[Vol. 7] Chapter 232: I Am Her
Both sides froze at the same time. Cleo, who had accidentally asked a foolish question, quickly cleared her throat and awkwardly laughed.
"Ahahaha... um, sorry, sorry, it seems I said something strange. Let’s skip this question..."
"...No need."
Before the Tribe Leader could smooth things over, the golden-haired little girl, who seemed to have made up her mind, took a deep breath. With a calm but slightly emotional voice that was clear enough for everyone to hear, she replied indifferently.
"We were born from the same source, dependent on each other. I am her, and she is me. If we must define it by biological kinship, I am her little sister."
Silence...
As soon as the words were spoken, the entire place fell into an unprecedented eerie silence.
Everyone, including Cleo, who was asking the questions, instinctively reacted the same way. They froze for a moment, then suddenly widened their eyes. It was as if they had seen a ghost, and quickly turned their gaze to the [Evil-Breaking Dragon Seal] floating in mid-air, which was said to be able to detect lies.
However, the seal remained unchanged, sending a terrifying message through the stillness to all the dragonkin present.
It wasn’t until some time later that loud, even frantic, voices began to rise from the dragonkin guarding the sacred place, turning the silence into utter chaos.
"What... what? Praise the Dragon God, what did she just say?"
"This little girl is... the Dragon God’s sister!? Are you kidding? Does that mean she's a true dragon?"
"Not just that, the Dragon God isn’t just any dragon, she’s at least a Dragon King level, a top-tier being. If this little girl... if she really is the Dragon God’s sister, then she..."
"Is this for real? She’s not lying, is she? The Dragon God is an adult dragon, how could she have such a young sister?"
"Uh, but look, the Dragon Seal hasn’t changed at all. This is the treasure personally given by the previous Dragon God, it can’t be wrong, right?"
“Everyone, everyone, calm down! How can we be making such a racket in the sacred land? Everything should be decided by the High Priestess!"
Amidst the heated discussions, Cleo, who was just as stunned as the others, instinctively pinched her own cheek. Only after the pain left a red mark did she suddenly shiver, as if her soul had returned to her body, snapping her awake.
"This... this... well..."
Forgetting to maintain her dignity as the tribe leader or high priestess, she cleared her throat and, under the curious gazes of the priestess and the little dragon girl, quietly spoke to the [Evil-Breaking Dragon Seal], which hadn't changed from the beginning and still seemed like it was asleep.
"Cough... actually, I’m a true dragon too? Ouch!"
As soon as the words left Cleo’s mouth, the dragon-shaped seal suddenly flashed with golden light, as if it had come to life. It quickly formed a large dragon tail and struck Cleo's face sharply, producing a crisp and intense sound of impact.
Well, now everything was aligned.
The initial impression of authority Cleo had painstakingly built up completely collapsed.
"Impossible, impossible! The Dragon God has never mentioned having a sister. What's going on here?!"
"Uh, um... Cleo, your tribe members are still watching," the priestess kindly reminded her.
After hearing the reminder, Cleo, who had been rolling on the ground pulling at her hair in frustration, scrambled to her feet. Completely abandoning any attempt to maintain her dignified image, she quickly shoved the dragon seal back into her storage item. Blushing on both sides of her face, she decided to stop pretending and loudly protested.
"I don’t care anymore! If it’s like this, let’s just decide everything with strength! Anyway, if we follow the procedure, there will still be a qualification trial in the end, so let’s just skip to that!"
Eh... did she just switch from calling herself “I” to “I don’t care”? What kind of person is this tribe leader in private...?
Although secretly embarrassed, Cleo's opinion actually aligned with Violet's thoughts. After all, the dragonkin gathered under the dragon god precisely because they revered absolute power. Words and lie detection were nothing compared to a fist, and in order to get the dragonkin to cooperate fully, overwhelming strength was definitely necessary.
The little dragon girl naturally had no objections and immediately nodded calmly.
"Fine, send up whoever wants to fight me."
"Uh..."
For some reason, the tribe leader, who seemed to be getting a bit angry, looked back at the dragonkin behind her. She took half a step back with a slightly guilty look on her face, staring at the golden-eyed little girl, whose eyes seemed to burn like flames in the night. She forced herself to sound imposing as she spoke.
"Hmph... Normally, it would be one of our strongest warriors to carry out the trial one-on-one, but since you claim to be the Dragon God's sister, as priests, we naturally have the duty to verify that claim!"
"Miss Light, if you are a blood relative of the Dragon King, even in your juvenile state, you should possess power far greater than that of a follower! If you want to prove your identity, then show us your true strength so we can believe you. This time, your opponent will be the entire group of dragonkin present!"
"Attention! Inferno Dragon Burn the World!!!"
With a loud shout, Cleo leaped backward and landed among the group of dragonkin warriors, holding torches and guarding both sides of the valley. She disappeared from sight.
Although the situation had momentarily fallen into chaos because of Xiao Guang's shocking statement, the elite dragonkin guards, who protected the core sacred ground near the Dragon God, reacted without hesitation.
As soon as the order was given, they immediately sprang into action, forming a formation. Hundreds of torches burning with red and golden dragon flames quickly moved and combined into a group, transforming into a huge fire dragon with a mighty form that suddenly soared into the air!
"Vroom~!!!"
A heavy beam of light fell from the barrier that covered the valley, enveloping the hundreds of dragonkin guards who had completed the formation. The fire dragon flew up, its giant wings flapping like flames, floating in front of the two guests. Cleo's somewhat smug voice slowly echoed from within the dragon.
"This is a battle formation passed down by the previous Dragon God, using the power of the temple. With the cooperation of over a hundred of our top dragon guards and priests, it can unleash power equal to that of a true dragon. One of the strongest trump cards of our dragonkin. Miss Violet, please refrain from interfering in this individual trial. I will control the intensity of the attack."
"Oh? You have such an interesting card up your sleeve... No wonder dragonkin are so impressive."
Violet said with a smile as she looked up at the huge fire dragon, which was as large as the Frost Dragon King in the [Morst Underground Labyrinth]. She gently stroked her chin before quickly shaking her head with a smile.
"I see, I see, I won't interfere, hmm... Just be careful, okay?"
Meeting her gaze with the smiling black-haired girl, the little dragon girl, who understood what she meant, nodded slightly. She then turned her head to face forward, a fierce fighting spirit seeming to blaze like golden flames within her eyes.
"Of course."