Thank you all for the supportive messages ~_~. Episode 167
53. The Magical Beasts and the Gods’ Rock Mountain
166 – The Magical Beasts and the Gods’ Rock Mountain #2
Contrary to Azidahaka’s worries, as we climbed higher, a colossal cave-like opening appeared in the rock mountain, just as Yingyi had said.
━ So we don’t have to do any more rock climbing? This leads straight to the summit, doesn’t it?
━ Guiying.
“Huh… Something like this didn’t exist until twenty years ago. This is probably a tunnel made by those Satan worshippers….”
Abraham frowned as he ran his palm along the cave’s walls. The wrinkles on his already wrinkled face deepened.
‘It definitely doesn’t seem to be a naturally formed cave.’
I recalled the many caves in The Ancient Nest where I had depended on. In comparison, the hole before us screamed ‘artificial’ as if someone had deliberately carved it out. The unnaturally chiseled stones and broken rocks looked like they had been drilled or excavated by a massive drill or digger.
━ Ten years might be a long time or a short time, but has anything out there been able to carve caves in these mountains? Is it the work of some beast?
If it’s the work of a beast, it must be a very large and ferocious one!
“This evidence probably….”
The Fire Dragon Azidahaka’s voice trailed off as he observed the enormous, jagged scratches etched in the wall.
━ Did you remember something or figure something out?
“It must be the work of a dragon that resides at the summit of this mountain. Among dragons, there are those that crawl through the earth and eat rocks. The sharp claw marks spread across the surface were likely made by thick, sturdy horns. It seems to be a young and spirited dragon.”
━ A dragon that digs tunnels.
One thing became clear from the marks: whatever it was, it had considerable power. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be able to reshape the terrain like this.
‘A dragon, huh.’
I thought about that species, which is recognized as one of the strongest in this world. While talented beasts are relatively rare, it was said dragons are born with at least one talent, almost without exception.
Because of this, dragons tend to look down on other beasts, considering themselves superior. Of course, even without talents, their claws and thick-scaled bodies are incredibly intimidating, making dragon byproducts the prime materials for tools among humans and hunters.
“Nothing is more bothersome and fearsome than a young dragon.”
━ But you are a mythical creature among those dragons, right? Weren’t you the strongest dragon?
“If you’d asked me that twenty years ago, I would have confidently answered yes….”
Azidahaka continuously stroked the wall where the scratch was made by a claw.
“I don’t know. The creature above seems extraordinary.”
Ever since he noticed the traces of a young dragon in the cave, Azidahaka appeared somewhat uneasy. Behind him, Abraham chimed in.
“It was a huge, black dragon. It looked more like it was wearing armor than having scales.”
━ A large, black dragon in armor… Any other helpful information? Like if it breathes fire or attacks with wind from its wings?
“For that, it’d be faster to hear it directly from Isaac. He was the one who encountered that dragon up close. It was about five years ago.”
Abraham placed a hand on his son Isaac’s shoulder.
━ You got close to that dragon?
“Yeah, yep….”
The day’s events were still vividly imprinted in Isaac’s mind. It was the day a seven-year-old boy brushed with d*ath, how could he possibly forget?
Like any other day, the scorching sunlight blazed down on the desert. Isaac thought it would be another boring and tedious day, so he headed to a nearby hill to catch ants.
The desert ants lived underground and fed on the sap of cacti, so their bodies were always filled with sweet nectar like tiny storage units.
Thus, Isaac often skillfully caught ants that were about the size of his forearm to extract cactus sap from their bodies.
Raised as the chief’s son, Isaac believed he should be a support for his struggling tribe, so he worked hard day and night despite his young age.
After collecting sap from the ants for a while, Isaac checked his leather water bottle and saw it was nearly full. Looking at the setting sun, he realized a lot of time had passed.
‘If I catch just one more, I’ll fill it completely.’
Conflicted between a sense of longing and the setting sun, Isaac pondered.
When night fell, the creatures hiding from the scorching sunlight might come out to shred his flesh and taste his bl**d.
‘Maybe I should head back….’
Just as the seven-year-old boy was about to turn around, he spotted something black beneath his feet. It looked like a half-buried carapace of a desert cactus ant.
‘Got it, the last one…!’
Thinking he was lucky, Isaac began digging through the sand with his tiny hands. Then, in that moment,
Boom!
A tremendous rumble shook the ground, and the sand began to lift erratically. Isaac realized something was off.
What he had touched wasn’t an ant but a part of some gigantic creature.
━ Who dares to touch my scales?
From the sandy ground emerged a colossal beast that resembled a giant boulder—like a small mountain—looking down at Isaac with lofty eyes. Its thick, bull-like horns, reminiscent of the legendary celestial bull from fairytales, grew menacingly high as it stomped towards Isaac with legs like massive pillars.
━ A little child, eh? How dare you touch my scales! The price for laying hands on my body will be your life!
Isaac quickly recognized that the enormous monster before him was the dragon that had taken up residence at the peak of Mount Sinai many years ago.
It was indeed extremely fierce.
Also, infamous for its cruel temperament.
Quaking with fear, young Isaac stammered honestly.
“I-I’m sorry. I didn’t think it was a dragon’s scale….”
━ What? You say you couldn’t tell my scales were from a dragon? What did you think it was? Did you mistake my scales for some ant?
The dragon leaned its boulder-like face closer to Isaac.
Grrrr.
