the blink of an eye I moved to his side and then slashed my sword at him. The armor tried to resist the brute force attack, but the blade of my weapon was sturdier than his plate. The latter gave in and cracked, but it didn''t let the cut go through. As a result, Draejan flew off into the horizon. He tried to adjust his speed and cursed a few words, but I ignored him and rushed at him. He vanished when I got close. Above. I thought as I made a barrel roll and tossed Hell at him. The blade struck his chest and made him tumble back while Hell flew back at me as if pulled by a string. ¡°This is impossible!¡± he shouted as he stabilized his flight. ¡°Not really, but it''s funny you know?¡± I said with a smile as I was charging up Hell and Heaven with Magic Energy, enhancing their blades. Draejan was glaring at me as he poured more of his Life Force into his sword and consumed what was stored in his armor to enhance it. The more he did this, the higher the penalty would be once he stopped. That weapon of his could easily pull him down from the Breakthrough-er level. ¡°You said you were going to defeat me and then defeat his Majesty, right? But did you know that I lost to the King?¡± I asked with a smirk. ¡°So what?¡± he glared at me. ¡°That means, if you can''t defeat me...¡± I pointed Hell''s blade at him ¡°you don''t stand a chance against him.¡± I then summoned the illusions from [Unlimited Shadows], in which I had been pouring Magic Energy since I began my assault. The sky around Draejan was filled with illusions of me, and all acted independently like real life clones. ¡°You have no chance of winning Draejan!¡± my voice echoed around him. ¡°Your army lacks the Supremes needed to defeat Albeyater''s army. Your troops are being slaughtered all around us. There is no chance of winning for you. Declare your loss now, and maybe his Majesty will spare you!¡± I told him. ¡°Shut up! I don''t care about my troops! I''ll kill you, that rotten King, and everyone else! I don''t need anyone! I can defeat you all!¡± he shouted. His mental instability progressed because of the amount of Life Force he poured into his sword. This means I have to be careful not to be struck by it... I thought as I looked at the raging dragon. Although he was in his half-beast form just like me, he was starting to look like a wild animal with those bloodshot eyes and constant growling. He was a bit unpredictable, but that was the cost of using one''s own Life Force to fuel an enchanted item, among many other side effects. It was quite clear that without the help of these dangerous items, Draejan didn''t stand a chance at defeating me. Even if he achieved a Breakthrough, he was far too low on his own on the power scale. He was well aware of this fact, that was why this mad version of his was his trump card. While I ordered the majority of my illusions to attack Draejan, the rest of them went to find the human who was helping him out. I had to keep him busy long enough for me to defeat this dragon. ¡°WHERE ARE YOU! SHOW YOURSELF!¡± he shouted as he kept destroying my illusions. I flew among them and went from behind. My sword slashed at his back, but my aim wasn''t his armor. Dragons in half-beast form had most of their wings exposed in order to use them for flight. Without armor or some magic spell to protect them, they were flesh and bone that could be cut with ease by a good sword. One slash was all I needed to remove one wing. The moment it was separated from his body, Draejan screamed in pain. I took this moment to fly to his side and then used [Steel Cutter] aimed at his wrist, right where the armor plates were connected. The attack separated his hand from his arm, letting it fall to the ground together with the legendary sword that made him act like a madman. Flying down, I then moved in front of him and used [100 meters long Impale], which from this short range was devastating as a physical attack. The aim was at the center of his abdominal muscles. The attack went past the limits of his armor and the plates in that region shattered into a thousand pieces. The piercing attack cut through his flesh and damaged his innards, but it didn''t go through the other side. As I flew back, I watched as he was falling to the ground. In the end, he thought he had some sort of advantage against me, but I would have lost only and only if it was the old me, the one whom he easily defeated more than one year ago. Looking up, I saw my illusions harassing a shadow in the sky. If it wasn''t for them, I wouldn''t have had such a smooth victory. If I was facing a dragon with Draejan''s buffed up stats but without the mental instability bit, I would have had a bit more trouble than now, and there was a chance I would need to depend on my armor''s enchants with him constantly being teleported around like some pesky fly. I don''t think he died from this fall, but with his demise, this battle is now over... I thought. There was no need to say that while I was fighting him, all of my friends managed to win their own battles, and they were now on their way to witness the final moments of Draejan. The enemy troops also found themselves at a stop when they saw their leader fall from their sky. His defeat signified the end of this battle. Chapter 71: The reason behind everything [Kronius'' point of view] In this battle against the former human Alkelios, my job and duty was simple. All I had to do was help master Draejan get a better position so he could land the good strike on his foe. It was a combo attack I was forced to learn while traveling around the Dragon Continent to raise my level, see important strategic location, and to fight against various terrifying monsters. It was highly unlikely there was a dungeon I had yet to set foot in either Albeyater Kingdom or Embryger Empire. When I first awakened to this ability, my master immediately ordered me to train it until I had complete control over it. Now, I could do it with my eyes closed and thanks to a levitation spell and a wind one, I could position myself up in the sky where I had a perfect view over the battlefield. It wasn''t real flight like the dragons had, but if I combined these two spells with my teleporting skills, I could easily move around faster than any of them. Watching the battle down below, I noticed how calm I was in the middle of this battlefield, and I was reminded how much of a coward I was back then, when I was brought to this planet. Almost two years ago, ten million humans were kidnapped from Earth and then cast off like disposable waste in a primitive world with a technological level no more advanced than what could be seen during the Middle Ages of Europe. I completely failed to see the use in expanding such a huge amount of energy for sending us here, but more so, I failed to see how I was going to be of use to this world which I didn''t want to be a part of. As a human, I was born in the beautiful and great England of the United Kingdom. My parents were commoners, but during these modern times, it was rather useless to distinguish between classes, although, it was widely known that noble folk tended to be of a different standing and mindset than the rest of us. The way I saw it, their way of growing up, their principles and life lessons were all different from the commoner''s ones from various point of view, especially when it came to the matter of who was entitled to rule over whom. During my youth, I tended to be more interested in going out with my friends and watching a good game of soccer on the telly. I always thought gaming in general and business interests in this industry to be rather boorish and unbecoming of someone who grew up in the United Kingdom. No matter what, I failed to see its use in our great society. When it came to studies, I wasn''t the brightest bulb in the classroom, but I tended to stand out in classes such as economy or history. It was a simple matter to get a passing grade as long as I made sure to memorize whatever was written in those silly books. Later, I got admitted the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow for the Entrepreneurship Undergraduate classes. I finished with average grades and immediately got onto starting a business together with some friends I met at the hall of residence. Then, not long after we signed our first big contract, the God-like kidnapped me and sent me to this backwater world. Indeed, I was robbed of my good fortune and cast off in this God forsaken world where the imbecile rate was as astounding as their use of magic. The first problem I encountered was the ridiculous status system the God-like cursed us with. It was impossible for me to understand. I didn''t see the use in assigning these points. It was utterly useless and moronic to even think it could have any sort of effect, but contrary to my beliefs, reality was rather cruel. Every point placed in the right attribute could mean the difference between life and death. The first thing I saw when I arrived on this planet was a cruel battle between a battalion of humans and a squad of dragons. The latter lost and were swiftly executed without a second thought. I could speak the language of the humans just as well as I did English, but I couldn''t understand how that was possible. It felt rather ridiculous that I could do it without proper study and practice. The humans took me under their wing and used my ability, [Pika Boo Blink], in various tactics. I had no choice but to follow the chain of command, otherwise, those backwater primitives would kill me just as they did with the dragons. Fleeing was out of the question as I couldn''t get far even with my power. Then, one week later, another squad of dragons intercepted our battalion, but this time, we lost completely, and all the humans except for me were executed. When one of the dragons aimed his sword to cut me down, I teleported a few feet away and avoided the blow. Seeing this, their leader, Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya decided to spare me in exchange for me becoming his personal slave. I had no choice but to accept, but although I was left alive, my life had turned into a living hell. Unsatisfied with the extent of my power, my new master ordered me to train until I fainted or couldn''t move anymore. Among his spartan training routines, which consisted of me being beaten up by his troops over and over again, I was to go to various dungeons and find my way to its core. Of course, I wasn''t allowed to keep any items for myself, but he didn''t interdict me to do research on my own with my skills and such. In fact, he encouraged this sort of thinking because the stronger I was the better he could use me in his campaign to conquer Albeyater. Speaking of which, master proved to be quite wise in regard to how he approached this entire war. When I became his slave, he had already set his plan in motion for more than forty years now. It all started with the last invasion of the human army. At that time, right after General Brekkar Draketerus won his battle against the human Breakthrough-er, master Draejan, although rather young at that time, left the capital and gathered the fleeing nobles from those lands. By offering them shelter, he put them in his debt, which he planned on collecting later on. Although still unawakened, the others were impressed by his actions and earned him great favors among the higher ups in society. Seeing how he was also of royal blood, his grandmother being the respected Queen, master Draejan was able to pull strings which otherwise would have been out of his reach. Using these favors and under the pretext of establishing a good connection with the neighboring kingdoms, master Draejan traveled in the following years around the world in order to secure the fighting force he would need for this battle. Of course, he never told me these things, but those he made deals with tended to remind him of them even when I was around. Putting two and two together wasn''t that hard for someone with my education. My job in his plan was of another kind. I was to act as a messenger at first, teleporting around to bring his precious messages to those he saw as allies or pawns. The chances of me being caught were rather low. When I had free time, I was sent to visit various locations around the kingdom, so I would know where to teleport in the future. Pertiko Village was my first real job where I acted independently. My mission was to cause a large enough distraction to force the Kingdom to move a bunch of troops to this small village and offer my master the perfect chance to enact another part of his plan. I had no idea what it was exactly, but I had a feeling it had something to do with the Brekkar Army, which was recalled to the capital. Near Pertiko was a small undead dungeon where I first trained to reach a decent level. Now that I had returned, I knew exactly where to teleport, so what I did was casually send all of the undead monsters spawned inside the dungeon outside, near the village. I kept doing this for a while until a great number of them was amassed on the surface. To make things easier for me, I threatened the Dungeon Core with its destruction if it didn''t obey me. All I had to do now was wait and witness the slaughter of the dragon troops sent here. Unfortunately, that was when HE made his first appearance... Alkelios Yatagai, a hero from Earth just like me. The difference between us, however, was not only in age but in strength as well. He proved to be far more powerful than me, at a ridiculous level even. I barely escaped with my life, but when master Draejan heard my story, he didn''t seem impressed at all, or rather he found it hard to believe my words. Alkelios was already a very outrageous individual having grown so powerful in such a short time without going through any hellish training like I did, but thinking that he could grow far more powerful than that sent a shiver down my spine. That night, I decided that within my plan to escape the clutches of Draejan, I should include a few methods to get rid of threats like Alkelios if I were to ever encounter them in the future. Unfortunately, planning was a far easier job than actually doing it. I had no idea of the extent of that man''s abilities, and there was still the mystery of what sort of skills he had gained from the God-like. Above all, I was facing a lack of useful skills myself. Up until now, I had barely received any combat worthy abilities. Whatever I gained from the God-like''s skill list felt like runner up prizes in a store lottery. Most of them simply helped me around with my daily life, like the [Drowned Cat] skill, which was basically a body cleaning spell. I couldn''t even use it on others and spending over 10 skill points for that felt like a complete rip off. It was around the time when Alkelios arrived at the capital that I was training in a dungeon somewhere in the Embryger Empire. I leveled up as usual, but this time, I received a useful new skill, although the name left much to desire. The skill was called [Goddess'' Period]. It allowed me to create droplets of crystallized blood, which then could be infused with the life force of monsters. Unlike natural absorption, this one consumed even the body of the monster, leaving no body behind. The advantage was that once I used the blood crystal, it would grant me double, and recently even triple the normal amount of life force. Not long after I used the [Goddess'' Period] skill to increase my Power Level, I noticed that I didn''t receive any more Skill Points. It was the cost I had to pay for quickly leveling up with it. Instead of using the blood crystals on myself, I mostly gathered them for master Draejan. He didn''t acquire any new Skill Points like I did, thus, they were best used on him. Looking at him fighting against Alkelios, I could tell that without that ridiculous skill of mine, master Draejan would have been nowhere near powerful enough to even land a decent hit on that flying monster. Actually, just calling that former human a monster would be wrong... All of these dragons were nothing but monsters and brutes. If there was anything that I learned while journeying throughout the Dragon Continent, that was the fact that the only good dragon was a dead dragon. The humans had every right to fight and try to exterminate them. Not only were they different from us, they held no remorse towards those weaker than them either. If they appeared friendly at first, the moment you turned your back, they jumped on you like wild hyenas. Bloody monsters they were, all of them. ¡°No matter if Alkelios wins or not, I will kill him...¡± I said in a whisper. There were a few ways to accomplish this, I just had to be prepared, that was all. It wasn''t like I didn''t do anything while master Draejan leveled up. If I didn''t do anything, I was sure to die sooner or later. For me, it was a battle for survival, not a simple stroll through the park as it was for Alkelios. Being the loved protegee of those powerful dragon granted him a quick path to success. Even his loss against Draejan more than one year ago was nothing but an unfortunate accident. [Pika Boo Blink] and [Goddess'' Period] weren''t the only special skills I obtained from that infernal lottery. I managed to acquire a bunch of combat class ones as well. They were nothing extraordinary or outrageously powerful, and they were too few in number when compared to the others similar to the [Drowned Cat]. But out of all of them, two of them stood out. [Flying Bull Drink] was a skill which allowed me to absorb the life force of killed enemies at double the speed and quantity as I naturally did. After improving this skill, the rate went up from double to triple to quadruple and then octuple. I was leveling up like crazy thanks to this skill. Two months ago, while finishing the seventh floor of a dungeon in Novarak Kingdom, I finally gained a new useful combat skill... [Grandpa 10 yo] was its name, and it allowed me to capture monsters which I had weakened through combat. All I had to do was point at it and then shout ''I will catch them all!''