Activity 5 for an F-Rank Nutcase –
Elise opened its vast mouth, and we ventured inside.
The musty scent of dirt and the fragments that fell from various places tickled us as they circled around.
A cave made of earth, not rock.
It was a cave that could be expected but hard to see in actuality.
Despite the elimination of all light sources from inside the cave, our vision was unimpaired.
An experience never had in South Korea.
We followed the unreal phenomena inside.
“But Abra Sachs Young Shik… how did you realize this fact?”
Sylvia Renen asked me when everything happened exactly as I predicted.
“Ha-ha. I can’t just blurt out business secrets.”
I decided to keep it a secret since there was no need to insist on the truth.
Fortunately, it seemed Sylvia Renen asked just in case I would reveal it.
She didn’t say anything more.
We descended slowly, following the earthen stairs that the dragon had prepared deep inside.
The farther down we went, the hotter the temperature rose.
As we continued to descend, Eliya seemed to have a question and asked me,
“But… Abraxas Young Shik? What if the dragon intends to bury us by collapsing this cave?”
“Dragons are intrinsically intelligent. Of course, realistic constraints only allowed our entrance on account of a mere tantrum. But, it definitely wouldn’t belittle us who’ve unravelled the truth hidden for thousands of years.”
“B-belittle?”
“You’d think it would have prepared to disclose all information assuming we would lose contact here. After all, the days are past when humans couldn’t hunt dragons.”
Even if it didn’t anticipate, the old dragon would have left us alone.
That’s simply how ancient dragons behave.
“Dragons have a robust pride. Despite being seen as arrogant, they express due respect to those they acknowledge. It is tough to earn their acknowledgment, but once acquired, they never belittle you. So, we’re safe.”
It had acknowledged us a little.
The dragon’s acknowledgment.
Thus, we were safe. At least for now.
As we kept descending, we began to see the floor of the cave.
From where the floor started, it was no longer made of earth but consisted of rock.
We advanced through the genuine cave made of bedrock rather than some soil.
“So how’ll you acquire the Dragon Heart? Abraxas. You said we aren’t hunting.”
Theseus whispered secretly to me, resembling a murmur.
He was the only person, unbeknown to all, aware of the fact that I was going to converse, let alone capture the dragon.
“Dragons are full of pride. Remember that.”
He whispered the hint into her ear.
WFS is an open world game. Because of this, certain parts boast an extraordinary degree of freedom. It’s even possible to capture some bosses without fighting them, like the final boss in Autumn outing 1.
Looking back, it’s impressive that they made a MMORPG game applying an open world feature and strategizing bosses; it’s noteworthy.
Even though the balance of the game was awful, many people persisted in playing it, myself included.
What greeted us as we descended was a giant gate.
The frame was made of an indeterminable metal.
The door itself was of aged wood.
Centered on it was the massive image of a dragon, formed of pure gold.
Written within the image, the grand dragon, Hontail.
A name forgotten even by humans was inscribed there.
“Let’s go in.”
After all, excluding me, no one knows the truth of that name.
Human, elf, dwarf, devil, all have forgotten.
Even the same dragons.
As soon as we decided to enter, the gate to the dragon lair began to open.
Inside, what met our eyes was a vast wealth of gold and silver.
The sparse light reflected off countless scattered pieces and filled the darkness with a dazzling ambience.
Sylvia and Eliyah couldn’t help but gasp.
“Woah, is this a dragon’s lair?”
“It seems so. Abrexas is not trustworthy, but looking at this… It seems there really are dragons…?”
“It’s filled with gold and silver, just like in the tales of an old dragon’s lair, but there’s not much to use.”
“Well, we didn’t come for that, anyway.”
It would be great if we could sell the numerous treasures stacked here, but unfortunately, we can’t.
The world has developed too quickly.
From noble mtl dot com
Many precious metals lost their worth after the alchemy revolution a few centuries ago.
There are knockoffs that look identical to the real ones, and it requires more money than the original to discern if it’s counterfeit or not.
As a result, the market collapsed due to the more brilliant counterfeits, and it has long been completely centered on currency.
Thanks to the incredible empire for making this possible by utilizing irreplicable magic.
So, while exploring the lair, we searched for useful items.
The vast majority had rotten or corroded, unable to withstand the years.
The ones that were still good had disappointing performance.
There was nothing special in the lair. Because it’s a lair, that was built before such things existed.
While wandering around the lair, we soon faced a scene more imposing and heartbreaking than we expected.
There was a dragon in the corner of the lair.
A dragon contrary to our imagination.
Scales that should’ve been shining were dry and ragged, its body was so skinny the bones were visible.
Its size was also pathetic, with the dragon barely ten times our size when it should have been dozens of times larger.
The vertex was a color. Unlike the young dragon unified in one color, his body was spotted.
