[Vol. 8] Chapter 211: From the Fire
Even though Cielru didn’t understand the true principles behind the divine seal, as she kept pouring her power into it to fix and fill the gaps, she began to feel a strange, hard-to-describe change.
The Dragon God inheritance mark, given to her by her mother, the former Dragon God, suddenly started to feel warm.
Then, at one moment, even with her eyes still closed and her vision filled with darkness, everything in front of the White Dragon Queen suddenly became clear again.
Something had pushed away the darkness and lit up the world.
But it wasn’t light.
It was fire.
Cielru saw a golden flame burning in the distance. At first glance, it looked only about a meter tall, but its calm floating presence made her feel that the entire world around her was actually burning with this reddish-gold fire. Even she, the proud White Dragon Queen, felt like she was just one strong flame among many.
The fire seemed to be burning through the whole world, or perhaps it was the world itself.
Her heart tightened in caution, and she quickly tried to push away the illusions and strange thoughts from her mind.
After all, sealed beneath the Sealing Stone were the remains of the Serpent and the forms of several powerful evil gods. Seeing these strange visions while fixing the seal might mean those evil beings were trying to mess with her thoughts for some secret purpose.
Cielru tried to use her spiritual energy to break the illusion, but for some reason… something didn’t feel right. This golden flame, although mysterious, gave her a strange sense of familiarity. Almost a gentle, comforting feeling. It made her hesitate.
She had the strange sense that… this flame was alive.
After hesitating for a moment, the girl gathered her courage and spoke.
"Who… are you?"
But the fire simply burned quietly, gently flickering.
Its calm and distant attitude somehow made Cielru feel less nervous. She raised her voice a bit and tried again.
"I am Cielru White, the ninth leader of the Holy White Dragon Clan, and currently the acting Dragon Empress. Are you the spirit of a senior guarding this place? You appear as fire, are you from the Flame Red Dragon Clan?"
After her question, the golden flame swayed slightly. Then, without speaking, a thought, clear and full of meaning, flowed into Cielru’s mind. It wasn’t spoken with words, but she understood it instantly.
[You’re the leader of the Holy White Dragons? What about Yolandal White?]
Cielru paused for a moment, then gave a helpless shake of her head.
"The former leader used up all her power to activate the divine seal. Her life faded away, and she passed on more than three hundred years ago. She was my mother."
[......]
The golden flame stayed quiet, like it was thinking. Then slowly, a figure began to appear within the fire, becoming clearer.
It was a girl in a long dress, with two horns on her head and long, glowing hair that looked like golden flames. A tail swayed behind her. Her form clearly showed she was a dragon in human shape, which made Cielru relax a little.
But soon, her expression turned a bit awkward and surprised.
The girl in front of her looked elegant and noble. But her body was small, and her dragon features still seemed young. She was clearly just a child, a young dragon who hadn’t yet grown up.
Not only that, her aura felt somewhat similar to that of the Holy White Dragons. But there were also some small differences. Curious and confused, Cielru asked.
"Um… how should I address you? Or… little sister?"
The little golden-haired dragon girl didn’t explain anything about herself, but she didn’t act cold either. She just calmly introduced herself:
"You can call me Light. That’s what my close ones and friends call me. Since you’re the White Dragon Clan leader, I’ll allow you to use that name."
"Uh…"
Cielru was speechless for a moment.
Even though she was already a few hundred years old, she was still considered a young adult among dragons, one who had even matured early. And because she had spent over three hundred years guarding the seal, she actually had little experience dealing with outsiders. Faced with such a strange situation, she honestly didn’t know how to respond.
But the little golden-haired dragon girl didn’t seem to mind her awkwardness. She sat cross-legged in the air like no one else was around. Her bare white feet had tiny bells around the ankles, which jingled softly as she moved. Then she waved her hand gently.
"You don’t have to be so formal. In a way, you’re actually my senior. Even though our meeting today was just a coincidence, one day, we’ll definitely meet again in the real world. For now… why don’t you tell me what’s been happening with the dragon clan?"
……………………………………………
The glowing patterns of the ancient formation around the Sealing Stone slowly faded. The Dragon Kings, who had been sitting cross-legged at their positions, opened their eyes one by one. The Rock Dragon King stood up on the spot, looking both pleased and a little surprised. He nodded and said.