. It was ridiculous, but it worked. The monster would end up shrunk and trapped inside a transparent ball with a diameter of 4 centimeters. I could see it inside in a miniature form, growling and trying its best to get out. It was impossible. Unless I shouted ''Unleash the (monster name)!'' while throwing the ball away, they wouldn''t be set free. If I tossed it at an enemy, the monster would then end up being compelled by magic to attack my foe. When the battle was over, the monster would return by itself to its ball. I never told master Draejan about this skill of mine. It was a secret and also my Ace in the sleeve in case anything unexpected happened, after all, even he couldn''t win against several dungeon bosses who attacked him at the same time. For now, I was watching over their fight while also planning how I was going to take out the winner. After all, getting out of the slavery collar wasn''t such a hard task anymore. The only reason I kept it on was because I still needed Draejan to kill or at the very least weaken Alkelios enough for me to land the finishing blow. It wasn''t going to be long now... At the rate things were going, I would soon make my move and then... nothing was going to stop me from going to the Human Continent and raising a force powerful enough to exterminate the dragon species. The riches I had gained from my exploits here on the Dragon Continent would surely allow me to achieve my goals. After all, master Draejan ordered me to bring back any useful items, but what one understood by useful could be interpreted in various ways. As they say: one person''s trash is another person''s treasure. Huh? Did he just use a skill to create illusion clones of himself? I thought when I noticed several of them flying my way. [Alkelios'' point of view] The battle was finally over. Draejan had fallen and his army was pushing for a retreat now that all of their Breakthrough-ers had been slain. The one who had the toughest battle was probably Kataryna, who had to deal with two of them on her own, but thanks to my armor and weapon, she came out victorious. Thinking about it, maybe even Legendary rank armor and weapons would have been enough, but unlike the Godlike ones, they would have had far worse side effects from using their powers. They were also attuned to their elements and skills. When I began to forge them, I was a bit hesitant as to whether or not I should consume so many precious materials, but in the end, I was glad I wasn''t greedy and instead poured everything I had in them. Right now, I probably only had enough to make a pair of gauntlets of Godlike Rank, but after this war, I would have enough time to go grinding for materials. Looking at the fleeing enemy army, I noticed that their numbers have been reduced by more than half. All of their commanders laid dead on the ground, and a lot of the participating nobles surrendered. All that''s left now is to do the cleanup. I thought as I descended to the ground. I landed at about 20 meters away from where Draejan crashed and approached him while keeping my guard up. Who knew what sort of tricks he had laying in wait? ¡°K-Kill me...¡± he groaned. I stopped and looked at him. The cut off wing was several meters away from him. Red blood was flowing out from his wounds, he was spitting blood from the internal damage I had caused him. A normal human would have been dead, without a doubt, but he wasn''t a human, he was a dragon. Even so, without proper healing, he was certain to go to the other side in an hour or two. The Legendary Rank sword he used to fight me with was far from here, stuck in the boulder on which it landed tip first. The Legendary Rank armor he was wearing wasn''t emanating even a single spec of Magic Energy now, and it was nothing more than metal junk. The enchants were gone, and the crystals used to store Life Force had been shattered. Because of the way he had used his gear, Draejan couldn''t even move a single finger now. I wanted to, I could kill him with utmost ease, but I didn''t. ¡°No.¡± I told him and then searched him for any other dangerous items, but I could only find a small dagger of Master Rank and two [Purse] rings. I took them off just in case. ¡°No necklace?¡± I asked. ¡°Keh... Plundering a dead dragon''s body? Have you no shame?¡± he spat. ¡°I''m not plundering, I''m making sure you can''t fight back.¡± I said and checked again. This time I noticed a small ring around his left horn. With a quick appraisal, I found out that it had a telepathic ability, but it was inactive now. ¡°What are you going to do with me?¡± he asked with a groan. ¡°Not kill you for starters.¡± I replied and then took out a red potion from my [Black Hole]. ¡°Drink this. It''s a healing potion.¡± I told him. Draejan opened his eyes in surprise. ¡°Are you letting me go?¡± he asked. ¡°No. But I can''t have you dying or fainting on me now, can I?¡± I told him and then pushed the bottle against his lips. ¡°Drink.¡± I ordered him. He looked away and clenched his jaw. I gave him a punch in his wound, causing him to spit out blood and open his mouth from the pain. I grabbed his jaw and forced it to stay open as I poured the liquid down his throat. A few drops went the wrong way at the end, and he started coughing. ¡°What did you make me drink?!¡± he questioned furiously. ¡°A healing potion that has the side effect of numbing your body from the neck down. You''ll be able to stand up, but your strength won''t be any different from that of a dragon of Power Number 10 or below.¡± I told him as I took out a rope. ¡°What?¡± he glared at me, but the effects of the numbing agent were already showing. After I tied his hands at his back, I lifted him off the ground and then pulled him towards the Queen''s camp while keeping my hand on his shoulder. The teleporting human''s power only worked if Draejan wasn''t touching anyone else, and I was half certain of this because he was never teleported away after I managed to land a clean strike on him, only before or after. A few minutes later, we arrived at the camp. When the soldiers saw his face, they started booing and cursing him, calling him him names and casting hateful glares at him. ¡°You traitor!¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Coward!¡± ¡°Murderer!¡± ¡°Bald wolf!¡± And these were the only non-colorful ones. Yet, no matter what they were tossing out at him, Draejan didn''t even flinch, he kept walking as though he was merely listening to the wind and not a mob of angry dragons. By the time we arrived in front of the Queen, Feryumstark and my friends were already by her side. ¡°Kuku. So all of you bastards have joined up to see my demise?¡± he asked with a smirk and then looked back at me ¡°Is this why you brought me here? To give me a public execution in front of them?¡± he asked. I didn''t listen to him and simply told the Queen ¡°Your Majesty, I have captured the leader of the enemy army.¡± I made a bow before them and forced Draejan on his knees as well. ¡°You have done well, Duke Yatagai.¡± Elliessara said with a nod and then looked at two of her royal guards. ¡°Hold that traitor down.¡± she ordered them. The dragons nodded and secured Draejan in place, allowing me to walk over to the other side and act from now as a simple witness to his judgment. ¡°Before we proceed, I would like to ask... Why did you do all of this, Draejan? As your grandparents, we are entitled to know, so speak!¡± Feryumstark ordered him. ¡°Hahaha! Grandparents?! You two?! Yes, maybe we are connected by blood, but that isn''t worth a straw of grass to me!¡± he spat at the King''s feet and glared at him. ¡°What made you think this way?¡± the dragon asked. I could see that this wasn''t easy for them, even if they put up a strong front. In the end, Draejan was their grandson, and I had already seen how much they cared about their family. I was also curious about why he turned out like this. Inside my heart, I feared that I was to blame as well for this dark change of his. ¡°Let me make one thing clear, grandfather...¡± he said in a tone of mockery towards the one in front of him ¡°I''ve been planning this little war ever since I was twelve. It''s not something that came up all of a sudden after I had bad dream. Do you really think I could have even gathered an army of 364000 dragons in such a short time?¡± he laughed. ¡°This army has been building up steadily for the past twenty years...¡± he said and showed him a smirk ¡°To be more precise, it gained strength from the moment I poisoned dear grandmother.¡± he laughed. ¡°What?¡± the King was shocked, and so was everyone else here. With his authority within the palace, sneaking in the poison shouldn''t have been so difficult, after all... by all accounts, Draejan was never thought of as someone who would dare to conspire against their Majesties. There were too many reason for him not to do so... his entire family from his mother''s side, the fact that his entire career couldn''t have gotten him closer than a general''s role, the lack of nobility support or high improbability to grab the throne for himself, and there was also the fact that he had yet to become a Breakthrough-er. I thought, and just like everyone else here, I couldn''t make heads or tails of what he wanted to achieve with this. ¡°You didn''t hear? Let me say it again, the one who made it possible for the human assassin to sneak inside the palace was none other than myself! Rather, I was the one who came up with that plan in the first place. You see, those foolish humans kept believing that in our society the dragons were the ones who ruled not the dragonesses. Personally, I would have preferred if it was that way.¡± he looked with eyes filled with disgust at the Queen ¡°Why shouldn''t dragons be the ones to rule? After all, it was Feryumstark who raised the army when he founded Albeyater.¡± ¡°Foolish whelp! Watch your tongue or else...¡± the King growled as he used his Authority element to cast a mental pressure on Draejan. ¡°Keh... Or what? You''re going to kill me?¡± he showed him a smirk although he struggled to raise his gaze from the ground. I don''t think I can use my Authority in this way... I thought as I witness a true master at play. ¡°You are not even going to beg for your life?¡± Elliessara asked in a calm tone of voice. ¡°Beg? HA! What for? Not like it will change my fate. I have nothing to win and nothing to lose.¡± Draejan scoffed. Releasing the pressure of his presence, Feryumstark let out a sigh and shook his head. ¡°Hahaha!¡± Draejan laughed and fell back on his behind. He raised his gaze towards the sky and then spoke in a changed tone of voice. ¡°When I was twelve...¡± he began to reminisce about his past, and their Majesty allowed it ¡°I followed mother on a trip to one of the border towns... It''s gone now, burned down during the invasion forty years ago... I met there the one the humans called ''Hero'', an Awakened, a Breakthrough-er, whatever you want to call him. He''s the one General Brekkar killed on the battlefield.¡± ¡°That fellow? Hm, he was strong.¡± the old dragon commented as he knitted his brows. ¡°Yeah, he was strong... He also mistook me for a human child back then. Maybe if he knew I was a dragon, he wouldn''t have ever talked with me. Maybe luck was on my side? Hahaha!¡± after he stopped laughing he kept looking up and continued to speak after a short pause ¡°He told me about the beauty of war and surprisingly... the fact that he didn''t hate draconians. In fact, he was grateful to us because through our confrontations, he was able to reach his current Power Number.¡± ¡°What was his Power Number?¡± Feryumstark asked. ¡°I have no idea, but it was high... Higher than what I have... well, had.¡± he looked back at his Majesty ¡°That man also taught me that war means strength and peace means weakness... You see, I kept in touch with him afterwards. One letter every few months or so was more than enough for me to learn the things my father and mother would have never told me. He spoke about how vast the world was and how our own isolation was akin to a sin.¡± ¡°Did you have anything to do with the invasion?¡± Feryumstark asked. ¡°I may have told him the location of the army, the locations of our forts, and I believe I also let him know about a possible chance of attack. It wasn''t that hard to find out when the general''s beloved granddaughter was going to take her knighthood exam.¡± he showed him a smirk ¡°I never expected him to win the battle, and neither did he. All we wanted was to start a war, but the Queen managed to prevent that. All of our efforts went up in flames... That''s why I changed my focus then.¡± he looked at the Queen ¡°By taking you out of the picture, starting a war with the humans would have been a cinch, but...¡± he then looked at me ¡°I never expected that a monster like you was going to show up.¡± he laughed. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked furrowing my brows. ¡°What do I mean? Don''t play the fool, Alkelios Yatagai!¡± he shouted ¡°Every single one of my plans went down the drain the moment you stepped in! It was like you had all the luck in the world! Always at the right moment and at the right place! I even started to believe that you are somehow managing to read my mind or keep track of my actions!¡± he shouted and glared at me. ¡°Not really, I just wanted to sleep with my redhead dragoness.¡± I shrugged ¡°You were just in the way?¡± I tilted my head to the left. ¡°WHAT?!¡± he shouted in anger. Seryanna blushed and looked at me with a love-filled gaze. ¡°You''re telling me that all of your interference was because of a dragoness?! Couldn''t you have went to a brothel if you couldn''t keep it in your pants? Or I don''t know rape someone on the street? How about her sister or that silver-scaled one?¡± he glared at me. ¡°You do know that rape is a crime right? Also, Seryanna''s my dragoness, as long as I get to hold her in my arms I''m not even going to bother trying to sleep with someone else. Hm, maybe Kataryna, but definitely not someone from a brothel or her sister.¡± I nodded to myself. ¡°You are an idiot. What''s so special about one dragoness? Ha! This was what I was talking about, dragons need to rule over dragonesses not the other way around. Ending up like this fool is a shame, a disgrace!¡± he spat. ¡°Maybe, but I still got the dragoness in the end and even won the war.¡± I showed him a big grin. He growled. ¡°Enough of this!¡± Feryumstark roared ¡°You have already given us more reasons than we needed to put a sword through your chest, but I still wish to hear one last thing... Were you behind the deaths of the recent noble assassinations?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes. Of course. I ordered my slave to use his teleportation ability to send the assassins groups all over Albeyater at roughly the same time. It was an easy attack, and no one expected it. I also payed the bandits to destroy the caravans of the merchants coming from outside. I bribed the local lords in each port of Albeyater to raise the prices and interfere in any way they saw fit with the foreign merchants. I even caused the Pertiko incident. Hahaha! You all thought it was some unfortunate Dungeon going wild, but it was my slave who caused it to go wild!¡± he confessed. ¡°But I stopped the Dungeon.¡± I reminded him. ¡°Yes, thanks to you, the Paladins that were supposed to have died back then lived and I lost a precious contract. If they died, I would have had at least 380000 troops today. You also ruined my deals with the Twin Daggers. Do you have any idea how much gold I lost because you destroyed that organization?¡± he asked glaring at me. ¡°I don''t know, but I did convince the leader of the organization to become my friend and disband it!¡± I said with a smile. ¡°An organization as powerful as that with deals throughout the entire Albeyater was disband because of you? It''s hard to believe.¡± he laughed. ¡°Was it that powerful?¡± I asked Kataryna. ¡°Meh, who cares.¡± she replied with a shrug. The dragoness never held any regret over her decision. The Twin Daggers organization had always been just a hobby for her, which she never really took seriously. If she didn''t meet me, maybe she would still be in that cave of hers, letting time pass by with nothing ever changing. In my opinion, she got a better deal by disbanding that organization. This way she got to meet new people, make friends, and spread her wings a bit more. ¡°Now you''re going to tell me that you also had a hand in stopping the spread of the Dragon Flu in Toros?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°Erm, no. I just helped a merchant there make a bunch of Virlullian potions and told him the extra conditions needed to cure it besides the Rotiqus Potion.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Why am I not surprised? I spent a lot of coins to get it started and spread until it became like that. It was the perfect way to stall for time and force the Brekkar Army''s commanders from reaching the capital before I managed to reorganize the ranks. Because of you, I had to spend more gold and bribe more dragonesses to get the dragons I wanted inside the army.¡± he let out a sigh and shook his head. ¡°Coincidence?¡± I asked tilting my head to the left. ¡°I refuse to believe it was so. If it wasn''t for you, I would have been forced to leave the capital like I did! You stole everything for me!¡± he growled. ¡°I still don''t understand. What did you plan to obtain with all of this scheming?¡± I asked him. ¡°Internal destabilization of the country and a decrease in the quality of external relationships. This way, the King would have been forced to spread his army thin. If everything would have went according to plan, then right now there would have been countless nobles rising up against the royal family. The Human Coalition Army would have faked an attack, pulling most of the army in a defensive position on the Western Islands to stop a possible human onslaught. If I had married Seryanna by then, I would have used her name to get even more nobles on my side and then I would have acted all surprised when the massive invading army knocked on Drakaria''s door unexpectedly. Heh! I even managed to send a message to the insectoid Queen and have her send a part of her army as well to attack Albeyater from the North. A triple attack...¡± he smirked ¡°It would have been wonderful!