The terrible roar echoed from its colossal jaw; its slightly parted mouth bore colossal jagged teeth that were bigger than Isaac himself. If this giant creature were to swallow him whole, it would be like a snack that wouldn’t even register.
━ How dare you mistake me for something else! Such a crime cannot be repaid with just your life! I will burn your village to the ground and taste the bl**d of all your sheep!
The dragon raised its head and let out a deafening roar. Just that roar alone was excruciating enough to pierce one’s eardrums. Yet, even in this dreadful situation, Isaac was racing to think.
‘Burn the village and eat all the sheep? No, no….’
The Merengue sheep were vital family members and resources for the villagers. The village could be rebuilt, but if all the sheep died, his family and tribe would starve to d*ath.
The fear of his mistake causing the downfall of the village filled Isaac with guilt as he thought he must resolve this situation himself. Frantically, he racked his brain and opened his mouth.
“I-I’m sorry, great dragon. Your scales are so beautiful that I mistook them for, for jewelry.”
━ What?
Isaac recalled that proud dragons were often swayed by compliments and reputedly loved treasures.
It was already well-known among the people of the West that the Fire Dragon Azidahaka, who ruled the west, had been lured and captured by humans through jewels and flattery.
Of course, that could merely be a trait unique to Azidahaka…
━ You say my black scales look like jewels? You have good taste! I thought you were just a bothersome little brat, but you’re saying nice things. How about my tail then?
The dragon extended its long, large tail towards Isaac. The thick black tail, as long as a cactus trunk, ended with a stinger like a scorpion.
“I-Its long and beautiful….”
━ Yes, naturally! Hehe. Then how about my horn? This horn is what I’m most proud of.
“I-It looks very thick and sturdy… um, uh….”
━ Is that all?
The dragon’s crimson eyes flickered with irritation. Isaac had really pushed his brain and tongue to the limit since he was born.
“It looks incredibly sharp and strong, like it could split rocks in an instant…!”
━ Splitting rocks? That’s child’s play! My talent, ‘Sturdy Horn,’ makes this horn a powerful weapon above all else! Its power is strong enough to pierce a big cave in the mountain…!
The dragon seemed intoxicated with Isaac’s praises and self-love, and as it looked to the sky, it roared triumphantly.
━ I’ve changed my mind. I won’t eat you just yet.
‘Wow! Compliments actually work?’
Just as Isaac let out a sigh of relief, the dragon added.
━ I’ll postpone eating you for five more years. Speaking of which, those Satan worshippers have been demanding tribute from the men of your village. I’d like to demand you as tribute too.
“W-Why…?”
━ It’s said that those who speak well taste delicious. Five years from now, your tongue will be delightfully grown as well. Considering your pleasant compliments, I will spare your life until then.
The dragon unfurled its membrane-like wings attached to its arms. With a single flap, it soared high into the sky and shouted loudly.
━ Five years! In five years! If you don’t come to find me then, I will burn your entire village!
“Th-That’s how it happened.”
After hearing all of Isaac’s explanations, my head began to throb.
━ Dragons are truly irrational.
“I can’t deny that…”
Azidahaka appeared to have quite a lot in mind as well, trailing off his words. Based on Isaac’s account, I began to organize the information we had about the dragon at the summit.
Among them, the thing that worried me most was its horn, which was strong enough to pierce rock.
It seemed to have mentioned a talent called ‘Sturdy Horn,’ which might be similar to my powerful talent, ‘Sturdy Claw.’
‘So it’s a creature with a similar talent to mine.’
While I was deep in thought, Azidahaka began to list off information based on what he had heard.
“It sounds like a ground dragon that boasts of brute force. If it’s one of them, it makes sense that they can pierce rocks or the earth.”
━ Ground dragon?
“They can’t breathe fire like I do, but with their strong and tough shells and brute strength, they can smash everything. They were the only ones that didn’t obey when I ruled the desert. I’ve heard that the darker their scale color, the more ferocious and vicious they are. The dragon’s color is black, huh?”
At Azidahaka’s question, Isaac nodded.
“Yes, indeed. It was pitch black! I’ve never seen a color darker than that.”
━ Then it’s a tremendously fierce and dangerous one.
“Hmmm….”
Azidahaka seemed to be deep in thought as he hugged Yingyi even tighter.
━ Guiying.
“With a very black ground dragon, especially one that has just become an adult, even I would find it tough to win without getting hurt. I might even need to reveal my true form.”
━ Didn’t you say that revealing your true form consumes a lot of magical power?
“Yes, but there’s no choice. You can fill up my magical power.”
━ Ah… um, uh, no….
I recalled the times I had felt squeezed by Azidahaka. It was said that absorbing my bodily fluids was the most effective way to replenish his magical power, but there was nothing moderate about Azidahaka’s replenishing process.
I wondered if the feelings of married men on the eve of mandatory defense battles were like this.
━ Isn’t there any other way? We might be able to defeat it while conserving magical power.
“If such a method existed, that would be great, but nothing comes to mind. I wish we could pull off a sneak attack.”
Azidahaka shrugged his shoulders. Meanwhile, Isaac, who seemed not to understand our conversation, clapped his hands.
“A sneak attack… a sneak attack gives me a great idea!”
[Author’s Note] If you enjoyed reading, please smash the recommendation button at the top of the mobile screen! A two-second act grants the writer a happy day! @[emailprotected]
