Translator: AnubisTL
The seasons in the Sierre Wilderness were notoriously unpredictable. After three years of relentless scorching sun, the land finally welcomed a rare rainy season.
It began with distant rumblings of thunder, followed by dark clouds that visibly devoured the sky.
The first raindrops striking the parched earth drew little attention from the wilderness creatures. But soon, silver threads cascaded through the clouds, tearing through the dry air and drenching it with moisture. A dense curtain of rain enveloped both the sky and the land.
"This damn weather," Samantha muttered, glaring at the downpour before turning to retreat deeper into the cave.
Red dragons favored dry, hot climates, and the damp, humid air made Samantha feel irritable and melancholic.
Garos perched on an overhanging rock ledge, completely exposed to the elements.
He tilted his head back, his gradually hardening dragon horns pointing skyward. With half-closed eyes, he let the raindrops shatter against his steel-hard body.
The rain fell on Garos, leaving him feeling damp and clammy.
He instinctively recoiled from the moisture.
Yet, to enhance his affinity and resistance to water magic, and because his mountain cave dragon nest was so crude—with cracks that leaked muddy water onto the floor, turning it into a quagmire—he found it preferable to stand in the open rain.
When will I have my own leak-proof palace?
Garos mused.
The dwellings of different creatures vary in scale according to their size.
For dragonkind, constructing a comfortable abode—whether by hollowing out mountainsides or building palaces on flat ground—requires vast resources, immense time, and a large chosen following.
Only an Evil Dragon Lord who dominates a territory or a metallic dragon with extensive connections can afford such luxurious residences.
Garos's current mountain cave dragon nest was merely a collection of natural caves.
It offered no comfort; in fact, it was downright uncomfortable to live in.
When Garos first occupied Needleleaf Valley, he tried to have the earthstorm bears clear the mountains and build him a residence. However, the earthstorm bears themselves were cave-dwellers, living in mountain caves and completely ignorant of construction. Although they possessed an innate talent for manipulating earth and stone, their creations were utterly inadequate, failing to meet the needs of dragonkind or Garos himself. He had no choice but to abandon the idea.
"If I could unite and rule all the creature clans around the Scaly Earth Rift Road, and secure resources through this road network, perhaps then I could have my chosen build me a proper, comfortable residence."
As this thought crossed his mind, information about several clans surfaced in Garos's mind.
After about a week of reconnaissance, Garos had confirmed the number and general scale of the clans surrounding the Scaly Earth Rift Road. Aside from the graymane werewolves and demonic beast groups like the earthstorm bears, three intelligent creature clans remained:
The Redeye Clan—hyena-men.
The Riftclaw Clan—lizardfolk.
The Bonechewer Clan—ogres.
Among these, the Redeye Clan's overall scale was comparable to the Howling Moon Clan, while the Riftclaw Clan was slightly stronger. However, the Bonechewer Clan's ogres were the undisputed dominant force in the region.
The Howling Moon Clan and the Bonechewer Clan had a long-standing feud stemming from a raid conflict on the Scaly Earth Rift Road.
When neither clan could fly, marching through the wilderness was extremely dangerous. The journey was fraught with attacks from ferocious beasts and demonic creatures, making it nearly impossible for a weaker clan to assault another.
The Bonechewer Clan, however, was undeniably tough.
They dispatched ogre warriors on long marches through the wilderness, launching devastating raids on the Howling Moon Clan and inflicting heavy losses.
Later, the Howling Moon Clan managed to repel the ogre attacks at a relatively low cost, thanks to the cliff serpent dragons bred by their werewolves.
The graymane werewolves' willingness to submit to Garos was also due to the fact that without the cliff serpent dragons, they would have been unable to withstand another ogre assault. To survive, they would have been forced to abandon their territory and relocate to the treacherous wilderness, a prospect they found unbearable.
Recently, however, the Bonechewer Clan, for reasons unknown, had not attacked the Howling Moon Clan.
Moreover, this once savage and domineering ogre clan had recently withdrawn almost entirely into their territory, with none of their people venturing out.