¡± North? Insectoid Queen? Could it be? I thought as I remembered a certain insect army I squashed when I had nothing else better to do in the Northern Desert. ¡°But Alkelios put a stop to all of this. He helped gather the rest of the army, saved important nobles and even helped reveal most of the traitors on your side. Right now, most nobles are on my side rather than yours. The army from the North never came either, and you never got to marry Seryanna. She took Alkelios as her husband instead of you and Brekkar recovered as well, allowing me to put him back on his rightful general seat. As for the Queen, you never did expect that Alkelios was going to find the cure for her too, right?¡± Feryumstark summed up everything. I don''t think I ever intended or wished to be the one who stopped his overly complex strategy... I thought and when I gazed back at Seryanna, I remembered my countless wishes, among which, the most powerful one which I desired to come true from the bottom of my heart was the one in which I wanted to become her lover. I don''t think I ever stated it in words, but from the very first time I met her, I thought that it would be nice if I could become her lover, her boyfriend, but... wasn''t that one of the best ways to make a wish? It was honest, pure, and came from depths of my soul... Considering how my Luck worked, it was highly likely that I was unknowingly pulling myself towards events and situations, which if left as they were would have eventually led to me and Seryanna walking on separate ways. In the end, it was true, he was just a nuisance in the grand scheme of bringing me and my beautiful dragoness wife together. If he had not intended to make Seryanna a part of his ploy, then he might have had a chance of winning. ¡°No, I never expected him to do that.¡± Draejan replied shaking his head. ¡°Then, I''m going to ask you one more time... Why did you do it?¡± Feryumstark asked as he unsheathed his sword and aimed it at Draejan''s neck. ¡°Because there''s no honor in being peaceful. There''s no glory without a battlefield and no future without death. The Human-Draconian Wars made us strong and powerful, both of our sides, while peace will only do the opposite. We need war just as much as war needs us.¡± he stated in a firm tone of voice as he looked into Feryumstark''s eyes with an unwavering gaze. ¡°Then, as much as it pains me to do this as your grandfather, your crimes bear too much weight. May the gods have mercy on your soul, Draejan.¡± he said and pushed the blade through his grandson''s chest. The dragon received the cold sword with his eyes closed, and with one final twist of the handle, Feryumstark ended his life. After he pulled out the sword from his chest, he cleaned it with a piece of cloth. ¡°It''s over.¡± Seryanna said. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°This war... To think it was has been orchestrated from such a long time ago. Sigh... Am I getting old?¡± the Queen said and then rubbed her temples with two fingers. ¡°I doubt it, my love. This dragon simply managed to outsmart us. He was good, but too bad he used his talents to instigate chaos and death.¡± said Feryumstark. ¡°True... but I''m still worried about that slave of his.¡± Just as Elliessara said this, a loud laughter caught our attention. It was coming from above us. Looking up, I saw the human Hero who had that annoying teleporting ability. He was wearing a gothic black duster with a hood pulled over his head. With his hands on his stomach, he was laughing like a madman. ¡°To think he would die like this! Spilling out everything! What did he try to do? Was he an idiot?¡± the man laughed. Our eyes were on the flying man, while our hands rested on the hilts of our swords. For now, we didn''t know what his intentions were, but without his master, he was technically free. If he fled to the human kingdoms, we probably wouldn''t have given chase, but if tried anything, we were all prepared to jump in and finish him off. ¡°Ah! I honestly wasn''t expecting to feel SOOO good when I saw him die! Ah... that was lovely.¡± he then laughed again. When he stopped, he looked down at me and said ¡°It''s a shame you gave up on being human. Now you won''t be so welcomed by our comrades in arms. After all, we''re here on this crappy planet for the sole purpose of keeping Earth alive! Did you forget that? Are you an idiot as well? Hahaha! Now then, time to get rid of this annoying collar!¡± he said and then simply teleport it off of himself ¡°I made my choice, and I am happy with it!¡± I declared. ¡°Too bad though.¡± he said as he grabbed the collar before it fell on the ground ¡°I''m going to keep this. Safekeeping? No, just a memory of my time in Hell, that''s it!¡± he laughed. ¡°You know? I could have gotten rid of the collar ages ago, but I really wanted to see how that bastard was going to die! I really really wanted to see that, and now that I did, I feel like I am finally free!¡± he laughed again. ¡°What are your intentions, human?¡± Feryumstark asked. ¡°My intentions? Hm... Hm? Hmmm.¡± he pretend to think and ponder hard about it, but then he vanished from our sight. CLANG! When I turned my head, I saw the man standing behind Feryumstark. He tried to kill him, but the dragon''s armor was far too tough to be pierced by such an attack. Out of reflex, Feryumstark turned around and slashed at the one he now perceived as an enemy. Before the blow hit, the man jumped back and teleport a few meters away from him. ¡°Oh! That was close!¡± he laughed and then looked at his sword. The blade was chipped, ¡°I should have expected this won''t do, he is a king after all.¡± he shook his head and tossed it on the ground. ¡°One moment, please!¡± he said with a smile and then pulled out something from his [Purse] ring. It was Draejan''s Legendary Rank sword. ¡°Why did no one retrieve that thing?¡± I asked. ¡°It was already gone when I got to it.¡± Seryanna replied. ¡°He must have took it not long after I grabbed Draejan to bring him before their Majesties.¡± I said. ¡°Now then! There was a lot of things that useless dragon forced me to do, but lies and deceptions are a must when you are willing to walk among these savages! You see...¡± he lifted the sword to his eye level and then pulled out a big red crystal from his pocket. ¡°Draejan always assumed that these little things can''t be used to charge up this monster. Well...¡± he smirked and a strange energy in the form of red lightning mixed with a red fog passed from the crystal into the sword. ¡°he just wasn''t using it right.¡± When the charge up was complete, he slashed the sword at the ground and a crack appeared there. The weapon was back to its full potential, but this time without the unpleasant side effect of its user losing his sanity. At this point though, I was starting to doubt if he had any left. ¡°Now then! Alkelios!¡± he pointed the tip of the sword at me. ¡°I''m going to have you die here!¡± he declared. ¡°This guy is nuts!¡± I said as I unsheathed Heaven and Hell and then raised them above my head ¡°Chaos! Reveal yourself!¡± I shouted, although it was not needed, and the two swords merged into the powerful two-handed weapon I was most familiar with. From within the [Black Hole] I took out another two-handed sword, which only use was so I could activate my dual wielding skills. It was time for the true final battle... and this time, against a human from my own world. Chapter 72: Final round. Fight! [Alkelios'' point of view] Since this fellow wanted to start his murder spree with me, I decided to lure him out into an open area where I could fight unhindered. Although he could have stopped me from doing so, it didn''t seem to matter to him where we fought. ¡°Are you trying to avoid senseless killing?¡± he asked me on the way there. ¡°What of it?¡± I replied. ¡°It doesn''t matter, you know? Once I kill you, they will be following shortly after in Hell!¡± he laughed. ¡°Your aiming for them after you''re done with me?¡± I asked. ¡°Do I look that foolish to you? No. Once I beat you up, I''ll flee from here, recover, and only then will I begin to pick them up one after another. Even if you wouldn''t have flown all the way here, I would have teleported somewhere similar and lured you there.¡± he retorted. I didn''t answer those words, but he did surprise me by actually choosing to do so. No matter how powerful he was, there were still several Breakthrough-ers in that camp who still had enough energy to fight. Feryumstark stayed behind to protect his wife, the Queen, but Kataryna and Seryanna were flying not that far behind us, however, they were both tired after their battles earlier. If the situation proved to be too difficult for me to handle, I could see them jumping in to give me a helping hand, but I couldn''t see them being able to fight alongside me from the start. They would have been a burden. Once we reached the ''arena'', an empty part of the scorched battlefield, we faced each other. ¡°Care to let me know your name?¡± I asked. ¡°My name is Kronius Zevedar. Unfortunately, I don''t remember my name from when I was still living on Earth.¡± he replied. ¡°It''s the same for me.¡± I showed him a smirk ¡°I don''t remember how I was called back on Earth, but here I am...¡± ¡°Alkelios Yatagai, a Duke of the Albeyater Kingdom. Oh, I know!¡± he interrupted me and then laughed. ¡°What''s so funny?¡± I asked. ¡°This idle chat, that''s what!¡± he replied ¡°In the future, I will remember this as I polish your skull and place it above my fireplace!¡± he laughed. ¡°That''s some sick hobby you have there.¡± I showed him a look of disgust. ¡°Who cares? Now let''s FIGHT!¡± he shouted and then threw... a ball? ¡°Unleash the KRAKEN!¡± ¡°Unleash the what now?!¡± I asked stumped. Suddenly, the ball shone in a bright light and a giant monster appeared. It was at least the size of a dragon in beast form. With scales covering its body and a long neck ending with a four jawed head, this monster was something out of nightmares. If its ugly mug didn''t do the trick to scare you, than the eight tentacles that ended in powerful crab pincers would. The tail was that of a snake covered in spikes like a thick mane. The beast unleashed a powerful roar and then lashed out a tentacle at me. I side-stepped and used Chaos to cut it at the wrist. Acid blood gushed out, and I nearly got soaked in the thing. ¡°SKRYEEE!!!¡± With a frightening screech, it began to absorb Magic Energy into its mouth. I felt a fire-breath coming my way, so I dodged, but what came out of it''s ugly mouth instead were poisoned icicle that exploded on impact. ¡°WHAT THE?!¡± I shouted as I cast several air barriers in front of me to stop the debris. ¡°Unleash the Goliath!¡± came another shout and from above a large shadow approached. ¡°Meep.¡± I said and then dodged the hell out of the way. ¡°ME SMASH ALL SMASH!¡± the giant shouted. Looking back, he was quite similarly to a cyclops as tall as the Kraken and wearing armor plates made out of a giant monster shells. To make him look more fierce, he had tiny little imps crawling over his body like some symbiotic parasite. In his hands, he was wield what looked like gigantic metal club. ¡°KILL! SMASH! ROAR!¡± he roared and then those imps shot fireballs at me. ¡°KISHAAA!¡± the Kraken shot its exploding poison icicles. Seeing the incoming attacks, I jumped back and cast a chantless [Earth Spike Tsunami] aimed at their feet. ¡°Unleash the Ragnarakya!¡± And of course he summoned something else! I thought while the two other monsters were screaming in pain from my attack. Without leaving a moment to spare and ignoring the other boss monster, I branded my sword, fueled it with Magic Energy and rushed at the Goliath in front of me. Several imps tried to attack me, but I cut right through them. When my blade touched the boss monster''s skin it cut through like a hunting knife would a slice of butter. With a single pulse of Magic Energy, I ordered Chaos to unleash two cutting waves of Darkness and Light. They both went in separate directions, slicing the monster in three big pieces. As a cascade of blood flowed out of him, I aimed my sword at the Kraken and then dashed towards him. With several [Wind Scythe] simultaneously cast and sent towards its head, I charged up Chaos again and aimed the two cutting waves of energy at its neck. The monster didn''t stand a chance, and it was soon struggling like a headless chicken. Before I could land on the ground, Kronius appeared before me. With a smirk on his lips, he cast a wave of air at my stomach. I blocked the attack with my sword and pushed forward with my wings. Seeing as it didn''t effect me, he pulled his sword, the Two-handed Falchion of Corrosion, and tried to attack me with it. I parried with my sword, but in doing so, I could feel that the strength behind it was no joke. This human was more powerful than Draejan. ¡°The sword''s penalty doesn''t affect you?¡± I asked as sparks flew from the contact between our blades. ¡°Not one bit. I''m not using my own Life Force, after all.¡± he smirked and then teleported behind me. I dodged in the nick of time, but he teleported in front of me and kicked me in the stomach with his knee. The attack sent me flying up a few meters and then a giant hand grabbed me, it was the third monster he summoned.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. This thing wasn''t as big as the other two, but it was stronger, and it''s skin was burning hot. My armor protected me, but my wings were burnt where they were left open to the touch. ¡°AARGH!¡± I screamed from the pain. The monster sent me flying to the ground. I wasn''t able to resist and formed a crater upon impact, then that thing vomited lava on me. If I didn''t cast several layers of barriers around me, I would have suffered more than a mild burn. To get away, I pushed myself to the left with all of my might, managing to free myself of the lava flow. The moment I was out, I cast [Heal] on myself and cured my burns. The Ragnarakya saw me and stopped its lava vomit. This monster looked like a burning cyclops with cracked lava skin on several parts of his body. In the middle of his chest was a big red crystal and instead of its eye, it had a blue eerie flame. From its back, there were two big metal spikes popping out, which were drawing in Magic Energy from the nearby environment. The uniqueness of these monsters surprised me, but they were about the same as the boss monsters I used to fight in the Seculiar Forest, maybe a bit weaker because those thing could usually survive more than one of my attacks. Using and amplified version of [The Pope] with [Fatty McFat], I cast a beam of water elemental energy right at the crystal in its chest. It went straight through and the monster stopped moving completely. Alright, now where is that bastard? I thought and looked around for Kronius. I spotted him way up in the air, showing me a wide smirk and holding in each hand four of those capsules with monsters in them. He didn''t hesitate and threw them at me. I immediately took my battle stance and shouted ¡°HYOH!¡± With magic pouring in Chaos, I jumped up and flew towards him. ¡°Unleash the Cerberus! Unleash the Elemental Kraken! Unleash the Goblin Emperor! Unleash the Spidarakia! Unleash the Undead Giant Wolf! Unleash the Corrupted Nyad! Unleash the Berserker Goliath! Unleash the Magma Slime!¡± he spoke like a machine gun. Now all of these monsters were coming straight at me, and they all looked quite eager to rip me apart. This attack would be rather terrifying and annoying, but all of your monsters have one big flaw... They can''t fly. I thought as I dodged the giant three-headed dog and let him fall to the ground. I knew that Albeyater''s forces were powerful enough to handle these monsters, so I didn''t hesitate to move out of their way and just go straight for their summoner. Of course, this didn''t stop me from sending a few flying cuts towards them, injuring them just enough for them not to be a problem for those on the ground, except for the slime. When it came to that monster, the Magma Slime, I had encountered its relative before, Slime Emperor. That thing was incredibly annoying and difficult to kill back in the Northern Desert, especially if you were foolish enough to believe that magic attacks were the most effective against it. That monster absorbed Magic Energy like a sponge and turned it into a body reinforcement magic. Because of that, most of my attacks were pretty much useless. The only thing I could do against it was wither down its defense with my sword and then shoot its core with a beam of energy. If the attack was too weak, it would end up being absorbed, so it had to be more powerful than the absorption rate of the monster. It was a tricky shot, but besides stuffing it with earth spikes like a pin cushion, there was nothing else I could do. Maybe the other Breakthrough-ers had easier ways of dealing with it, but I couldn''t take the chance of them trying out various methods until they got it right. Charging up a beam of water elemental energy, I shot it at the core of the Magma Slime. My attack went straight through it like a cutting laser, and the monster was destroyed. All of this happened in the span of maybe a couple of seconds since I flew up. ¡°You really are a monster.¡± Kronius spat and aimed his palm at me. I cast a triple layer barrier and stopped the fireball. The flames blocked my view for a split second, which my enemy used to teleport out of my sight. With a swipe of my sword, I removed the distraction and searched for him among the clouds. When I spot him, I saw him feeding his sword several of those strange red crystals. I rushed towards him, but I began to realize that I needed more speed and power if I wanted to stop him. That was why I poured some Magic Energy into my armor and then drank a potion to recover it. Once it was powered up, dark-red lines of energy covered my armor, and I could feel the intense power flowing through it. I wish to win this fight. I thought, activating my Luck. ¡°Tch!