Chapter 585 – 585: Dragon Subjugation!
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We immediately went outside.
“Kyaaaaah!!!”
“It’s a dragonnnn!!!”
The village was already in chaos.
That roar had instilled fear in many people.
But what was causing the most fear was…
“Look over there!”
We all looked at where Noah was pointing.
One of the mountains in the mountain range quite a distance from Misley Village.
Specifically, the one with a wide, crater-like peak.
Krrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaah!
A dragon was roaring from the top of that peak.
It looked small because it was quite far away, but the fact that it was visible from this distance meant it was enormous.
“Looks like sightseeing in the village will have to wait until after we deal with this.”
I turned around and said to everyone.
“I’ll be back.”
“R-Rent-nim! If you’re going, I’d like to come with you…”
Lelia was still worried about me and asked to accompany me, but her concern was enough.
I didn’t respond to Lelia and immediately flew into the sky towards the dragon.
The moment I quickly flew right above the dragon.
Whoooosh!
With a loud roar, the dragon spewed breath at me.
Of course, it was slow enough for me to dodge, so I quickly moved to the side and avoided the breath.
The Poison Dragon’s breath was, of course, poison.
If left unchecked, it could be carried by the wind to the village.
I immediately deployed a magical barrier around the area to prevent the poison from spreading beyond a certain range.
Then, I quickly descended and looked up at the Poison Dragon, Kali.
Dark purple scales and yellowish-green eyes.
A creature with four legs on the ground and huge wings on its back.
Poison Dragon Kali.
The poison-spewing dragon looked down at me and said.
[Impressive, human.]
That was the first time I had heard a dragon’s voice.
A reverberating voice with a howling quality spread around.
Since it spoke first, I decided to speak as well.
The request was for subjugation, but if we could communicate, making it retreat would be an option.
“Are you the Poison Dragon Kali?”
[Ho, you know of this body, human.]
“You’re famous as the dragon that appeared 200 years ago.”
I decided to keep the story of Solis’s revelation to myself, as it might make it wary.
[To be precise, it’s 223 years.]
It was surprisingly meticulous about time.
[To think a human could use magic to fly in the sky. This body has never seen such a human while flying…]
“I’m probably the only one who can.”
[I see. So, human, you’ve come to me because you wish to die? Not only did you dodge my breath, but you even put up a barrier around the area. You’re quite impressive.]
“If possible, I don’t want to fight. If you don’t rampage, I won’t interfere.”
[Heh, heh, heh, heh, hahahahaha! You don’t want to fight… you don’t want to fight! How truly laughable! Do you think that a small human like you can even execute the concept of ‘fighting’ with this body!
All you can do is run away from this body! You seem to have a lot of magic power, but that’s all! You are no match for this body! This Kali!]
It was a very confident dragon.
Or was it that dragons, as a species, were just that proud?
[Now, try to run away from this body! If you can make me laugh with your ridiculous appearance, I might spare your life! That is, if you’re still alive by then!]
It seemed I had no choice but to fight the Poison Dragon.
“Ah, please wait a moment.”
[Hm? What is it? Are you scared now?]
“No, it’s not that.”
I had to get ready before fighting.
The dragon’s poison was definitely powerful.
But that poison didn’t work on me.
However, what effect would it have on my magic power or clothes?
That was still unknown.
There was a good chance that my clothes could melt from the poison if I fought like this.
That’s why I…
“Hmph!”
Shwoosh!
I used my high-speed clothes-stripping technique, honed for quick sex with my lovers, and instantly took off my clothes, storing them in my inventory, and then used telekinesis to send the inventory flying far away.
[What!?]
And the dragon’s bewildered voice reached my ears.
◈-Kali’s SIDE
Dragon.
The strongest creature on the ground.
A supreme being that received the power of both Solis and Vane.
A noble existence with a strong body, long lifespan, and outstanding magical abilities.
Yes, that is the race of this body.
Not even the Demon King or the Hero can easily look down on us, on this body!
This body had heard that countless times in this body’s homeland.
The Dragon Mountains.
My noble and great race.
I had always heard it there.
Do not associate with the lowly.
But I was always curious about the lowly.
How weak and pathetic could they be for my kin to say such things?
And what would the lowly… what would they think when they saw the great race?
This body was so curious.
That’s why this body went down the mountain range.
The first thing I felt was that everything was weak.
Nature and the creatures living in it were all weaker than this body.
Dragons are inherently the most skilled at using magic.
In this body’s eyes, I could see the magic power of the creatures below.
Ah, weak, weak, weak!
So weak!
I immediately understood why my kin called them lowly.
How weak and insignificant they were!
And at the same time, I had this thought.
Ah, how great must I look to these insignificant and lowly beings!
I’m curious!
I want to confirm it!
That thought determined this body’s actions.
The most certain method.
The way to make the lowly beings know this body’s existence for sure.
That was to spread death.