White, which would never be mixed with a black dragon, dominated most of his body, with sporadic black scales in places.
“Even a dragon… can age…”
And when a presence that shatters the fantasy of dragons appeared before their eyes, everyone was lost for words.
And the dragon, realizing that we had come before him, opened his eyes and stared at us.
[Have you arrived, trespassers who have set foot in my lair?]
And at this sight, everyone except me took a battle stance. They did not use Dragon Fear, which dragons use when entering combat, but it was a reflex against the existence of the dragon itself.
The dragon, realizing that his behavior unnerved humans, corrected this misunderstanding.
[There is no need to be hostile. Judging by the behavior of your leader, it seems your leader does not intend to fight me.]
The dragon showed us respect, probably because we were the first visitors in a long time.
The last visitor must have come before humans even existed.
Putting such sentiments aside, I got to the point.
“Old dragon, Hontail. The greatest dragon, yet the weakest dragon now. So, how do you feel? The first visitor after being named the strongest?”
[Huh. You know a lot about me. It seems you have better information than my own kind. Whether from the dragon’s perspective or the human’s, you seem to be a young talent who will change the continent if you grow.]
“Thank you for the compliment. But the reason we came here is simple. It’s to make a proposal that would also benefit you.”
[What is it? It’s been a long time since a guest has come, so I may be able to offer you most things in my lair. I just hope you spread my generosity widely when you leave here.]
The dragon boasted of his generosity, saying he could give us most things in his lair.
But this isn’t true. Hontail is neither a generous dragon nor a dragon to be generous.
It’s just a dragon with a strong pride.
“What we want is…”
I stand up and tell the dragon what we want.
Behind me, Theseus Winter Field, Elijah Adonis, and Sylvia Rene look at me.
In front of him, the dragon is ready to hear what we want.
And my mouth opens and I make a request to everyone.
“It’s your dragon heart.”
It’s a request that will blow everyone’s mind.
—-
Excluding me, the one who said those words, shock is apparent on everyone’s faces.
Despite never having seen a real dragon before, there’s no doubt that the old dragon is questioning his ears.
[What did you say now…?]
“I asked for your dragon’s heart.”
[Are you asking for my life?]
“Oh no, now with the development of heart transplantation, asking for a heart doesn’t necessarily have to do with life. I’ll find a heart for you, would you like to replace it with that heart?”
With my sophistry, the dragon turned to me.
Those who followed me were stunned by the shock and couldn’t make any excuses.
[How rude, even if you are a rare visitor, you should have manners. If you continue to be impolite, I will not tolerate it.]
And with that, a slowly rising sense of pressure. I could instinctively tell what it was, even though it was likely the first time I felt this sensation.
Dragon Fear, the presence emanating from a dragon, it threatens all lifeforms below a certain level.
And using it meant that it was a little angry.
“Then I’ll ask just one thing that I’m really curious about.”
[If that can be exchanged with your request.]
“Alright. Then let me ask you. The old dragon, Hontail. Once the strongest dragon, now the weakest. Have you never questioned your actions?”
[What are you talking about?]
“Why have you stayed here quietly? Why do dragons still firmly believe that they live eternally, even when there’s you, the contradiction?
So far, we can think that they didn’t know because there was no counterexample, but it doesn’t make sense for the dragons not to know it, given that you are the evidence.”
[That’s because I didn’t reveal my identity. Because they don’t know of my existence.]
“But even if that’s so, being the strongest eventually means that you’re the strongest among all dragons. If you’ve become weak from old age, then why did no one know that? Didn’t you also not know the fact that you age?”
“Hey! Abraxas! What are you saying!”
“No, is this also part of the plan? Abraxas?”
It’s not emotionally wrapped around me. I’m completely rational right now.
I’m just letting the aged dragon know what he did wrong.
The dragon slowly enhances the daunting force of dragon fear.
Others are gasping, suffocated by that force.
But I am the Aura Master, I don’t succumb to this much.
I scratched him a bit more to execute the plan.
“Shall I tell you the truth? You are merely a phantom of the past. Every creature has a moment to shine. But so what? Are you currently shining at all? Aren’t your demands for recognition based on past glory an insult to the many dragons who died by your hands?”
A clear provocation. It is somewhat planned.
It’s not like me, but the dragon doesn’t know me. So, he’ll think this is my true nature.
I created a feather by rudeness, and scratch the dragon’s nerves through my mouth.
[Be quiet. It is a clear fact that I was once the strongest dragon.]
“That’s true. But are you currently the strongest dragon? Or who is stronger between you when you were the strongest dragon and the current strongest dragon?
You carry the title of the strongest dragon in history, but to an outsider, you are merely a dragon who luckily maintained the top position amongst the weaker dragons.”