¡± Kronius clicked his tongue and stopped from feeding his sword another crystal, but he already become powerful enough to block and parry my attacks. I slashed, and he teleported back. He attacked, and I dodged the blow. At a speed faster than the normal dragon eye could see, we exchanged these brutal attacks which could easily shred to pieces any one of those boss monsters below us. I was actually impressed that he had become so powerful with that sword of his, however, this battle wasn''t going to last much longer. Seeing how he was able to keep up with these insane attacks, I changed my target from trying to pierce through his defenses and instead I was aiming at turning his weapon into a useless piece of junk. With every strike, my enemy''s sword had its strength chipped away. As a blacksmith of Godlike Rank, I was able to not only understand how to make this sort of weapons but also how to destroy them. Then, when he was least expecting it, the sword''s blade broke in half and the resulting explosion of energy sent us both flying back. I knew it was coming, so I shielded myself in the nick of time, but Kronius was taken by surprise and took the brunt force of the attack. ¡°GYAH!¡± he screamed in pain. When I heard him, I hoped he received more than just a couple of broken bones. It would have been great if he fainted or died, but he was too resilient for that to happen. After he fell some distance, I saw him stopping midair and floating there. I clicked my tongue and flew towards him. With Magic Energy pouring in my sword, I was preparing to send him off to the world of the dead. So what if he was a human from Earth? So what if killing someone like this without a trial was going to be considered by other humans an act of murder? So what if I was going to end up their enemy because I took the blood of one of our own? In the end, this was a battlefield and all of these questions had no meaning here. This man chose to attack and threaten my friends and my new home, so naturally, I would stand up against him and drive my blade through his heart if I had to! Whatever was to come next... whatever guilt I was to feel... whatever innocence I would believe I would lose as a result of this... All of these were in the future... ¡°DIE!¡± I shouted as I flew towards him, power surging through my whole body and Magic Energy flowing into my sword and armor. A single slash was all I would need to cut down this human... With bloodstains on the corners of his mouth, a bleeding nose, and a shredded outfit, Kronius looked back at me with eyes filled with hate and fear. Maybe he never expected for things to turn out this way, but all of this was his fault. He could have ran away once freed. He could have pleaded innocent and hope for us to let him go. There was no need to attack Feryumstark, no need to want to kill me... Why did you do it? I wondered in that last moment. Lifting his palm up towards me, I felt a chill run down my spine. Something''s wrong. I thought. ¡°VANISH!¡± he shouted. Huh? I blinked once and then the world around me started to twist. I felt stuck in place, unable to move or say a word, and all I could see was how the world around me vanished... and turned to darkness. Chapter 73: The God-likes Truth [Kronius'' point of view] I did it... I thought as I was falling from the sky. With that last burst of Magic Energy, I was completely depleted and wasn''t able to sustain my flight. The ground was approaching fast, and my only chance of survival if I didn''t want to end up a simple red splat on the ground was to drink a potion that would restore my Magic Energy. ¡°Come on!¡± I struggled against the wind as I took out a small blue bottle, but in my weakened state, I wasn''t able to hold on to it, and it flew out of my grasp ¡°NO!¡± I screamed as I tried to catch it again, but it was to no avail. Not giving up, I took out another potion, but this time, I held it better. After popping the cork, I drank it with haste. The moment the sour liquid touched my lips, I could feel the energy coursing through me again. I had no time to lose. I cast a barrier around me and then invoked the winds to slow down my fall. The moment I made contact with the ground, my barrier broke, but only a small part of the shock reached me, which meant that minus a few bruises here and there I survived. ¡°Cough! Cough! I did it!¡± I said with a smile as I pushed myself up and flipped myself over on my back while looking up at the sky. Alkelios is now dead, and I am alive! I won! I thought as I smiled. CRACK! A surge of pain washed over me from my left leg, and I let out a loud shout ¡°AAARGH!¡± It hurts! It hurts! I screamed in my mind, but when I looked at the source of pain, I saw... her. That red-scaled dragoness, Seryanna Draketerus, was looking at me with a cold gaze, and I could feel her bloodlust washing over me. Three others landed next to her: the silver-scaled dragoness Kataryna Greorg, the black-scaled dragoness Thraherkleyoseya Draketerus, and the white-scaled dragon whose name I had forgotten. They were looking at me with the same cold piercing eyes. In their half-beast forms they were no different than monsters, man-eating monsters. I felt a shiver of fear rushing down my spine because I knew there was no way to reason with these... things. The God-like was right, this continent was filled with nothing but monsters. ¡°Where is he?¡± Seryanna asked with a threatening guttural growl. I smirked. ¡°Dead.¡± I told her. She twisted her foot on my broken leg, sending another surge of pain through my body. I screamed, but she closed my mouth by slapping my jaw with her tail. ¡°Where is he, human?¡± she asked again. ¡°I told you, he''s dead.¡± I spat some blood. ¡°What do you mean? Explain.¡± Kataryna demanded. I showed her a smirk ¡°That last attack, it was my most powerful yet, and even I don''t have full control over it. You see, what it does is uses all of my Magic Energy in order to send my target to a random place in the solar system. By random, I mean it could be another planet, the cold void between the stars, an asteroid, or even within the crust or mantle of a planet.¡± I smiled triumphantly ¡°There''s also another catch to it. Not only is he sent in a random place in this solar system, but he is also sent either to the past or to the future.¡± ¡°What?¡± the dragoness was showing me a confused expression. ¡°Let me put it this way, my spell could have sent him 100 years into the future right in the middle of the Sun. Or it could have sent him 100 years into the past right in the middle of this planet, thousands of kilometers beneath the surface. Do you really think anyone or anything can survive that?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°Face it, he''s dead.¡± I told her. ¡°How do we know you aren''t lying?¡± the black-scaled dragoness asked as she let out growl. ¡°Why should I? Besides, I give up. You can take me to jail or put another slave collar on me, I don''t care.¡± I said as I raised my hands up in a sign of submission. The dragonesses looked at each other for a moment and then back at me with a cold gaze. What''s going on? I wondered. ¡°You seem to be mistaken about something.¡± Seryanna said and then, before I could do anything, she stabbed her sword into my gut. ¡°Gah!¡± I spat blood and winced from the pain. It hurts! I''ve been stabbed! I''m bleeding! I thought in shock. ¡°Alkelios told us about your little teleportation trick. As long as I keep my foot on your leg, you can''t run away. Besides, you are deeply mistaken about the fact that he''s dead. I''m his wife, his mate, I would know if he died or not. No matter where you sent him, be it the past or the future, he will come back to me, and I will see him again. That man, unlike you, has 100 points in Luck. He has it maxed out. Which means that even if he has a chance of a chance of a chance to survive, he will. Not only this, but we, his friends and family, also deeply wish for him to return to us safe and sound.¡± she told me with her cold gaze as she slowly pushed the blade of her sword deeper into me. ¡°You are mad! I said I gave up!¡± I shouted back, trying to stop the blade from going deeper. I could still be saved if I drank a healing potion or if someone cast a healing magic on me. Magic in this world could do what no modern tech could. There was still time. There was still a way for me to survive! ¡°You are also mistaken about something else, little human. Do you really think, that I, Alkelios Yatagai''s wife, would calmly just let you walk away after attempting to murder my husband?¡± she asked as she got close to me with her scaly reptilian head. ¡°W-What?¡± I asked horrified of what her words implied. ¡°You''re not going to jail, and you are definitely not going to be wearing a slave collar. I saw what you did back there, how you easily took it off. Do you think I''m stupid? No, what awaits you is nothing but death.¡± she told me this, and I could tell... I could tell... she was enjoying this. S-She wants to kill me? No! I can''t die! I thought, and I struggled in vain to free myself of her. There was no way of getting out. I didn''t have enough Magic Energy left to cast a spell, not even a simple barrier let alone to use my ability to teleport out of here. I was trapped. I was trapped like a hare in a fox''s den. There''s no way out... These things really are monsters... Monsters who walk and talk like humans do. I thought horrified. In the next moment, she pulled out her sword, making me spit blood, and when our eyes met, she slashed horizontally. The world began to lean to the side, and I couldn''t feel my body anymore. No... I don''t want to die... NOOO!!! I screamed in my mind as the world turned black. [Seryanna''s point of view] I was heaving from the effort and rage that was surging through me. The body of the man who took away my husband laid at my feet chopped up in several pieces. I wasn''t satisfied at all with this, so I unleashed my fire breath on his remains. I burned him until there was nothing left, not even his bones. ¡°AAARGH!¡± I screamed in anger and unleashed another fire breath towards the sky. With a heaving breath, I fell on my knees, trembling and scared of the possibility that he might never return to me. ¡°Seryanna...¡± Kataryna said as she placed her hand on my left shoulder. Looking up at her, I saw that even she was barely holding back her anger. My sister was crying in Iolaus'' arms, probably thinking that Alkelios was gone. ¡°If that man''s words were indeed true and Alkelios was sent either to the past or the future in some random place in space, then he is also the only one who can survive it. If anyone can hope to have the luck of getting out of that one, then Alkelios is the one. You said it yourself, didn''t you?¡± Kataryna told me with a soft smile, but it didn''t seem like she was fully believing those words either. ¡°Yes, you are right...¡± I said as I lowered my gaze to the charred ground around us. ¡°If anyone can do it, he can...¡± I clenched my fists and then got back up on my feet. ¡°What are you going to do, sister?¡± Kleo asked me, but she was still crying. ¡°I''m going to wait for him.¡± I replied as I looked into her eyes ¡°No matter what, I will wait for him. I know he is alive somewhere... I just have to wait...¡± I said. ¡°What if...¡± I knew what Kataryna wanted to say, but I sent her a sharp glare to stop her from finishing that sentence. ¡°I know he''s alive, Kataryna. The moment I killed that trash of a human, I felt his life force entering my body as it usually happens when I kill someone or a monster. It wasn''t like I had once felt it before meeting Alkelios, but it was the same as if the boost he offered us was still there.¡± I told her. ¡°So you are saying that his ability was not canceled? You are using that as a proof? But what if it''s something that isn''t influenced by whether he is alive or dead?¡± she asked. ¡°I refuse to believe that. He is alive, I know it, and as his wife, I''ll wait for him!¡± I told her and narrowed my eyes a little. There was no way I was going to just give up on Alkelios. There was no way he was dead. The gods wouldn''t let it... ¡°To be honest, I also want to believe this, but I can''t help it if there''s a small part of me that wonders if maybe just maybe he isn''t going to come back anymore... However, giving up on him just like that would be a shame for all of us who love him as either a friend or lover. I won''t give up on him either, but in the case he takes a while to come back to us, we better be ready. Seryanna, you need to reach a Breakthrough.¡± Kataryna told me. ¡°I will. I will become stronger than I am. I will show everyone the true power of the Superior Draconian of the High Flame, and next time, I will stand by his side when he goes to face off his enemies! I swear I will become someone he can lean on not someone he needs to worry about!¡± I declared as I clenched my fist. ¡°All of us will!¡± Kleo declared as well. No matter what that trash human said, Alkelios Yatagai wasn''t gone, he wasn''t dead. We would declare him as missing, but not dead. That''s why... my love, come back to me quickly. I already miss you. I thought as I looked up at the sky. [Alkelios'' point of view] When I came through, I couldn''t hear the sounds of the battlefield around me or feel the cold touch of the wind up in the sky. All I could see wherever I looked was only darkness, a pitch black darkness with no sound or light. What''s happening? Did I die? I wondered, but as I closed my fist and opened it again, I could hear my heart beating, and I knew I was very much alive. I tried to fly around, hoping that maybe I was just temporarily blinded or something, but no matter where I moved, up or down, left or right, I couldn''t feel the touch of the wind. It was both strange and creepy. What''s going on? I wondered. Then, I saw a beam of light coming from behind me. I turned around, and what I saw were a pair of... curtains. In the middle of nowhere, there was a pair of purple velvet curtains from behind which I could see a white light piercing through. Carefully and wary of any traps or sneak attacks, I approached the curtains and stepped through. In that moment, when I passed through, instead of the darkness, I found myself inside a white room, and there... in front of me, I saw the God-like entity who brought me to this world. ¡°Are you playing games?¡± were the first words that came out of my mouth. ¡°What?¡± he turned around, but in that split second, his character died and the message ''GAME OVER'' appeared on the screen. ¡°WHAT?! NO! That was the final boss!¡± he cried out. I recognized the game, it was the one I was playing back on Earth before all of this happened. It brought back such a nostalgic feeling. ''Dragon Hunt'' was a game where you played as a ''Hero'' who traveled the world hunting evil dragons. Most species in the game were a dragon of some kind. There was even a complaint at one point that reptiles far outnumbered the mammals, which brought to question of how humans and other warmblooded sapient species came to be. Well, some said it was just a game, but once you thought about it, it broke the immersion. ¡°Is that Bloodheart Dungeon?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah...¡± the God-like said as he respawned his character at the checkpoint area. He was playing on what appeared to be a huge plasma TV connected to a desktop computer. The system was installed in front of a comfortable white couch, and in front of it was a table at just the right height to use the mouse and keyboard comfortably. The tools he was using looked expensive and more aimed at pro players. Still, I found it rather weird that he was playing this game just as I walked in. ¡°So where exactly am I? Am I dead?¡± I asked as I walked up to him. ¡°Hm? No.¡± he shook his head. He got up from his seat and turned around to look at me. ¡°So where am I?¡± I asked. ¡°You are in a place where normally mortals shouldn''t be able to get in. I knew there was a very very small chance that Kronius'' ability would send you here, but without your Luck it was literally impossible for this to happen.¡± he said as he let out a sigh. ¡°Kronius, the guy I was just fighting, what happened to him?¡± I asked a bit worried. ¡°Your wife killed him after you vanished from that place.¡± he said and then showed me through a portal of some sorts the moment when Seryanna decapitated him in one clean swipe. This magic of his was the same as watching through the clear window of a room. ¡°Good. He''s not going to be a problem anymore.¡± I said as I let out a sigh of relief. The God-like made the window vanish and then looked into my eyes.Stolen novel; please report. ¡°Yeah... well, you know he was supposed to be your counter in case you became too powerful and evil, right?¡± he said. ¡°What? I don''t understand. What do you mean by that?¡± I asked a bit confused. ¡°Alright, since you already are here and we have some time to spare, let me ask you this. Why do you think I sent you to this world?¡± ¡°To save it and by doing that save our world, Earth?¡± I asked. ¡°Ultimately, yes. But you have to admit that can''t be the only reason. I could have just granted you these powers and then left you to train them on Earth or just make it so you came back to fight the invaders, right?¡± he told me raising an eyebrow. ¡°Wait, I don''t understand what this has to do with Kronius being my counter?¡± I asked him a bit confused. ¡°Just go with me on this one, you''ll understand in the end.¡± he replied. ¡°Alright... not like I have a choice.¡± I nodded. ¡°So about what I said a moment ago, what do you think?¡± he asked. ¡°Sounds plausible, right. Then again, given your powers, you could have just granted us random powers like the superheroes in the comics.¡± I replied. ¡°Yes, but the acceptance rate and development would have been tremendously different from how it is here, on my world. Just think about what two or three superheroes did in your comics when they suddenly showed up and then imagine their number at 10 million strong ones that suddenly popped up all over the planet. Crime rate would go way up and the Earthlings would be fighting among each other rather than focusing on a common enemy.¡± he explained. ¡°What do you mean? Shouldn''t the crime rate go down?