Werewolves from the Howling Moon Clan investigated but found no useful information.
Garos was preparing to investigate personally when a torrential downpour began. The curtain of rain would obscure his vision and interfere with his senses, so he decided to wait until the rain subsided before setting out.
"Garos, Garos, why aren't you sheltering in the cave?"
Fairy Dragon Vera flew over, swaying in the wind and rain, and took refuge between Garos's dragon wings and body.
"Because I love the rain," Garos replied. "I enjoy bathing in the open under the downpour."
"Really? Then enjoy yourself a little longer. Rainy seasons don't seem to last long here," Vera said with a giggle.
Nonsense, of course it's a lie, Garos thought. I loathe the rain. I want to live a peaceful life in my spacious and comfortable palace. He glanced at the fairy dragon, then, while it wasn't paying attention, shifted his dragon wing, causing the water on its surface to gather and flow down like a winding stream, landing precisely on Vera.
Given the fairy dragon's size, the stream of water resembled a waterfall.
Caught off guard, Vera was swept off her feet and plunged downward. It took her a few seconds to flap her wings and regain her flight.
"Hey! You're so mean!"
"I'm going to play with Samantha."
Drenched and shivering, the fairy dragon shook off the water, afraid Garos would continue to tease it. It quickly flew toward the cave where Samantha was.
The heavy rain still poured down.
Raindrops pattered against the rocks, grass, and trees with crisp crackles.
After resting for half an hour, Garos lifted his wings, stood up, and soared into the sky. He charged toward the thick, dark clouds that blanketed the sky, using the lightning that crackled through them to rapidly recharge his lightning tail ring.
The charging was swift, and the ring's energy reached its peak.
Garos descended from the gloomy sky to a barren mountain. Using the fully charged lightning tail ring, he began to strengthen his dragon tail, standing in the wind and rain as he repeatedly struck his own body with the tail.
His body grew soaked.
Because water conducts electricity, each time the dragon tail rose and fell, a tingling sensation spread not only through the point of contact but also through other parts of his body.
The electric sensation coursing through Garos's muscles grew even more intense.
Thanks to Garos's relentless training over the years, the electric sensation was spreading from his tail throughout his body. He had a premonition that once it permeated his entire being, he would undergo an evolution. However, he remained uncertain about the specific effects this evolution would bring.
He didn't hold much hope in that regard.
Garos's greatest desire was to develop jet-like structures on his dragon wings, and he had devoted countless efforts and attempts to achieve this. Now, in the downtime after training his wings, he was focusing on enhancing his lightning resistance.
Beneath the rain.
Electric charges swirled densely around the red-iron dragon, its tail blazing with blinding lightning.
Suddenly.
Garos felt a sudden palpitation and instinctively looked up.
A blinding white light reflected in his vision, mere inches away.
Crack!
A silver lightning bolt tore through the night rain, striking Garos's dragon horn first. Then, it raced along the metallic surface of his horn at light speed, spreading across his entire body.
Garos shuddered uncontrollably.
He felt a momentary, intense spasm of paralysis and pain. Wisps of smoke rose from his body, and the rainwater between his scales was nearly evaporated. His tail curled slightly.
But that was all.
Hmph. Garos exhaled a hot breath, flapped his dragon wings, and stretched his body. A lingering numbness remained, but he felt no other discomfort.
"My lightning resistance may not rival that of a blue dragon, but it's far surpassed that of a normal red or iron dragon."
This unexpected trial had only confirmed the strength of his lightning resistance.
Garos looked up at the sky. Amidst the dense thunderclouds, countless silver serpents danced, and lightning struck intermittently, illuminating the heavens.
"The tingling sensation of electricity coursing through my body is quite exhilarating. Let's try it again."
He raised his tail high, using the lightning tail ring to attract lightning strikes down upon himself.
One after another, lightning bolts struck Garos, the mixture of tingling and pain forging him through 'lightning tempering'.
Until, a familiar red copper dragon silhouette materialized on the horizon.
(End of the Chapter)
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