"Very good. The results of this repair are even better than we expected. Roughly speaking, this should give us at least another half a month to prepare. Thank you all for your efforts."
"Uh… it’s over already? I didn’t even feel anything. I thought I’d be weak and tired after this..."
"Yeah, if fixing the Sealing Stone is this easy, maybe we should’ve done this earlier. If we just come once every half a month, keeping this up for a hundred years doesn’t sound that hard."
The Dragon Kings chatted among themselves, clearly excited and a bit puzzled by how smoothly everything went. But only the elder of the Cloud Dragon Clan noticed the young White Dragon still sitting there, lost in thought, and gently asked.
"Cielru, are you too exhausted?"
The White Dragon Queen paused for a moment, then quickly shook her head.
"Oh… I’m fine, Grandpa Yaniels. It’s just that the ancient forbidden spell left by our ancestors is so mysterious, being part of it gave me a few insights. This formation... is truly amazing."
The other Dragon Kings nodded and didn’t question her explanation. After all, they had just experienced the strange power of the Sealing Stone themselves. And Cielru was already known as the most gifted and insightful leader of her generation, so it was perfectly natural for her to feel more than the rest.
"Alright, now that the Sealing Stone is temporarily repaired and we’ve bought some time, what should we do next?"
One of the Dragon Kings brought up the next step. As the acting leader, Cielru finally turned her gaze away from the Sealing Stone, closed her eyes briefly to steady her thoughts, and then looked toward the fiery and beautiful Red Dragon Queen beside her.
Even though both of them represented fire, the difference between them was clear...
"Sister Tatina, how’s the contact with the other mythical races going? The Sealing Stone might be stable for now, but we still don’t have much time."
Cielru spoke firmly, as if she had some kind of special plan. Hearing her question, the Red Dragon Queen Tatina shook her head helplessly.
"It’s not that easy... There are at least fifty different mythical races in the sealed land alone. And you know how strange and difficult some of them can be. Many of them stay isolated and don’t deal with outsiders at all."
"A big part of them may have fought with us during the final battle of the war, but that doesn’t mean they share our values. Some even had bad blood with the dragons in the past. For most of them, I have to go personally if I want them to talk at all."
"I’ve been running all over the place recently, and with the help of my clan, I’ve managed to get support from about half of the groups. The rest either haven’t been contacted yet or are staying vague and giving no clear answer. And there are even more scattered groups with only a few members left... Honestly, it’s tough."
By the end of her report, Tatina could only sigh. Although they had expected it would be difficult for the dragons to unite all the mythical races by themselves, the current situation was even worse than they had imagined.
Hearing this, the other Dragon Kings, who had been slightly relieved after the seal was repaired, now looked serious again.
The sealed land was full of factions, and the situation was very complex. Although the dragons were recognized as the strongest race and respected by almost everyone, they didn’t have absolute control here.
Back during the great war, when life and death were on the line, many races had no choice but to side with the dragons. But now that three hundred years had passed, those same races had time to rebuild and think differently.
Just because a race was powerful didn’t mean they saw themselves as defenders of the world. The dragons might fight to protect their home because of their beliefs. But other races might prefer to run away, or just watch from the sidelines. Some might even still be greedy, secretly eyeing the remains of the Serpent buried beneath the ruins.
In other words, if the Sealing Stone breaks and the sealed land returns to the world, these uncertain, selfish races might even turn against the dragons. Even if they don’t openly betray them, they might just run away and do nothing to help.
After all, the world outside the sealed land is vast. The return of the Serpent’s remains or an evil god’s invasion doesn’t necessarily mean total destruction. So why should those races risk their lives to be heroes?
The Dragon Kings could all see through such thoughts easily. But how each of them felt about it was clearly different.
The Dark Demon Dragon King, an elegant and handsome young man in a fitted formal suit, with black hair and a charmingly wicked look, seemed about the same age as Cielru. But his actions were clearly more ruthless than hers. Right then, he spoke up with a serious proposal…
"Hmph, if they can't be our allies, then we might as well take them out now while the seal is still holding and we still have the upper hand. The dragon clan has already recovered its strength. If we unite with the other races willing to help, we can crush any mythical race that dares stand against us."