¡± I asked confused. ¡°The soul of a hero isn''t something everyone has, kid. Most people, under normal circumstances, wouldn''t use their abilities for good or to save others. True, maybe some would do it at the beginning, but then they would try to see how they could use their abilities to make some quick money. A lot of them would be more inclined towards robbing and murdering others rather than helping them because the surge of power was enough to intoxicate them and twist their morals.¡± he explained. ¡°How can you be sure of this?¡± I asked. ¡°Let''s just say your Earth isn''t the only Earth out there, as in Universe. Also, it''s a psychological thing. For most humans in general, the majority actually, it''s incredibly difficult to stop themselves from abusing their powers. You know the saying? It is not hard to kill, it is hard to stop yourself from killing once you have a motive and way to do so. Or the saying: It easy to be evil, but difficult to be good, however, reward wise, the evil path takes more and gives you less, while the good path takes little but gives you a lot.¡± he said. ¡°I think I get it. So basically what you are saying is that humans are their own worst enemy, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Precisely, but this law doesn''t apply only to humans. The weakness to being corrupted by a vast power that was given to you is an intrinsic characteristic of all sapient species who have yet to reach a certain point of biological and social evolution. Humans, like many others, find it more easy at this point to abuse their power and feed their egomaniac sides than to abstain from the abuse and think about how to use it for the benefit of society.¡± the God-like explained. ¡°What if someone wants to use their powers only to have fun?¡± I asked. ¡°As I said earlier, a certain level of social evolution is required for those individuals around someone with power can accept the simple fact that he only wants to use his abilities to have fun. At this moment, humans mostly perceive the idea of power as being one mandatory connected to either heroism or villainism.¡± he said. ¡°I think I more or less get it. So, you sent us to a world where almost everyone has some power, the spells and skills and such, so that we wouldn''t end up corrupted by our own abilities?¡± I asked. ¡°That is one reason, yes, but I had other plans as well. You are aware that only Heroes can see their Status, right?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded. ¡°Well, that ability, not [Hero] just the ability to see the Status Screen, is something that can be passed down to one''s own offspring.¡± he smiled. ¡°So you''re saying my kids will be able to see the status of others?¡± ¡°Yes. Now, here''s another question. What''s the minimum population required to repopulate an entire planet from scratch?¡± he asked. ¡°I don''t know... a few millions?¡± I replied with a shrug. ¡°You couldn''t be more wrong. Just a few thousands for monogamous couples, but if they have certain genetic knowledge and don''t mind polygamy, they can be as little as a few hundreds and still offer enough genetic diversity to repopulate the planet.¡± he explained calmly. ¡°Wait, doesn''t this mean that if Earth were to suffer a cataclysm...¡± I said but I didn''t finish my words, the God-like did. ¡°Given Earth''s current technology and knowledge, I would say that even in the event of a nuclear Armageddon, your kind will have sufficient individuals left to repopulate the planet. The big countries of Earth like USA, Russia, Germany, UK, Japan, China, Korea and a few others already have bunkers and underground shelters capable of housing at least a few hundred select individuals. They can survive there a few centuries if needed be given recycling and mining and other stuff, but yes, there is no worry from any government that the human species won''t be able to survive.¡± he said with a smile. ¡°What about everyone else?¡± I asked. ¡°Their mentality and way of thinking goes like this: what''s the point in wasting so many resources in saving billions when you can have a few select to survive and recreate the world as you please from scratch? Just imagine a world without world hunger, epidemics, and more languages and cultural diversities than you can count. Nuke the current world, hide in a shelter for a few centuries, and when you come out, you can literally create that world.¡± he explained. I could only gulp because there was no way to refute this logic. Even I was aware that many big countries began the construction of such projects as soon as the idea of a nuclear war became more and more real. ¡°So, the ten million that were sent here are meant to repopulate this world?¡± I asked. ¡°No, just give it a new genetic boost. Humans of Earth are a bit more genetically evolved than those of this world, be it their life expectancy or natural thought processing ability. It doesn''t mean that the indigenous population is made of morons, but they won''t be thinking of the Theory of Relativity any time too soon on their own. Actually, I would even say that they were heading towards extinction if you humans of Earth never showed up.¡± he said. ¡°Alright, but I''m not 100% human anymore and as far as I know, without Kronius, there are no more humans left on the continent. Shouldn''t this be a problem?¡± I asked. ¡°Do you really think you are the only human who was meant to arrive on the Dragon Continent or who was sent there? Also, do you really think that because you are now half draconian is a bad thing? That''s actually a brilliant good bonus from my point of view!¡± he asked with a smirk. ¡°What?¡± I blinked surprised. ¡°Every human that was sent down on this world was sent there according to their abilities. There were many who died as soon as they landed because of various reasons, but rest assured, they will not be missed. I had planned on sending out powerful individuals to all the corners of the planet to mingle with the local population and give birth to many hybrids. The humans that were chosen weren''t randomly chosen either, you had to pass a certain personality test and also a fertility one. If an indigenous human has a 25% maybe 30% chance of impregnating a dragoness, you have an over 60% chance of doing so. And the draconians have the lowest chances out of all of them.¡± he said with a smile. I gulped. ¡°However, rest assured, becoming breeding samples wasn''t my intent. This came as a beautiful bonus. Your original goal and mission is as I had initially stated to change this world for the better. You will do so not only through mating with the indigenous population and giving rise to people who can read the Status, but also through your actions, principles, and even technological ideas which your people will implement all around the world. Someone already made beer, so that is a beautiful start!¡± he laughed. ¡°But not all of us will do this, right?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course not. Ten million people means ten million free wills, ten million personalities, and ten million different views about how the world should be. In most things you might come to agree, but the details are what matter here.¡± he pointed out. ¡°Some will be good... and some bad.¡± I said. ¡°Yes. The weakness of drowning in your power and being corrupted by it hasn''t left ANY of you, yet. There are many who already succumbed to it even though they were initially good individuals.¡± he said with a smile. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked in a bit of trembling tone of voice as I was starting to realize what a modern human could do to a primitive society like this one. ¡°You have the Neo Nazi rising in the Eastern Human Continent, the Neo Communists in the Western Human Continent, the Imperialists who stand by the side of the current monarchs, and even what I would call and Extremist Democracy starting to rise in a certain place, of course, through the deaths of the previous leaders. If this wasn''t enough, you have the Pure Bloods who think themselves superior to the others. About them, let''s just say there''s no Black Hunt anymore, but rather a White Hunt. Although, I''m going to point out that a Neo KKK member managed to infiltrate a certain kingdom and give rise to the Human Supremacy Movement rather than a White Supremacy one. Why kill other humans when you have continents of non-humans out there?¡± he said as he showed me through portals the current images of those movements. Considering how much bloodshed, sadness, and death all those movements brought to Earth, I never thought there would be someone willing to restart them here. I never in my wildest dreams even considered this a possibility, but maybe I was too naive, too young, too foolish? However, I was certain that all of those movements were run by humans from Earth and definitely didn''t see the Dragon Continent with good eyes. ¡°W-Why did you bring such monsters to this world? Do you realize what you have done?¡± I asked in a trembling tone of voice. The God-like showed me a smile and then replied ¡°I brought a diversity that was never meant to exist in this world. Now, all those movements have another chance at proving themselves ''right'', but I never said that they were alone. There are heroes out there who will stop at nothing to bring them down. This is just a play of good versus evil. It''s a mandatory step to bring out this world from its stagnant evolution. After all, history never changed or advanced from its medieval state for the past several thousand years now. At this rate, all species were going to be faced with extinction by some means or another.¡± he then created another portal and showed me a ruined landscape. ¡°This place...¡± I said as I recognized it. ¡°Drakaria some time in the future, over a thousand years to be exact.¡± he explained. ¡°What... how did this happen?¡± I asked. ¡°The Demon Kings first rose from the malice of the world and brought all civilizations to their knees. Then came the plagues, new viruses and bacteria born from the flow of Magic Energy and cosmic radiation. Then came the natural cataclysms, eruption of volcanoes, super volcanoes, and worst of all, meteorite impacts. Every world is meant to suffer from such things, it''s nature and physics, after all... The thing is, only a sapient species that is technologically advanced enough can put a stop to them, but you see... this world was never going to have one despite the huge diversity in them. That was why I brought you humans from Earth here. You are the only chance this world has.¡± he explained to me. ¡°So you are saying that if we... the good guys, defeat these movements and bring about a good change to the world, we will change the future?¡± I asked. ¡°It already has, but you are all bound to your own free wills. I can''t dictate your choices for you, so I am betting my all in you. But, what I can say is that I was well aware of the fact that with great power comes the danger of being corrupted by it, so I made sure that heroes with powerful abilities had a counter, a rival there as well.¡± he told me. ¡°So mine was that guy with the teleporting ability.¡± I said. ¡°[Pika Boo Blink] is not very powerful when compared to other abilities, but when it''s advanced to the maximum level, it''s ultimate ability teleports you randomly within the current solar system and also in a different time period. If you didn''t have your luck, you would have appeared in the center of the currently unnamed Gas Giant 1458 years into the future. You would have died instantly because of the pressure alone.¡± he explained. I gulped when I heard what could have happened to me. ¡°Why... why did you give him such a frightening ability?¡± I asked. ¡°Although, I admit, it''s a bit overpowered, but it was also the only one that can stop you at that time. You see... depending on your choices, your path would have been a different one. You could have never met Seryanna and instead met that one dragon from the Twin Daggers she defeated. You would have met Kataryna instead, but by that time, you would have lost all trust in dragons and saw them as nothing but monsters. In this timeline, Kronius is the one who befriends the dragons after he meets with Seryanna at the capital. There''s another timeline where you never come forward with your true feelings for Seryanna, and she ends up marrying Draejan. While you still remain around them, you end up marrying Kataryna instead. There''s also a timeline where you marry Kleo and kill Seryanna, and one where you start your own harem of a thousand dragonesses. All of these are possible futures starting from the very moment you set foot on this planet.¡± he explained. Hearing all of those possibilities was surprising, but I couldn''t see nor understand how I would come to make them happen, especially the harem one. I could barely handle a single dragoness let alone a thousand. Although, for some reason, I was relieved to hear that marrying Kataryna was also a possibility. Maybe my relationship with her will change in the future? ¡°So in the event that I became evil, Kronius became the good guy, and so on?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. That was why I said he was your counter. Not only ability wise but also destiny wise.¡± he explained. ¡°Does every human have such a counter?¡± I asked. ¡°No. You alone are the counter for a lot of humans. The strong in general are like that.¡± he said. ¡°So then, why tell me all of this?¡± I asked that one question I wasn''t able to utter until now. ¡°Because now you are willing to listen and accept it as a truth. Can you imagine what you would have said or thought if I did this from the start?¡± he asked raising an eyebrow. ¡°I wouldn''t have believed you... or I would have rejected everything as a way of rebelling.¡± I replied after I thought for a moment. ¡°Exactly. And you wouldn''t have been the only one. Some people would have went on killing sprees thinking that it was going to make me send them back to Earth.¡± he said. ¡°Speaking of which, we can never go back, can we?¡± I asked. ¡°No.¡± he shook his head ¡°The moment you stepped here, I already made sure to help Earth get past its... ordeal. So, at the very least, you can rest assured that your family over there is safe.¡± he showed me a small smile. ¡°That''s good to hear, but aren''t you worried I will tell of this to other humans?¡± I asked. ¡°You can, and I think it''s about time the truth was spread to them... After all, some time already passed by since you first landed on the planet.¡± he told me. ¡°Time? How long have I been away from the battle?¡± I asked immediately, since I remembered what Kronius'' ability did. I feared I was stuck somewhere in the future, like a few hundred years or something. ¡°From the moment you were sent to this world until now, exactly five years have passed. As I said, you were lucky it wasn''t more.¡± he told me with a smile. ¡°Does this mean I''ve been away from Seryanna for three years?¡± I asked as I stumbled back. ¡°Yes. But as I said, you are lucky it wasn''t 10 or 100 or 1000.¡± he nodded. ¡°I see... Thank you... So, what now?¡± I asked. ¡°I will send you back to that world, but... I won''t take you to the Dragon Continent. Your presence is needed somewhere else, in the Human Continent.¡± he told me with a smile. ¡°Human Continent, but I want to see Seryanna... Being away from her for three years...¡± I said as I worried that she might have given up on me. ¡°No need to worry about her, she''ll know when you return. As a favor, I''ll let her know of this through a dream or something. Meanwhile, I want you take your time in the human kingdom and see for yourself how the humans of this world are. The kingdom you will arrive in will be one that faced the least amount of influence from the earthlings.¡± he said. ¡°What? Dream? Kingdom? What?¡± I said blinking surprised. ¡°Sigh... Just take it slow. Good bye and see you around Alkelios. Oh! And before I forget, I''ll give you the nerfed version of [Pika Boo Blink]. You''ll understand why later.¡± he winked and then the world around me changed once more. Instead of the white room, I was now surrounded by clouds. Huh? Clouds?! I blinked surprised and when I turned around, I saw myself plummeting towards the ground. ¡°OH! FIDDLESTICKS!¡± I shouted and immediately flapped my wings to slow down my descent. I was a few hundred meters up in the air and plummeting towards the ground at an insane speed. It took me a bit of effort, but I managed to land safely. With a heavy breath, I looked up at the sky and remembered what the God-like told me. Three years in the future... Talk about a major time skip, but it''s better than 1000. I thought and then let out a sigh, but just then, a slime appeared before me. Wiggling its body, it targeted me and then jumped for a body slam attack. Because I was too confused from everything that happened, I didn''t even dodge, however, the moment the slime touched me, it exploded... ¡°What the...¡± I said surprised as I wiped off the slime''s remains off my face. Looking around, I could definitely see that the critter self-destructed or something. Maybe it was marking me as a target? I wondered. Then another blue, watery slime popped out of a bush. ¡°[Identificus Processus Juridicus]!¡± I activated my ability on the targeted monster. The basic information I got from it was this: [Name]: None [Species]: Slime [Level]: 1 ¡°Huh? Level 1? Where did that God-like sent me?!