บท 204: The path of the Crimson God (4)
"According to the agreement between humans and dragons, neither side should harm the other. If they violate the agreement, the criminal must be judged by the laws of the opposing side. You must abide by the laws," the princess struggled to get up after such a fall and attempted to calmly announce the decision of the Red House to the ruler.
"That worthless agreement was drawn up by that creature, Ignis, and all the dragons who recognized her as their leader agreed to it. But I am much stronger, older, and more powerful than that insignificant being. I will never submit to the power of her pathetic agreement!" The enraged dragon stood on its hind legs and released a massive burst of flame.
"What are you talking about? My mother is the eldest of all living dragons, and all dragons recognize her power!" Ragni could not bear further insults to Ignis.
"Ha-ha-ha, you know nothing, little girl! Well, I don't mind having a little conversation before my feast. Do you want to know how I became the ruler, little one? Well, I'll tell you."
The Red Lord immersed himself in old memories.
"I was the eldest son of Lord Saraz, and probably the cleverest of all. I still remember those times when all living beings died with the sunset because life in us was sustained only by the blue flame. No one remembers those times, for before the sacrifice of Miras, there was a long night that killed all living creatures before they were reborn with a true soul, as they are now.
But I was different; I fought for life; I did not want to obediently die in the name of the lords. And I found an excellent source of life force. True, it ended by morning, but all living creatures around me were filled with it. And I started to consume them. Every night, I found a new victim, which prolonged my life until dawn. Thus, I remember everything from the time of the world's creation. Isn't it a wonderful gift?
But then the gods created what they called the miracle of life and death, the circle of reincarnation, which is what the soul of the god Miras turned into. All living creatures gained souls, and there was no longer a need for such a life extension, if not for the additional advantages that I found in it.
Each life I absorbed increased my power, and the appearance of humans at that time gave me incredible pleasure; their souls filled me with strength. It was exhilarating, and soon I surpassed all my brothers and sisters in power. But the gods were afraid of this strength. Father personally came down to me to subdue me and permanently forbid me from using other souls to increase my strength. I tried to object, but he quickly subdued me with his divine flame.
At that time, I was afraid, so afraid of him. He was a god, an absolute being for me, and I retreated. I went to the largest volcano in the world to sustain my power with the flame of the earth. After I stopped consuming human souls, my strength began to wane, and only the flame of the earth could sustain it.
But then the unthinkable happened, what I thought was impossible. One of the gods, an absolute being, Sefris, was killed! The one I considered invincible was killed by some monster. And then I realized that the gods were just as mortal as we are, and that's when I decided to rise against them.
Sefris himself taught us that for red dragons, the main thing is STRENGTH! And I always followed this principle! If there is a source of power, why not use it? I once again gathered the life energy from the food around my mountain and became almost equal in strength to the gods. And he came to me again to fulfill the threat he had given me before. But he was no longer an order to me.
I fought with him, and we were equals. Even with his divine flame, he couldn't harm me! Human souls gave me incredible regeneration, so his attacks could not hurt me. In the end, I tore out his heart and separated the soul from his body. I consumed him and gained the true power of a god!!!
But I was deceived; even with the god's heart, I did not possess his divine abilities. When I thought the gods would accept me as their equal, they only looked at me like a monster, a creature that killed his father for power! And I saw nothing wrong with that.
But that accursed white goddess was too worried about the lives of these creatures and dared to challenge me. Ha! She was no match for me, and I easily drove her away from my lands. But she didn't give up and came to me accompanied by this bug. I foolishly didn't pay attention to it then; maybe I could have avoided all of this.
The goddess made a contract with THIS, with the human. It was an unthinkable folly, but it helped her defeat me. She locked me in this icy prison for millennia, depriving me of freedom. I could feel the earth's heat; I could literally inhale the pleasant smell of sulfur, but I couldn't reach it.
However, this imprisonment proved beneficial for me. Being immobile allowed me time to focus on Lord Saraz's power, and I understood why I had feared him so during our initial encounter. His heart granted him the ability to command all red dragons. I was mentally connected to all my servants and could even compel them to act against their will. Even while imprisoned, I could observe the world and nudge it in the desired direction.
After the pitiful human obtained power comparable to a goddess through a contract, many dragons attempted to bestow similar strength upon their slaves. Numerous dragons entered contracts with their servants, but the results achieved barely equaled those of modern mages. However, Nihelim decided to intervene directly. He committed an unpardonable folly—giving the dragons the "gift" of human form. A loathsome ancient magic forever altered all dragons, except for me, of course.
The Black God hoped that his children, by becoming closer to humans, would attain true power comparable to that of the gods. But he was foolish! This decision merely hindered all my efforts. Lords should never resemble their subjects; it was precisely this that led to the rise of human civilization and the further decline of the dragons. In the end, humans no longer saw us as their masters and rebelled, resulting in the death of the last dragon god.