"Focus our strength, strike hard, and take control of the situation. Even if there are some losses, it's still better than getting stabbed in the back later, don’t you agree?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the other Dragon Kings all frowned slightly. But despite their silence, none of them spoke out against the idea right away.
The Dark Dragon King’s suggestion was indeed harsh and aggressive, but it was still a way to deal with the problem. All of them had lived through the great disaster three hundred years ago, and they knew very well what would happen when the seal finally broke. Those who remained silent or vague now were already giving a kind of answer, just not with words.
To put it bluntly, the dragon clan wasn't obligated to protect this world. But if disaster came and all other races chose to run or hide, then how could there be space left for those selfish cowards to sit back and survive?
The dragons had their principles, but they weren't fools. There’s only one homeland. If the dragons give everything to protect it, even to the point of losing many of their own, while those hiding in safety recover their strength and eventually take over what’s left, what a cruel joke that would be.
Not to mention some races might not just stay out of it, but actually cause trouble, or even take the enemy’s side. If that’s the case, then maybe it really is best to do what the Dark Dragon King suggested, clear up the internal threats before dealing with the outside ones...
"No."
Just as the Dragon Kings were hesitating and weighing the pros and cons, White Dragon Queen Cielru White was the first to speak up in opposition.
"Huh? Why not? Come on, Cielru, don’t tell me you actually believe that we can talk our way into getting all the races to unite. You do realize that the only reason the dragons are still at the top is because we’re strong. Because we, the next generation, took up the mantle and used our claws and wings to shake the world, not because of sacrifices that are now just history!"
"That White Dragon kindness of yours is fine for normal times, but if you keep being soft in a moment like this, you’ll only get our whole race hurt. Do you understand?"
As the others turned to her with questioning eyes, especially as the sharp gaze and scolding tone came from the Dark Dragon King, Cielru didn’t panic. She calmly explained in a steady voice.
"Don’t misunderstand me, Castor. I’m not completely rejecting your idea. Kindness does not equal weakness or fear. I just believe the current situation isn’t clear enough. If we rush to attack, we might push some potential allies into becoming enemies, and that would be a loss we can avoid."
"Here’s what I suggest, Tatina, your Red Dragons will need to work a bit harder. Try not to waste too much time on those with unclear attitudes, but do make sure we visit all the mythical races in the sealed land. Once we’ve confirmed where everyone stands, we’ll pick out a few of the worst offenders and take swift action. That way, we show our determination without starting a full-on civil war."
"Right now, we’re facing a major threat. Every bit of strength we lose fighting each other is strength we won’t have later. Instead of trying to wipe out entire races, a show of power, with both force and warning, might work just as well. What do you all think?"
"I’m fine with that," said the Red Dragon Queen, Tatina, who had always been Cielru’s closest friend. "Once we decide, I’ll start preparing and adjusting my plans as soon as I return."
Hearing Cielru’s balanced proposal, the other Dragon Kings nodded one after another. Castor’s original plan had been too extreme, but with Cielru’s adjustments, it now sounded much more reasonable. Even Castor himself, the young Dark Dragon King, frowned slightly, then gave a small nod.
"Hmph. Well, you're the acting Dragon Emperor, so if that’s what you want, we’ll go with your plan. I just hope you won’t go soft when the time comes."
To be honest, he was a little surprised that Cielru came up with such a strategy. Though they were from different dragon clans, they’d grown up together as the children of Dragon Kings, basically childhood friends.
Castor knew her well. For someone like her to actually agree to go on the offensive against some races… Was she possessed by some evil god or something?
That weird thought flashed through his mind for a moment, and the proud young Black Dragon King couldn’t help but ask with concern.
"Hey, Cielru, are you really okay? Ever since we finished repairing the Sealing Stone, you’ve seemed a little… off. I know even an evil god couldn’t really mess with a holy White Dragon at Dragon King level, but if you’re feeling unwell—"
Cielru blinked, then smiled faintly and shook her head.
"Don’t worry. I’m fine. To be honest with you all, I did see something inside the Sealing Stone, but it’s not a bad thing. It’s… a little complicated. Once I’ve had time to think it over, I’ll share it with you."
"After all... that might be the key to our race’s true future."