¡± I thought when I looked in surprise at the wiggly little slime which I only needed to touch in order to kill. Side Story (4): The Knight Masters sins [Teolas Draegan''s point of view] It was 38 years ago when I first saw Brekkar''s bright and cheerful granddaughter stepping up on the arena to prove her worth as a Knight. Just like all the other Knight Masters back then, I too found the young lass who had yet to Awaken to be rather strange in the head for attempting to take up the heavy role of Knight and join one of our Orders. The reason behind this shared opinion was the simple fact that Seryanna Draketerus had yet to grow up from a child to an adult. Us dragons grew both in strength and wisdom when we Awakened, but most importantly, we knew the color of our scales and the elements best suited for us. Among the ranks of the Knights, for example, there were very few whose scale colors were black, white, silver, or green. These types of dragons were said to have the lowest combat potential out of us all, so they were better suited for other jobs. The blue and brown scales were acceptable, but red was sought after by many Knight Masters. Red scales had a good control over fire and heat, but they all shared the common trait of having a short temper and unwavering loyalty. Of course, up until then, in all of my 716 years of life, I had seen many different types of Knights, from geniuses who claimed to be able to do it all like the young boy of the Doesya family, or the type who joined the ranks just because of the privileges. Loyalty was not a skill but something the royals had to earn from their knights. The red-scales, however, tended to offer their loyalty much faster than the others, while the black-scales... well, I never heard of one serving as a Knight before. They suited more the roles of assassins. The green scales loved poison, while the blue ones tended to have one too many baths. Thus, as a Knight Master, I was one of those who were opposed even to her taking up this trial. Seryanna Draketerus had not yet Awakened, thus we knew not how to properly train her. She was a wild card, an unknown variable, and we couldn''t have something as unstable as that within our ranks. ¡°Seryanna wins her 26th consecutive match!¡± called out the announcer. Despite my own thoughts, this young dragoness remained unmatched among the ranks of the young Knights. A day prior to this test, I spoke with the other Knight Master and asked them to bend the rules a bit so that our long-standing tradition would remain unsoiled. We couldn''t have an Unawakened enter our ranks, it would be shameful. The typical test would usually be of a prospective Knight fighting against an actual Knight from our lowest ranks. If he or she could defeat them, then they would enter one of the Knight Orders. In Seryanna''s case, however, I asked for the best knights from the lowest rank to participate. But not just one, as many as possible until she would tire out and be declared defeated. This was done so that it would show our firm resolution of not changing our ways in favor of an Unawakened even if she was Brekkar''s granddaughter. That was the plan, at least, but on the 27th match, Brekkar stepped inside the arena and gently patted the dragoness'' shoulder. She was worn out, gasping for air, and barely standing on her feet. Another fight and that would have been it, but this old dragon put a stop to it. ¡°I believe this was enough to show us all that she''s worthy of the title of a Knight. After all, if she''s not then what should we do about those poor fellows who were defeated by her in fair battle?¡± the dragon asked as he glared at all of us. ¡°Indeed, that''s right. It should be enough.¡± Blachuar, the old fool was the first to give in to his pressure. ¡°I too agree with this.¡± Malkinor nodded with a smile, he would never dare go against Brekkar Draketerus. ¡°Well, I don''t.¡± I declared and looked him right in the eyes. You can''t scare me, you old fool. I thought. ¡°Oh?¡± Brekkar showed me a grin, and I could feel a powerful flow of Magic Energy gathering around him. Impressive, but not enough to change my mind. I thought as I remained unwavering in my decision. ¡°Then you''ll be the one to train her from now!¡± Brekkar declared with a smile as she pushed Seryanna forward. ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised when I saw the timid dragoness look up at me with expecting eyes. ¡°Why should I?¡± I retorted and furrowed my brow. ¡°Because the King told me I can choose under which Knight Master she will serve. Also, she''ll become the Third Princess'' Royal Knight, so you won''t have to worry about an Unawakened joining your reclusive Knight Orders. I''m pretty sure that soon enough she''ll be making her own!¡± Brekkar announced and then let out a cheerful laugh. The dragoness was filled with hope and gleaming with joy. The lass was far too cheerful for a Knight, we had to be serious, emotionless, for we were a symbol of our Lords. ¡°If it''s the King''s order, very well.¡± I nodded and succumbed to the decision. The cheerful dragoness soon enough came over and with a bright smile declared that she''ll become so strong that I won''t ever be disappointed of her. It was a nice dream, one which I planned on shattering soon. The girl had to see the reality of this world before any sign of growth could be seen within her. I was thinking of throwing her among the more experienced Knights and let them take her to a more difficult mission or pity her against much more powerful foes. There were many ways to wipe that cheerful smile off her face. Knowing when to hide your emotions was crucial for a Knight, after all. Fortunately for me and unfortunately for her, I never had to push her through any of those situations. The tragedy of Scar Battlefield which would mark Albeyater''s history forever also affected her the most. Not only her parents but most of her relatives had died off in that event, slaughtered like animals by the vile humans. Now, instead of a cheerful smile, I had to worry about that burning hate and rage that filled her strikes and glare. My strategies were turned a full 180 degrees, but that was the job of a Knight Master. We had to take a rough diamond and polish it until our hands bled. In theory, I could now use a number of reasons to take her Royal Knight title away, but after I heard about Brekkar suffering from the [Berserker''s Burst], I decided against it. If I did that, I feared I might inquire more hate than I needed. All of Albeyater showed their sympathy for the Draketerus family, and I didn''t plan on becoming public enemy number one. At the very least, I had the genius from the Doesya family, who was a pleasure to train. Draejan always followed my orders to the letter and did everything he could to prove himself. To me, he was the true ideal image of a Knight, while Seryanna, with her hot temper and heart tainted by hate and rage against the humans, was far from even being considered a proper one. Even so, I trained her to the best of my ability. It was my duty. Then, 30 years later, after I had managed to chip away at that endless rage of hers, I could finally see her as someone worthy of the title of Knight. Nobody was looking at her with scornful or doubting eyes anymore, and her strength was often proven through friendly duels and successful missions. I thought for a while now that once she Awakened, she would become one of my best Knights, however, she never did. Most of the Knights in my Order, while accepting her strength and achievements, had given up on the possibility of her ever becoming a proper adult dragoness. It was such a strange thing that even I began to wonder about why she had yet to Awaken. None of the dragons or dragonesses I had met so far had such a slow development. This was not the only thing strange about her. It appeared as though almost all the dragons around her could not see her as anything else but a child. Her prowess in combat, her tactical mind, and merciless strikes were for the most part ignored. Even the one who was married to an Unawakened dragoness could not see a single drop of sexual attraction in Seryanna. It was as if she had an aura around her that kept all the males away. It was strange, very strange. Usually, after serving as a Knight for two or three years, a dragoness would find herself swimming in marriage proposals or at the very least have at least three or four dragons wagging their tails behind her. If this was because of her hard to approach attitude or something else, I didn''t have the faintest idea. Every Knight in the service of his Majesty, the King, was allowed to take at most two to three weeks of vacation each year in order to go visit their families or take care of other business. In the past eight years, however, Sir Seryanna had been stretching that limit with a week or more in an attempt to harvest the much needed Bloody Mushrooms, which were required for a potion that kept the [Berserker''s Burst] condition at bay. The market was quite scarce on them and not everyone knew how to grow a batch. It was even harder to look for them when other dragonesses aimed at Brekkar''s lands. The matriarchy of this country was at times quite frightening, especially when they targeted us dragons. Still, if this continued, it wouldn''t be long before Sir Seryanna''s neck would be on the line, and she would be forced to choose between her grandfather and serving this country. I thought her well, so I was certain that even if it broke her heart, she would still choose to serve the country. About 30 years after I took Sir Seryanna under my wing as her Knight Master, my best pupil, Draejan Andrakaryus Doesya came over to me one day and thanked me for having taught him all that he knew in regard to being a Knight. The upper nobles apparently took a liking to him and proposed that he should be granted his own Knight Order. I was quite pleased to hear this and gave him my blessing. Now, if only Sir Seryanna would Awaken, then with a bit of luck she would also follow in his shoes. Honestly speaking, I always thought that these two pupils of mine will one day join hands in marriage and through their union give rise to a powerful family of prestigious Knights. That was my own little silly dream, but seven years later, Draejan walked up to me and asked me if I was acquainted with Sir Seryanna. The shock I received from this question made my jaw drop to the ground. How was it possible that I had never realized that these two pupils of mine were so dense in the head? I was their Master Knight, and they surely had countless missions when they worked together, so it was simply impossible for me to fathom how it was possible that Draejan never took notice of her. Was Seryanna''s own repulsive aura so powerful that she turned invisible in front of him? With a heavy sigh, I began to tell him about the young dragoness and how well she performed as a Knight, sometimes under his own command in one or two missions. ¡°Master Teolas, pardon my rudeness, but I can read her mission reports myself. What I am interested in is how she is as a dragoness.¡± he told me with a smile. Well would you look at that! He''s interested in her as the opposite gender! To think that he of all people would gain immunity to that one''s male repulsion aura. I thought and then asked as I showed him a smirk ¡°Did she catch your eye, Draejan?¡± ¡°It might be so.¡± he nodded ¡°But what I want to know is if the rumor about her being related to that Brekkar Draketerus is true.¡± ¡°Oh? Brekkar? Yes. Sir Seryanna is his granddaughter.¡± I nodded. ¡°But how come you didn''t know that?¡± I asked him as I narrowed my eyes at him. ¡°Master Teolas, up until now, I didn''t care much for a dragoness'' affection, so I simply focused solely on my training. I was told to be rather dense during my time as a Knight in your Order, but I can assure you that it was intentional.¡± he declared with a strange sense of pride in the tone of his voice. ¡°Is that so?¡± I furrowed my brow and wondered if maybe I was wrong about him being immune to her aura. It could have well been possible that such a silly aura didn''t exist and Sir Seryanna herself was an unapproachable dragoness because of her personality and general demeanor. After this series of questions we chatted a little about his recent missions and other worldly things, but that was probably the last time I had the chance to speak with him in such a casual way. The following year was marked by countless changes, among which the most unpleasant one was the restructuring of the Brekkar Army. I knew several dragons and dragonesses from there. I even trained a few myself, but to my surprise almost all those who had even a sliver of loyalty towards the Queen and King of Albeyater had been removed from the upper ranks. When I happened to take a walk one day through their camp outside of Drakaria, I was surprised to see so many ruffians and scoundrels wearing the prestigious armor of our nation. Some of those fools even tried to approach me with the intent of robbing me right there in broad daylight. Pity the fool who tries to steal from the gods for they shall strike down his soul and heart not his body! Or so the saying went. A god I was not, but I was a Breakthrough-er with a high rank within Albeyater''s military. Thus, my choice of destruction was not their souls or hearts but their bodies. I made it clear to all those within the army, that such behavior was unacceptable and least they wished to be disintegrated like their friends, they should learn to behave. A week later, the heinous activities of this reformed Brekkar Army were reduced in both severity and frequency. Word spread among them that if they did anything too obvious or loud, they wouldn''t even have a chance to beg for jail time. Several months after this event, I was surprised to hear that Sir Seryanna had returned to the Seyendraugher Castle, but our first meeting was all but unfavorable. It appeared as though Sir Draejan had been challenged to a duel by a young human, the prize being the right to marry Sir Seryanna. Why would you even ask for such a silly duel when you could have killed him right here and there? He''s a human and he doesn''t even look like a noble. I thought when I first heard the story from Sir Draejan. I couldn''t even pity this young boy who looked weaker than my lowest knight. In all due honesty, I was hoping for the duel to be over in the blink of an eye, but before I could even start it, Sir Seryanna arrived. ¡°Wait!¡± she shouted shouted. Her sudden appearance here definitely surprised me, but what surprised me even more was to find out that she was dragging with her the beast of the battlefield, Kataryna Greorg. I was one of the few to witness her battle five centuries ago, when she mercilessly slaughtered our enemies. This dragoness was like a maelstrom of death and carnage, pulling towards her all the enemies around her only to slice and dice them with her blades. When her swords broke, she tossed them aside and stole those belonging to the enemy. When she needed a shield, she pulled corpses off the ground. When her armor broke apart, she cast ice to shield herself from the enemy''s blows. No matter who stood before her, she didn''t stop until their heads rolled on the ground. Some called her the Ice Fury, others the Bloodice Witch. On the enemy''s side, she was called the Berserker Traitor. She had many other nicknames as well, but no matter what people called her, this dragoness was both feared and admired as well. His Majesty, King Feryumstark, ordered us not to attack her and stand aside until she was done. When the battle ended, the dragoness walked up to us covered in blood from head to toe, and her ice armor gave the impression that it was actually made from her own blood. In her right hand she wielded a broken two-handed sword and in her left hand she dragged the head of the enemy general. This young dragoness stood before someone as imposing as a wielder of the golden-scale and yet she didn''t flinch or showed any expression on her face. It was as if she was looking into the far horizon with the eyes of a dead dragon. I felt chills running down my back just by standing near her, and I knew in that moment that no matter what I did, I wouldn''t be able to defeat this battle maniac. This Ice Fury now stood before me and claimed this human to be her friend. In a moment, I felt as though the entire fate of Albeyater stood on this weakling''s shoulders. What could a human whelp like him do with no proper gear and weapon against someone like Draejan who was armed to the teeth?You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. I could see it now, a single strike and the boy''s head would fly off, then the Ice Fury would turn us all into an art piece made out of our own blood and guts. Her dark artistic humor would then spread all across Drakaria until it was turned into a ghost city. To say that I was sweating or looked afraid? Nah! Both my fear and sweat ran away before my body could. Now I was just waiting for the inevitable. But then, the unthinkable happened. The human boy was the first to attack, but Draejan dodged at the last second. The dragon was playing it tough, but I knew that if that strike connected, it would have been lights out for him. Draejan was spared by a drop of luck. With the battle unfolding before me, I could feel the strength in their hits, both of them could fight on equal ground against some of my best Knights. No, I would even go so far as to say that besides the Knight Masters, there was no one here who had the strength to challenge them, and I was a Breakthrough-er. What was most frightening about this battle, with the exception of the frightening presence Kataryna Greorg gave off, was the fact that just one hit from Draejan could kill Alkelios, but the other way couldn''t work. The difference in armors and weapons was what made the gap between them so big despite the human probably having the better strength and speed. I trained Draejan myself, so I knew that he couldn''t achieve that power without relying on brute strength alone. He was using Magic Energy like crazy and playing it off like he was owning the stage. Maybe the only one who could see how lucky Draejan was for being fought against with plebeian sword was Kataryna Greorg. Her eyes could follow all of their movements, and her wisdom far surpassed mine, so I could only guess what she could easily see that I didn''t. When I saw the chance to end the duel, I quickly raised my hand up and said ¡°I declare this official duel to be over. Sir Draejan wins.