[There isn’t a dragon who’s gone through aging but me! Can you think of someone who’s not me to be called the strongest!]
“Why didn’t you venture out then? Weren’t you after all not the strongest when you could feel aging? If you were truly overwhelming the strongest, you would still have been the strongest even when you felt old. It means that you never met any of your kind while aging. You must have run away because you were not the strongest! Or you might have prepared a hiding place here, fearing death!”
[You’re trying to bewitch me with vain words! Let me show you my true power!]
“Let’s see! If you were indeed once the strongest, you should be able to suppress us!”
The dragon who was once the strongest, but couldn’t beat time and became the weakest.
The one who was the strongest and hence, was never preyed upon.
The dragon who got forgotten by everyone and disappeared into the history.
The dragon who was forgotten by everyone because it was too long ago.
The dragon that no one thought of as a rare item and hence, inevitably marked as rare scarcity.
And a single human who alone knows that fact.
All preparations are complete.
[Even if I have weakened…do you think you can resist me! I’ll punish you myself and wipe you from the face of the earth!!!]
“If that’s what you want. Let’s do it then.”
[Does your pride not get hurt by such provocation!!! It’s still too early for you to oppose me!!!]
An even stronger dragon fear resounds throughout the lair.
And bodies refusing to follow the will of their owners influenced by the dragon fear.
My body starts to tremble like a heart, and my heart starts to beat faster than that.
People around start cursing me, sensing the danger.
“Damn it! Never again will I follow your plans, you damn Abrak!”
“You said there wouldn’t be any threat to our lives…”
“Instead of arguing, just focus on surviving! Silvia!”
The dragon, ready for combat, propped up its body on its back legs just like a bear, and lifted the front legs.
The wings spread out on its back made the seemingly thin dragon look massive.
Simultaneously, numerous magic circles were formed from the dragon’s forelegs, activated instantly.
“Be careful!!!”
“Young-sik! Get out of the way!!!”
Swoosh!
Elia Adonis hauled me into his arms and shielded me with his swift movement.
Silvia Renen was trying to dispel the few already activated spells.
But the dragon’s magical power was too formidable for Silvia Renen to handle.
“Ugh…”
The dragon heart was powerful even though its body was weakened.
Silvia, who was still immature, couldn’t tolerate it.
“Cough…”
Upon overloading, Silvia Renen’s brain bled out, causing her to fall.
“Silvia! Young-sik, of the Abrakasas, we have to get out of this place… Aghh”
Seeing her friend fall, Elia Adonis also tried to quickly move away, but she was helpless against the dragon’s power.
The weakest of dragons. But no matter how weak, a dragon is a dragon. The race with the highest baseline in the world.
In front of such an entity, humans who had not fully grown were ruthlessly trampled on.
“Ghurk…”
Elia somehow got up and faced the dragon once more.
But it was meaningless.
To the dragon, she was nothing more than an ant that fell from its grasp.
From the ant’s perspective, they might think they survived, but from a human point of view, they could be caught again at any moment.
Swoosh!
And as if trying to catch the ant that fell from its hand again, the ancient dragon directed its massive foreleg towards Elia once more.
Its speed, amplified further by the sheer size, was certainly faster than Elia Adonis.
Of course, Elia couldn’t handle its velocity.
“Ghahhh…”
Eventually, even Elia failed to evade its attack and fell.
Theseus lay broken in the distance, unable to withstand the dragon wave blast.
Now, the only one left was me.
In a seemingly desperate situation, the old dragon started to converse with me.
[%{translator=assistant_RETURN}]
“See for yourself. All your companions have knelt before me. Evaluate with your so-called intellect. Do you still think you can resist me?”
We can’t hunt dragons.
But all beings sometimes sacrifice their lives for their beliefs.
“The eyes of a dragon see through everything. Your capabilities, ideas, things you’re hiding, everything. Even the future. You had no power to resist my gaze, you were destined to fail.”
“You can’t see memories with a dragon’s eye. The future isn’t definite either.”
“[That doesn’t mean anything. You guys can’t even use a dragon’s eye. Get out of my territory.]”
The dragon didn’t want to talk anymore, so it attacked me.
I may have been wrong about many things, but if you look at it seriously, I wasn’t wrong at all.
But happiness usually comes with some kind of loss.
Come at me.
Even if your body has aged, come with the mind of your prime.
That’s the conversation I’ve prepared.
The dragon lifts its front foot, ready to strike.
I can’t avoid it. No matter how old it is, a dragon is a dragon. With my current state, I might be able to dodge once or twice by luck, but eventually, I’m bound to be hit.
But if I were to die like this, I wouldn’t have started at all.
I’m not interested in a death that leaves nothing behind.
So I muttered something and waited for the attack.
“[Die.]”
Bang-
I accepted the gesture of the dragon with a smile.