What foolishness it was to attempt to equal that which should merely be mere food! By that time, I had already become accustomed to the power of the red dragon lord and began pushing the world towards a new war, which later became known as the Second Dragon War. Many of my brethren perished in that war, which led me to attempt something new. I subjugated the mind of my elder sister and forced her to mate with wild wyverns, hoping to produce a new, more numerous and combat-capable species. The resulting green dragons were weaklings, but their abundance replenished our ranks. However, my sister did not survive the first childbirth, causing me to stop recklessly squandering valuable pieces.
Many perished, but the goal was achieved; my comrades killed the one whom humans considered the savior of the First Summoner. Yet, instead of celebrating their triumph over the fallen humans, they decided to end the war. That despicable treaty was then signed, the same one you, little one, are waving at me now."
"I am the only one who can be called the god of this world!" Ultrus concluded his tale and proudly spread his wings. "I will lead the dragons and rule over all."
"Since you unleashed the war, much time has passed!" Seleria tried to object to the dragon lord. "Dragons will no longer obey you, and they won't start a senseless war!"
"Is that so? In my view, the world hasn't changed that much," the dragon abruptly grabbed Ragni's hand and turned it, revealing a mark in the shape of a dragon's head. "Humans and dragons still haven't learned to live together. Contracts still exist. And you, pitiful girl, agreed to a contract as a slave!"
"What did you say?" Ragni looked at the mark of the contract.
"A mark on the left hand designates a slave, while a mark on the right designates a master. You, wretched girl, agreed to this, even without knowing such a detail. How low the morals of this current generation have fallen. I think initiating a new uprising won't be that difficult. Ha-ha-ha," the dragon turned his gaze to Asura. "But let's return to what I prolonged your lives for a couple of minutes. You, girl from the white clan, you know what I'm searching for, where is it? Confess, and maybe I'll spare your life."
"I don't know what you're talking about, but I won't help you with anything!" Asura reached for her katana, and the dragon leaped towards her and grabbed her hand.
"Where is the White Heart!? It was here! It held my prison, but now it's NOT here! Where is it!?" The dragon tightened his grip, and the girl screamed in pain.
"She's not the one you should be asking!" Swinging her axe, Hilda cut the dragon's wrist, and he involuntarily released his victim.
"Grain, Leira, head to the outer edge of the crater; I have a task for you. Miriam, Aileen, take positions on both sides of the mountain and shoot at him if he tries to escape. The rest of you, follow Hilda; she can't handle him alone!"
Obediently following my commands, my comrades hurried to their positions, but I stopped Grain and Seleria.
"What now? They'll need all our strength there!" Seleria tried to break free from my grasp, dissatisfied.
"That may be, but I don't think you're ready yet," I assessed the girl with doubt.
"What nonsense are you talking? This was my battle from the beginning! I am ready!" Seleria clenched her fists with anger, but I turned to Grain.
"Tell me, how far is it to the lava?"
"Huh?" The mage was puzzled by my question. "Why do you need to know?"
"It doesn't matter, just tell me: can you dig a tunnel to the center of the volcano?" I sneered, and a cold shiver ran down Grain's spine.
"Well, it's a little over a kilometer from here, but it keeps rising. If I dig a tunnel, it will shoot upward, and an eruption will occur."
"Don't worry, it won't last long. Just do it," I grinned even more maliciously and firmly placed my hand on his shoulder.
"I hope you know what you're doing," the mage crouched down and started to dig into the depths of the mountain. The hole, over two meters in diameter, descended deeper into the volcano's crater, and it was time to turn to the princess.
"Seleria," my voice was deadly serious, unlike my usual casual tone. "I want you to play a key role in this battle, but for that, you need to become a bit stronger."
"What do you mean?" The princess looked at me skeptically.
"Remember what your mother taught you?" I smoothly circled the girl, positioning her between me and the hole in the ground. "The blood of red dragons flows in your veins. Fire is their power, their magic, and their life. Look at it."
We leaned over the entrance to the infernal furnace. Grain reached his target, and the bubbling molten rock began to smoothly crawl up the tunnel. It was over half a kilometer away, but we could feel its heat from here. The red glow of the molten stone illuminated the cave.
"This is the most powerful flame on the planet, second only to the divine," I said.
"Yes, and you must tame it!"
"I... I can't. It's too much for me. You're asking the impossible," the girl stepped back from the abyss and turned to face me.
"I'm sure you can handle it," I approached the girl smoothly and placed my hand on her shoulder. "You just lack... a little push."
With a smile as friendly as I could muster, I gently nudged the red princess.
"KRIIIIIIITOOOOO!!!!!!!" Letting out a piercing cry, the girl disappeared into the abyss of the volcano.
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