¡± If I didn''t announce it, the two would have probably continued and the human boy would have ultimately met his doom at the end of the Knight''s blade. What followed next was Kataryna Greorg''s declaration of support towards the Third Princess. In other words, she made a political move that would make most noble dragonesses walk with their tails between their legs. She was definitely not a power to be trifled with. Unfortunately, my former pupil, Draejan, could not see the horror that I did. I tried to explain it to him while leaving out some gory details, but it didn''t seem like I got through. For a while afterwards, I thought that things had returned to their quiet usual ways, Alkelios kept his word about not stepping within the Seyendraugher Palace, and Kataryna Greorg picked up Sir Seryanna''s younger sister as an apprentice of sorts. I heard her training regime was quite harsh. So much in fact that one day the black-scaled dragoness tried to flee from her teacher using her full might. She was caught mid-flight and then turned into an ice sculpture. She remained like that for a couple of hours until the sun finally thawed her off. I also heard another strange rumor about Kataryna Greorg. Apparently she got into a fight with someone in the middle of the city. The damage she caused was enough to make Prime Minister Elovius faint, but that dragon managed to pull it through. I didn''t go look at the aftermath because I didn''t see the reason to do so. Instead, what I did was to send a few of my Knights to spy on Alkelios. About two weeks ago, they lost track of him. He fled the city from the looks of it. No one would blame the human boy for running away. After facing off against Sir Draejan and loosing, he become the laughing stock of the Knights and probably a harassment target for the more idiotic nobles. About the later, I doubted they actually had the guts to do something about it. With Kataryna Greorg watching them like a sheep would a bunch of tasty wolves, I could bet a year''s salary that they wouldn''t even get the chance to try whatever they had planned. About one week after Alkelios vanished from Drakaria, I received a summon from his Majesty, King Feryumstark. I found it odd at first, but if my King needed me, I could only oblige. As I was making my way towards his Majesty''s study room, I happened to see Sir Seryanna and Sir Draejan on the other side of the corridor. For a moment, I couldn''t believe my eyes, but that dragoness had finally Awakened. I was honestly quite happy to see her change from a child into an adult, just as much as I would if she was my own daughter. Sir Draejan was probably congratulating her about it as well, she was his fiance, after all. ¡°Draejan... I''m telling you this out of the ''kindness'' of my heart. If you dare to touch me again... I''m going to kill you.¡± she suddenly told him and then walked away. I gulped. Are they on bad terms? But isn''t she his fiance? What''s going on? I thought to myself and then as I remembered all of the past events, including the unusual worry she showed for Alkelios, I suddenly realized that I may have made a blunder. Letting out a heavy sigh, I decided to go and talk with her later and maybe scold that foolish Draejan too, but first I had to go see his Majesty, King Feryumstark. I walked up to the door of the study room at the second floor and knocked three time. ¡°Come in.¡± With a calm breath and an stoic look on my face, I stepped inside the fairly large room. There were tall bookcases covering the walls and a large wood desk at the back, near the window. The dragon who made the furniture in this room was someone I happened to meet two hundred years ago. He was quite old and despite his shaking hands, he did wonderful work on several pieces. The designs inspired elegance and a fine sense for art. The lines carved in often gave me the impression that they were alive or flowing as though they were made out of some sort of liquid. It would take me at least four centuries to reach that remarkable level of skill, but I often thought that if I were to retire someday, picking up woodwork and carving might not be such a bad idea. My old heart was soothed by the work done on such fine and minute details. Within this impressive room, his Majesty was standing in front of the window, looking down at the city of Drakaria. His golden wings were folded and hands at his back. The way the sunlight bathed this dragon in its light often made me wonder if I was looking at a mortal or maybe something divine? Yet, this didn''t appear to be a simple casual summon. The presence he was giving off despite looking so calm and peaceful was crushing even for someone like me. ¡°Your Majesty, why have I been summoned?¡± I asked in a low voice as I remained at the door. ¡°Come closer.¡± he told me. I obeyed and approached the desk. Without his permission, it was considered highly rude to get close to him. Barging into his room even by mistake could earn a dragon his neck and his family a severe punishment. After all, there were some things no one was allowed to do no matter what. For his Majesty, anyone who walked up to him without stating his business or requesting to come closer was a possible assassin or someone who knew not how to respect the golden-scales that he wore. ¡°Teolas, you have served me well these past centuries, yet I can''t help but wonder if maybe you have gotten old and rusty?¡± he asked. ¡°Your majesty, my bones have always creaked like an old rusty door, but this is only because I achieved a Breakthrough at a later age.¡± I replied in a calm and polite manner. ¡°Really? Then why were you unable to see the gem that Sir Seryanna had brought with her to the palace?¡± he asked and then turned his head slightly, only enough so that from the corner of his right eye he could pierce me with his cold glare. ¡°Gem? May I ask what you are referring to, your Majesty? Has she perhaps uncovered some long lost treasure?¡± I asked as I furrowed my brow. Although I was old, I was far from turning senile. If Sir Seryanna had indeed found something valuable, I would have been one of the first dragons to know. If it was a weapon, then she would have asked my opinion on how to properly wield it. Her friend, Dregarya, would have also sniffed it out and the ruckus she would have made would have been enough to alert my eyes within the Palace. No matter how hard I struggled to understand this matter, I couldn''t wrap my mind around it, but then his Majesty spoke that name. ¡°Alkelios Yatagai.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I blinked surprised. How is that boy a gem? I wondered as I was now even more confused. ¡°Sigh, it appears that old age has indeed gotten a hold of your wits.¡± his Majesty turned around and shook his head. ¡°I beg your pardon, but he was just a human peasant who almost got killed by Draejan and...¡± I was unable to finish my words as the King''s fingers were wrapped around my neck and I was lifted off the floor with one hand. ¡°Ugh... your Majesty?¡± I asked as I struggled in his grasp, but freeing myself from it was like struggling to pry open the jaws of a giant river lizard. ¡°The very fact that this human came here together with Sir Seryanna should have told you that there was something special about him. I mean even I know of how deep her hate ran for their kind, yet from what I was told this dragoness showed a smile she never did for the past 38 years.¡± he told me. ¡°I still d-don''t understand, your Majesty.¡± I said as I was now holding onto his hand rather than trying to open it. ¡°Although I''m currently staying by my wife''s side more than I do in the public eye, this does not mean that I have grown deaf and blind, Teolas.¡± he glared at me. ¡°D-Does this have anything to do with Draejan?¡± I asked. ¡°Everything.¡± he glared, and I could feel his claws piercing my skin. ¡°GAH!¡± I cried out in pain. ¡°He dared to claim full ownership of Brekkar''s Army, although I had intended only to lend it to him temporarily. He forced the granddaughter of my friend into an engagement she never desired and despised from the bottom of her heart, but most importantly, he nearly killed the human she brought along.¡± he summarized it for me, but I feared that the most important part was that last bit. ¡°W-Why is that human so i-important, your Majesty?¡± I asked. ¡°Why?¡± he narrowed his eyes at me and the pressure of his presence increased to the point where I felt as though every breath of air I took was going to be my last. Just because he managed to get in Sir Seryanna''s bed or become friends with Kataryna Greorg shouldn''t have made him important enough for the King of Albeyater to make a move. No, it was ridiculous for him to make a move for a human, he barely did so for a dragon. Even when Brekkar was announced to suffer from the [Berserker''s Burst] he still didn''t give out the order to find a cure for him. There were some who said that Brekkar himself asked him not to waste the country''s resources on a dying old dragon like him, but that had to be a lie. The Albeyater Kingdom was certainly shown to have suffered from the loss of a great general like him. ¡°Maybe your eye have gone blind, you old lizard.¡± said his Majesty as he finally released me from his grasp. I fell down on the floor and felt too weak to even try to stand up. I was gasping for air shaking from every join, half of it was from the fear that I have somehow wronged his Majesty and the other was from his very presence. ¡°I-It''s possible... y-your Majesty, but... m-may I ask? W-What is it that your Majesty saw in that human that I didn''t?¡± I asked as I drew out every spec of strength I had left in me not to faint. His Majesty walked up to the window once more and released his pressure that was pinning me down to the floor. ¡°Courage. Passion. Determination. The strength to fight against the impossible...¡± he stopped and then looked back at me ¡°And the opportunity to make my wife''s dream come true.¡± ¡°The Queen''s dream? An alliance... with the humans? An end to the Great War?¡± I asked as my eyes grew so big they almost popped out of their sockets. If that human could bring our nation to that outlandish future, then I could see why the King treasured him so much. Even to the general population of Albeyater, the Queen''s dream was far more important than that of the King''s. After all, we were a matriarchal society at our core, despite the fact that recently the Prime Minister Elovius took up most of the Queen''s work. ¡°Your Majesty, I understand now why you would wish to keep this Alkelios Yatagai within your reach, although I fail to see how he will be of any use in this regard. However, may I ask what have I done wrong to earn your Majesty''s spite?¡± I asked and then knelt before him. ¡°You fail to see how he will be of use? Let me clear that up for you. First of all, he''s one of the few humans who fell in love with a dragoness. Second of all, that dragoness up till now was known to be a human hater. Third of all, she holds a fairly high political influence within the Draketerus Ducal Family despite she herself not being aware of it. Sir Seryanna, at the end of the day, is the last remaining matriarch of her family. The scorched lands of Scar Battlefield are still her domain.¡± he explained. Now I see why Draejan wanted so badly to take Sir Seryanna as his bride. By doing this, he would have access to both the Brekkar Army and the Scar Battlefield, which he could then develop as he pleased. Not only that, but he could use her influence as his own. After all, the words of the Matriarch are far more important than those of her husbands. I thought as I it all began to pieced together in my mind. His movements were strategic, but within this age of uncertainty and great turmoil, they appeared as invisible. ¡°Just imagine what would happen if Albeyater announced the marriage between the Matriarch of a Ducal Family and a Human with no status or rank on the Human Continent.¡± he told me. ¡°The rumors spread by the upper echelons in the human society would lose their credibility. Up until now, they have depicted us as nothing but rampaging monster incapable of feeling love and affection.¡± I said. ¡°Exactly. From there to actually establishing an alliance treaty with one of the foreign nations, such as Ten Swords Kingdom for example, it''s not that much of a far fetched dream.¡± ¡°But something like this can only happen if Alkelios succeeds on both the political and military battlefield.¡± I pointed out. ¡°I''m certain we can find good teachers for him if he doesn''t make a mark on his own by then. As for what you have wronged me with... no, Albeyater. Well, you almost chased away this irreplaceable asset.¡± he told me as he narrowed his eyes at me. I felt a knot in my throat and gulped on empty air. ¡°The duel... I should have stopped it.¡± I said. ¡°Indeed. You should have realized that something was wrong, that an ordinary human cannot just appear within the Seyendraugher Palace like that. You should have been the first one to question who he was and why he was there, but instead you thought about him as useless as an insect. If Kataryna Greorg and Sir Seryanna had not reached the arena in time, then the boy would have died, right?¡± he asked. I nodded. Draejan at that time was intent on either severely mutilating him or killing him. The fact that those two arrived then and there was his best stroke of luck. It was as if the heavens themselves twisted the laws of this world just so that he can have another chance at life. ¡°Alkelios probably isn''t even aware of how close to death he was back then, but leaving aside my Queen''s dream, if he died, then right now, our war would have been against Kataryna Greorg and even Brekkar Draketerus himself.¡± his Majesty declared. ¡°What? Why Brekkar?¡± I asked surprised. ¡°Because Alkelios is the one who cured him of the [Berserker''s Burst], and I don''t need to tell you how that dragon feels about life debts.¡± he explained. Upon hearing this unfathomable tale, I felt my blood draining from my face and my knees getting weak. I had lived for more than seven centuries now and witnessed more things than I could count, yet I couldn''t even begin to understand what sort of entity this Alkelios Yatagai was. It would be best to simply describe him as a walking natural disaster that twisted and changed the fates of all those he came in contact with. Did this human boy earn the favor of the Gods to hold such power? I wondered. ¡°Do you understand now with what you have sinned?¡± I was asked. ¡°Barely, your Majesty, but I can only ask how can I atone for my mistakes?¡± I asked and lowered my head until my forehead touched the floor. ¡°Go to the Doesya family. Talk with my daughter and her husband. See what they know of Sir Draejan and find out if they are plotting anything against me. In case they are, I could hardly believe that daughter of mine can be capable of something like this, so there must be someone manipulating her from the shadows, feeding her thoughts of madness. Find out who that individual or organization is. Uncover all the dirt on the Doesya you can find, and I want you to compile for me a list with every single ally and acquaintance Sir Draejan has. Do you understand what your mission is, Sir Teolas Draegan?¡± he ordered in a firm and powerful tone of voice. ¡°Yes, your Majesty. This humble servant of yours understands and will proceed immediately.¡± I replied with my forehead still touching the floor. Side Story (5) The Drunk Ghost [God-like''s point of view] When I decided to send ten million soul on Ex... Ah! Woops! I almost let the name of the world slip. Silly me~! Well, no need to worry about it. You''ll never guess it anyway! Hahaha! Now then, the ten million human beings who up until recently lived on Earth, a world of science, were suddenly sent to a world of sword and magic, where everything they knew was challenged and tested at every step of their way. Their mission was a simple one when looked at it at an individual scale, but whether they could survive or not until the end of their days was really not as important as the changes they put into motion just by... existing there for even a single second. Of what changes Alkelios and his fellow earthlings would bring to this incredible diverse world remained to be seen. Now... what if I told you that besides this Universe of ours there were others, and in each one a story similar to ours took place? What if I told you there was a world in another Universe out there, where Alkelios Yatagai was never born or one where he aimed to become the ultimate evil? Well, probably half of you are going to wonder what I drank, the other half will ask me for a sip, and the few who don''t fit these two choice will be intrigued. Well, this story that I''m about to tell you took place in rather peculiar circumstances... and it''s just a single glimpse into a Universe so different from this one that you wouldn''t be able to tell left from right the moment you took a step inside it. This, my dear friends, is the story of a young half-dragon and a drunk ghost... [Somewhere in another Universe, where the law was made by the gun and cowboy hats were still in fashion] In Drakaria, the capital of the ol'' wild Albeyater Kingdom, in a sun-dried bar filled with nothin'' but forked tongued snakes who would rather sell their own mothers than pay the tab for their drinks, a rather strange fellow made his appearance. His clothes were black, and his cowboy hat looked as though it went on a date with a flamethrower. Not to be spittin'' on the dragon''s garments, but a drunk mule on a Sunday knew how to dress better. Steppin'' like he owned the place, the dragon checked the scaly bastards to his left and then those to his right. Them fellas stopped what they were doing, be it playin'' cards or sharing stories of their adventures, and locked eyes on the stranger. His strange getup was what caught their attention. They couldn''t tell if he was hiding diamonds under a coat of coal or was just a plain ol'' rock covered in soot. What was certain though was that they all felt as though there was something wrong with him. Not bothered by them in the slightest bit, the stranger approached the bar and sat on the empty stool farthest to the right. He tapped two times on the bar and called for a hot one. Bayuk gave him an understanding nod and went to poor the dragon his drink. Collentra, his wife, was over by the big piano in the other corner of the room. Initially, she walked over to it with the intention of playing a tune for the boys, but now she was leaning against it and eyeing the stranger with a curious gaze. She was one pretty dragoness with a flirty gaze and shiny scales. Her frilly red dress with a generous cleavage and just enough bump around the hips earned her the attention of all the dragons in the bar every time she went to play a song. This was the plan though, give the cowboys something pretty to look to make them eager to get another drink and up their bill at the bar. This stranger, however, didn''t even so much as try to return her flirty gaze. He ignored the curious onlookers and waited for his drink with the patience of a royal Khosinni in front of a sheep. Bayuk poured him a glass of whiskey and slid it across the table all the way to him. The stranger grabbed it before it went past him and while tipping his hat, he said ¡°Much obliged.