And not just spread it all at once.
Slowly, gradually.
Let the fear creep up and then explode all at once!
But my perfect plan.
The lowly creatures took the absurd stance of fighting back.
Creatures that used tools to defend against the poison gas that this body intentionally emitted from its breath.
Creatures called humans, creatures called beastmen, and creatures called demons were brazenly opposing this body.
But the attacks of the lowly creatures could not possibly pierce this body’s scales.
They attacked with all their might, but the creatures, seeing this body completely unfazed, were filled with fear and despair.
That expression gave me great joy.
Ah, this is the gaze!
This is the face!
Fear this body more!
Look up to this body more!
[This body is Kali! The great Poison Dragon Kali! Hahahahahaha!!!]
I was enjoying the reactions of the creatures.
Suddenly, a creature with a lot of magic power gathered its magic.
“Blaze Strikeeeeeeeeee!!!”
Whoosh!
The creature unleashed magic at this body.
Magic of that level couldn’t even scratch my body!
Thinking that, I didn’t defend at all and was hit by the magic.
[Kaaaaaaaah!!!]
I suffered a huge injury.
A blade of fire from a creature had pierced my scales and left a scratch.
The small wound was so painful.
Even the wind that brushed against the small wound was stinging, and above all, the burn was so painful.
This… I don’t know this!
There is a being that can wound this body!
I don’t know that wounds are this painful!
This won’t do!
I can’t stay in this dangerous place!
This body is a dragon!
The noblest, most precious, and most outstanding being!
I can’t leave a wound on this body like this!
[Uaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!]
“Ugh! W-what is it!”
“T-the dragon flew into the sky! Everyone, get ready with magic… huh?”
“What? T-the dragon is leaving! I-is this real…?”
“W-we did it! The dragon is retreating! We’re saved!”
“Could it be… did he weave a spell that causes extreme pain within that small wound? A-as expected of an S-rank adventurer!”
“Huh…? I-I didn’t use any such spell? I just shot with all my might… More importantly, I didn’t inflict such a big wound…”
“Enough with the modesty! It’s time for a celebration!!! Let’s go back and have a feast!”
“Woooooooah!!!”
I could hear the voices of the lowly creatures who had wounded me from below, but that was nothing compared to this extreme pain.
I tried to quickly return to the Dragon Mountains.
But before I reached the Dragon Mountains, I remembered.
What would my kin think of me, who had been wounded by lowly creatures?
They would surely laugh.
That… that was unbearable.
I couldn’t go back like this!
This body hid and waited for the wound to heal.
I used healing magic and healed the wound as quickly as possible.
Five years passed.
Is it healed?
No, there’s still a small scratch left!
This won’t do!
More!
It has to heal more perfectly!
After 30 years of focusing on healing, this body’s scales returned to their former pristine state.
Yes, this is how this body’s scales should be!
This body thought.
Even among the lowly, there are some who are strong.
I had to accept that fact.
I would immediately accept the new realization.
That was possible because this body was a great dragon.
To spread the greatness of this body, I needed to know more about the lowly.
So, this body decided to transform into the form of the lowly.
I wondered which race to choose among the lowly.
Honestly, I thought they were all the same, but I am a great dragon!
Therefore, I had to choose a race that was at least somewhat suitable.
I spent 50 years pondering.
And finally, this body chose the human race.
The most populous race.
The race I saw the most when I was bored and flying around using stealth magic.
The most numerous meant the most influential.
That meant it was the most suitable for this body.
After transforming, this body entered the village of the lowly.
But this body’s form was not visible.
This body was only curious about what the lowly were like.
I had no intention of mingling.
As long as I used stealth magic, it was impossible for the lowly to notice me.
I had been observing the lowly for 143 years.
When I was hungry, I would grab food sold by the lowly.
After eating the food, my impression of the lowly changed slightly.
They were lowly beings who were good at cooking.
Among the lowly, not only were there differences between races, but there were also many differences even within the same race, and their strengths varied greatly.
The lowly being who had wounded this body had become a legend, a hero who had driven me away.
Hmph, it was only natural that they would be called a legend by the lowly, since they had caused me such pain.
Over the past 140 years, I had learned about the tastes, strengths, preferences, and fears of the lowly.
And gradually, this body’s perception changed.
The lowly… no, the races inferior to me were not enough to just look up to me.
They were races that had to be ruled by this body, fear this body, worship this body, and offer food as tribute.
Recently, the world had become turbulent.
The proliferation of dungeons, followed by the descent of Solis’s divided spirit.
And the recent feeling of the powerful presence of Vane in the north.
I could feel that the world was about to enter an era of chaos.
Therefore, now, at this very moment, when this chaos is about to arrive!
This body will appear once again and rule the weak races!
[Krrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaah!]
I had already learned the characteristic roar of a dragon that the weak races thought of.
Now, this body has reappeared!
Weak ones!
Fear this body and worship this body!