¡± By now, the rowdy cowboys seated at their tables would have went back to minding their own business, pouring the burning alcohol down their throat, asking Collentra to play a song for them, or setting up their game of cards. Indeed, if one stood behind this stranger and were to look at him with a keen eye, they could see the glass of whiskey as it moved up and then the liquid pouring down the dragon''s throat only for it to vanishing into thin air. And this strange thing right here was what kept everyone in this bar from daring to utter even so much as a mouse'' whisper. As it happened, All the young and old dragons knew the tale of this gentleman who wore only black and ordered a drink for which he paid with coins as old as the good ol'' Albeyater Kingdom. Yet, within Drakaria there was one fellow who was completely unaware of his tale, and it just so happened that he was in a mood for a drink. With a bold stride, he stepped into the bar, catching everyone''s attention for the moment. He walked up to Bayuk and sat down three seats away from the eerie stranger. Now, this fellow right here, his name was Alkelios Yatagai, a human who not that long ago managed to stir the whole capital with his declaration of love towards the beauty with red scales, Seryanna Draketerus. He was the only soul who knew nothin'' of the tale of the dragon in black. ¡°Gimme somethin'' hot enough to melt the guts, Bayuk.¡± Alkelios ordered as he tipped his hat towards him. The bartender replied with a nod and went to pour him a glass of whiskey from the good batch. In terms of looks, Alkelios was sporting a good black cowboy hat with red lining, a cloak showing the fine crest of the Draketerus house, which in this world was a pair of crossed revolvers with smoking barrels, a leather suit covered in magic enchantments, a good pair of boots with spurs made out of the best alloyed metals out there, and a pair of of guns that would make the best gunsmith shed tears of envy. ¡°Why is everyone here so silent? Did someone die?¡± the man asked when he got his drink. With a trembling hand, Bayuk, the bartender, pointed at the stranger in black, who drank from his glass with a heavy gaze like a cowboy troubled by the upcoming winter. ¡°Friend, they are scared of me.¡± the stranger told him before he had a chance to ask. ¡°Why?¡± Hearing this, the dragon curled his lips into a ghastly smirk like a fox that caught its hare. ¡°Have you ever heard the tale of the Unlucky Gunslinger?¡± he asked with his eyes on the drink in front of him. ¡°Don''t think I have. No.¡± the other replied in his naivety. When they heard the words that left his lips, everyone in the bar froze two times over. They paled and prayed in their minds for the poor lad foolish enough to ask this ghastly figure such a thing. No one there had the courage to tell him to keep his mouth shut, not even Bayuk. If he did, then the gunslinger would have drank his glass and left peacefully, but now... everyone feared for the worst. ¡°Well ain''t that a surprise?¡± the dragon laughed and then gave a sign to the bartender to bring him another drink. At this moment, there was a dragon who entered the bar, but when he saw the look on everyone''s face and then the ghastly figure at the bar, he slowly stepped back and then ran away like a bandit chased by hungry sheep. ¡°Well, partner, let me tell ya a nice story about a very lucky gunslinger.¡± he smirked. ¡°Lucky?¡± Alkelios raised an eyebrow, he was already intrigued. ¡°Yes, Lucky. That dragon loved to drink more than the sun loved the earth, and he visited every lush-crib from here to the Seculiar Forest!¡± he took a big gulp from his glass and when he placed it back on the bar, he let out a heavy sigh ¡°Hah... I miss getting drunk...¡± After shaking his head, the stranger continued ¡°That dragon, ya see, was no bad egg, just had a bad hoss. Trinket was that Khosinni''s name, and boy was it a wild one! Never let a dragon other than its master get on its back, and it would rather stomp even a knight under all of its six hooves than let him so much as pet him!¡± he laughed and then poured the whole drink down his throat. The glass was placed on the bar with a loud thump and then eyed the bartender one more time. Bayuk felt a chill run down his spine when he met the dragon''s eyes and immediately obliged to his request, sending him over another glass filled to the brim. ¡°There we go!¡± he laughed as he grabbed his drink before it slid off the bar. ¡°So, what happened to him?¡± Alkelios asked after he emptied his glass to half. ¡°What happened to him? Well, at that time, the dragon was called Lucky Barking Irons!¡± ¡°Barking Irons? Were his guns famous too?¡± Alkelios asked with a raised eyebrow as he looked at the dragon. ¡°Famous? Nah, they were like mine... a pair of rusted Dingos with a neck too long for their own good.¡± he smirked as he took out his gun and then placed it on the bar. The gun was quite similar to an old Colt Paterson revolver, but it was slightly bigger as it shot 12.7 mm rounds instead of 9 mm ones. Unlike the fragile human hand, a dragon''s was far more sturdier. 12.7 mm in this world was the 9 mm of Earth''s. ¡°Oh? Dingos? Never saw one before. My wife has a Rollcaster Razor. That beast fires 58 mm rounds. It''s a real beast with enchants that make it even more of a monster than it already is!¡± Alkelios laughed. The Rollcaster Razor was in fact quite similar in looks to the Smith & Wesson XVR 460 Magnum, a powerful gun that made the Dingo on the table look like a poor joke. ¡°What about you? What''s your barking iron?¡± the dragon asked. ¡°Mine? Well, mine''s a bit different, you see. I made it myself, and it''s this...¡± Alkelios said as he took his gun out of its holster and placed it on the table. The weapon looked like a piece of high-tech gear ripped straight out of a Sci-Fi movie thanks to its side attachments, grip, and overall design that went for the cold and fast feel of sharp angles rather than the embrace of curvy shapes. It was black all over with stripes of red light between some of its metal pieces, giving the impression of a black cage that held a red spirit trapped inside. The barrel was about 36 cm long, from the tip to the back, 9.1 cm in height and 8.6 cm in width, it had a 58 mm caliber. It was a real monster of a gun that looked normal in size only in the hand of a half-beast draconian, and absolutely huge in that of a human. Since it was made by Alkelios, it was certainly capable of doing more than just shooting simple bullets. That man''s curiosity and playfulness with tech wouldn''t have let him make his own barking iron so simple. ¡°Impressive...¡± the dragon looked at the gun, but that was all he could say. There was no way for this stranger to know just how powerful the weapon actually was. The few dragons who witnessed it in last week''s gunslinger duel still remembered how it blew away both the dragon and the outer wall behind him, the blast shredded them as if they were made out of toilet paper.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. The guards and locals were more worried afterwards about plugging the hole in the protective wall than the dragon who got torn to pieces. And that shot wasn''t even the most powerful one yet. ¡°Yeah, I know.¡± Alkelios smiled foolishly and then holstered his gun. ¡°Well, continuing from where I left off, Lucky Barking Irons had another habit alongside that of drinking the bar dry, or better said it was the passion for challenging at anything anyone who crossed his path. One day, however, he dared to challenge the Devil.¡± he said and then took another drink. ¡°The Devil? Was he a famous gunslinger too?¡± Alkelios asked. ¡°No, partner, he was the literal Devil, The beast of the Ten Unholy Heavens, the wanderer of misfortune, the hunter of souls. It was THAT Devil." ¡°Oh. So, what happened then?¡± ¡°The Devil made a deal with him over his soul. If Lucky Barking Irons won the challenge, then the Devil would grant any wish he desired. However, if he were to lose, then his soul would wonder the world for eternity, harvesting souls for him by offering nearly unwinnable challenges, the type from which the other party could not back away.¡± as he said this, he looked into Alkelios'' eyes and his figure turned more transparent, while his face appeared to be going through an accelerated rotting process until only the bare white bones underneath his skin remained. With glowing blue eyes, the dragon then asked him ¡°Who do you think won?¡± Alkelios wasn''t smiling anymore. He was looking at him with serious eyes because now it was clear to him that this entity before him was none other than Lucky Barking Irons or the Unlucky Gunslinger as others called him. ¡°I guess he didn''t win the challenge.¡± he replied. ¡°Yes, he didn''t.¡± Lucky shook his head. ¡°So, what now? Are you going to challenge me too?¡± asked Alkelios. ¡°I''m afraid so, partner. You seem like a good fellow, and I''m no bad egg myself. This here curse of mine is tied up in strings pulled by forces far beyond our mere mortal comprehension.¡± he let out a heavy sigh and then looked at Bayuk. ¡°Bar dog, hit us with another. The boy''ll need his last drink.¡± With a trembling nod, the dragon listened to the order, but Alkelios'' eyes were not those of a man ready to jump in a hole six feet under. ¡°What if I win the challenge?¡± he asked. Lucky was used to dragons who claimed to stand a chance of winning, but he knew that this was short to impossible. ¡°You can''t win it.¡± he started off ¡°But if by some miracle you do, then you get to keep walking like nothin'' happened, and I get to rest my bones in that empty coffin I got for my birthday a while back.¡± he smirked. ¡°I see. Very well, then.¡± Alkelios nodded and caught his drink when Bayuk slid it across the bar to him. ¡°Let us toast to my victory then.¡± he raised his glass up high. ¡°You mean eternal damnation, right?¡± the dragon clinked his drink and smirked. With one breath, Alkelios drank the whiskey dry and then got up from his seat. ¡°What shall be the challenge?¡± he asked. After Lucky finished his drink, he replied in a calm tone of voice ¡°You will kiss the first Breakthrough-er to enter this bar in the next ten minutes, and he or she will like it.¡± he smirked. Under normal circumstances, this was indeed not only a foolish challenge to accept, but an impossible one at that too. No one in their right mind would accept it. After all, the chances of a Breakthrough-er entering the bar at this exact moment and time was ridiculous, and to have them like it as well was near impossible too. Well, that was if you weren''t someone like Alkelios... some with a maxed out Luck. ¡°Challenge accepted! I wish by the power in this entire Universe that this Breakthrough-er will come here and let me kiss her delicious lips!¡± Alkelios declared with a big grin on his lips. ¡°Hahaha! What a foolish thing to wish for, boy! The sky will turn green before the gods answer your call!¡± Lucky laughed. ¡°Maybe.¡± Alkelios replied and then through his [Dragon Tamer] skill sent a location ping to the dragoness it was currently targeting. From now on it was only a matter of luck and time. Thus, the two cowboys eyed each other like dueling gunslingers at high noon. Tick! Tock! The clock went. The old ticker was placed on top of the piano, next to which Collentra was burning into her memory the scene of these two legendary dragons that were having a showdown like no other. The pressure was so high, some of them dragons forgot to wet their agape mouths and let them dry from the hot air inside. No one was drinking, no one was playing cards anymore, no one even dared to get up from their seat, they all stared at those two at the bar, waiting for the inevitable to happen. ¡°Five minutes are up and your Breakthrough-er had yet to show up. Maybe their chicken?¡± Lucky smirked at Alkelios, but the man payed him no heed. The tension continued in this bar that seemed to be ripped off from the world itself. Tick! Tock! The clock went. The seconds slipping by like eels out of a fisherman''s hands. DING! DONG! The town''s bell''s call was heard all of sudden, startling everyone. The sudden spike of adrenaline made them turn towards the door and then to Alkelios. It was as if the clock was letting everyone know that the time was up. The tension was at an all-time high. Everyone was holding their breath, but neither Lucky nor Alkelios was making a move, yet both of them had their hands on the grip of their guns. ¡°Two more minutes...¡± whispered Lucky once the town''s clock calmed down. ¡°Two more minutes... yes.¡± nodded Alkelios, who for the past minute kept sending ping after ping, and was trying his best to maintain a cool, calm, and collected appearance. Meanwhile, his mind was in total chaos... Oh no! Oh no! Come on! Come on! Come on! Hurry up! Hurry UP! I don''t want to die! Come on! Stupid Luck! WHERE IS SHE?! I wish she will get here quickly! I wish she will move her tail to get here faster! Come on! Was what the stoic-looking half-dragon was thinking about. It wasn''t even a moment later when the doors of the bar were blown off by a powerful kick. ¡°WOULD YOU STOP WITH THOSE ANNOYING PINGS!!! I CAN''T EVEN HEAR MY OWN DAMN THOUGHTS BECAUSE OF THEM! THE ONLY THING THEY ARE GOOD FOR IS HELPING MY BRAIN COMMIT SUICIDE!¡± shouted a silver-scaled dragoness at the top of her lungs as soon as she stepped into the bar. ¡°YES!¡± shouted Alkelios and then in the blink of an eye was in front of Kataryna. Without reserve, he stole her lips in a deep kiss that made her bend back at her waist. ¡°Well I''d be a sheep''s lunch on a wolf''s holiday, but that boy can sure kiss a lady!¡± said Lucky, who too was surprised by Alkelios'' sudden moves. When the two parted lips, Kataryna slumped down to the floor with mellow knees, cheeks bright red as a burning charcoal, and at a loss of words like a dragon in front of a vegetarian sheep. ¡°Did you enjoy that?¡± Alkelios asked with a big grin on his face. ¡°Ah... Erm... Huh? Yes...¡± Kataryna said. Her brain was still trying to process everything that just happened. ¡°YES!¡± Alkelios cheered and then looking back at Lucky with a big grin on his face, he asked ¡°So? Did I win the challenge?¡± With a smile on his undead lips, as the skin on his face began to take form again, he tipped his ashen hat to Alkelios and then told him ¡°You did well, partner... To think that a kiss from such a fine-looking dragoness would save your life and my poor soul... This...¡± he got off his chair and began to walk towards the exit, his body slowly starting to vanish as he did so ¡°is a story to tell the grandkids...¡± Lucky''s body slowly faded away into nothingness, and by the time he reached Alkelios, he was no more. A gust of wind pushed past him and left through the door. The legend of the Unlucky Gunslinger or the story of Lucky Barking Irons ended with those last words of his. It took a moment for everyone there to realize what just happened, but when they did, they cheered as loud as they could, tossing their hats in the air and clinking their glasses. The bar''s tab was going to be full until the next day. Letting out a sigh of relief, Alkelios looked back at Kataryna and offered her a helping hand. With a blush on her lips, she accepted and got back up on her feet. Unlike most dragonesses out there, she preferred to wear cowboy pants instead of baggy frilly dresses. On her belt, she had her trusty gun made by Alkelios, [Ledyanoy Potseluy]. The cold grip made it impossible to be held by anyone other than her. ¡°What just happened?¡± Kataryna asked as she was as confused as ever. ¡°Well, remember how I told you that I would ping you once my job was done? You know, to go and get Seryanna''s present?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes.¡± she nodded ¡°That was the deal, that''s why I don''t understand where the kiss suddenly came from.¡± she tilted her head to the left and then added ¡°Not that it was bad... just unexpected.¡± she blushed and looked away. ¡°Well, yes... Turns out that while I stopped by the Brekkar''s Bar, I happened to come across some sort of... well... Cursed Cowboy Ghost, or something like that.¡± he shrugged. ¡°He challenged me to a test of Luck, and well... I won.¡± he showed her a wry smile. ¡°Who would be mad enough to challenge someone with your Luck? That''s like barkin'' at a knot!¡± she raised an eyebrow. ¡°I don'' know.¡± Alkelios shrugged. ¡°A desperate ghost maybe?¡± ¡°Whatever, let''s leave this rowdy bunch and go shop for Seryanna''s present.¡± Kataryna said shaking her head. ¡°Right away, milady!¡± he made a bow. ¡°Why you actin'' all weird?¡± she asked. ¡°I don''t know, but all of a sudden I had the feeling that I was some sort of knight.¡± he laughed. ¡°Silly lad, how can you be a knight when you have always been a gun slinging cowboy? But I got to admit, this was a rather fortunate encounter. I do believe I now like ya stealin'' my lips. Do it again sometimes.¡± she winked and then walked out of the bar laughing. ... And this was the story from a Universe unlike this one, but all you had to do was take a peek into the others to see that there were many more like this one out there. Who knows? Maybe one day, you''ll get to hear another one. Or maybe, you''ll understand something about this ol'' fool called Alkelios Yatagai, the dragon, the human, the luckiest bastard to have ever lived! Hahahaha!