Chapter 16. The Majestic Red Dragon

 

[So noisy……]

 

In a pitch-black cave.

 

A giant body curled up and squirmed.

 

The bright red scales reminded one of precious gemstones, and eyes as red as blood gleamed like rubies.

 

The giant body dominating the cave.

 

A creature nearly 50 meters long, the master of magic, the child of the dragon that created the world, an uncontrollable force of destruction.

 

Red Dragon.

 

Rehilis Atreina opened her eyes.

 

She was in a very bad mood.

 

The reason was simple.

 

It was noisy near her nest.

 

[I’m sure I warned them last time…….]

 

She was a noble dragon.

 

Being a noble creature different from any other species by birth, she rarely made appearances.

 

She was a precious being.

 

She had no time to bother with trivial matters.

 

All she did was rush out to gather gold whenever she saw it, scare passing

 

humans a bit, and sleep with a deer that had entered the cave sometime.

 

She was very busy.

 

Anyway.

 

Such noise was bound to bother her.

 

At first, she tried to ignore it.

 

But with the waves sounding so loud and the wind almost bursting her eardrums, she couldn’t sleep.

 

[Sigh… I guess I’ll have to sort this out.]

 

As she got up, the sleeping deer was startled and jumped up.

 

Rehilis patted the deer’s head a few times to calm it down and then created a magic circle.

 

Teleport.

 

Magic to move objects.

 

Usually, it was impossible to use on living beings.

 

Biological signals change every moment, and everything constituting a living being changes in very short units.

 

Using teleportation precisely was impossible for any creature.

 

[But I’m different.]

 

She was a dragon.

 

The great master of magic and the noble species that first taught magic to all the races of this world.

 

So, this was a piece of cake.

 

[Hmm… Quite far.]

 

It was a distance of hundreds of kilometers from her lair. But perhaps because her ears were sharp, or because the noise was so loud. Though it was quiet now, Rehilis was curious about the source of the noise.

 

[I thought the disturbance ended centuries ago….]

 

Back then, she was still a young dragon and didn’t dare leave the cave out of fear, but this time was different!

 

Now, Rehilis was a full-grown dragon.

 

Moreover, as the fiercest and strongest Red Dragon, she feared nothing.

 

Above all, the great natural sound piqued the curiosity of the great Red Dragon Rehilis.

 

Dragons were naturally curious creatures.

 

It was hard to resist picking up gold on the roadside, but even harder to resist their curiosity.

 

Rehilis, her eyes sparkling with curiosity, completed the teleport and stepped through.

 

And there.

 

[……?]

 

[Hmm…….]

 

There were two creatures.

 

Creatures that seemed tens of times bigger than herself!

 

The moment Rehilis met their gaze, her body stiffened.

 

‘Impossible!’

 

Was there a creature larger than her?

 

And that snake!

 

What on earth was that size?

 

Its body stretched from horizon to horizon, overwhelming just by looking at it.

 

Two such monsters existed.

 

Moreover, their mystical eyes looked at her with interest.

 

Rehilis felt like a bug before a dragon.

 

But!

 

‘I am! The proud and great dragon!’

 

Even if they were a bit larger!

 

‘A lot larger actually!’

 

Size alone did not matter.

 

Size was no help in this world!

 

In fact, being too large was only a disadvantage in a fight. Rehilis believed her 50-meter body was the perfect size for a dragon.

 

Any larger.

 

She could miss precious gold because it would be too small, and she might not feel full after eating.

 

Yes.

 

Rehilis’s body was practical.

 

‘A fight is different.’

 

Besides, she was a dragon.

 

The apex of all creatures!

 

She was fundamentally different from a mere large snake and a strange giant eel with whiskers.

 

[Hmph.]

 

Rehilis straightened her shoulders.

 

She then bared her teeth at the two creatures.

 

[Who are you!]

 

It was a bold shout even in her mind.

 

[Hm…….]

 

[Ugh…….]

 

The two creatures did not speak and flinched, which must mean they were terrified of her!

 

Rehilis gained confidence.

 

She inflated her body more and gathered a threatening breath in her mouth.

 

Most creatures would feel overwhelming fear and tremble beneath her.

 

[I’m asking, who are you!]

 

Ah, were they unable to speak?

 

The sight of them trembling before her grandeur.

 

Moreover, seeing the large snake remain still in front of her, Rehilis felt great satisfaction.

 

‘As expected, they are no match for me despite their size.’

 

Naturally.

 

She was a dragon, the apex of all creatures.

 

Her confident red eyes glared at them.

 

As they looked at each other, they simultaneously unleashed their aura.

 

[I am Jörmungandr.]

 

[I am Azure Dragon.]

 

Of course, Rehilis didn’t hear their introduction.

 

[Huh.]

 

The moment they released their aura, she fainted and plunged toward the sea.

 

The last thing she remembered was.

 

‘Oh, the sea is clear.’

 

Splash—!

 

For some reason, she wanted to swim.

 

* * *

 

[…….]

 

Jörmungandr looked at the dragon lying on top of his body, dumbfounded.

 

She had suddenly appeared, seen them, and trembled in fear, making him wonder if she was really a dragon.

 

Moreover, when she puffed up like a frightened chick and challenged them confidently, he found it endearing.

 

He had caught her as she plunged to the ground, but now he didn’t know what to do.

 

Anyway.

 

Setting the dragon aside.

 

[Azure Dragon, do you also not know what this place is?]

 

[Yes. One day I woke up to find myself here. This place has different mass, size, and people completely.]

 

Mass, size.

 

He could roughly guess.

 

This planet was vastly different from Earth.

 

To his knowledge, Earth’s circumference was 46,250 km.

 

But this planet was on a different scale. Just the fact that it could coil his body twice indicated that. His body was hard to measure accurately, but it was likely hundreds of thousands of kilometers long. This size would wrap around Earth several times.

 

Naturally, living on Earth would be challenging at this size.

 

So, he thought it wasn’t Earth….

 

[Are the people different too?]

 

[Yes. Though they look the same… there’s something fundamentally different. Ah, not that they are evil. It’s just their essence is different.]

 

Their essence is different.

 

It was something to consider more carefully.

 

Of course, if he saw humans with his current eyes, he could see their essence and even their souls.

 

But that required a comparison.

 

Not knowing the essence of Earth’s humans made it impossible to distinguish.

 

But he gathered some information.

 

‘This world was not naturally formed.’

 

The overwhelming mass confirmed it.

 

A planet this size would have such overwhelming mass that gravity would make it uninhabitable for humans.

 

Moreover, a planet with such mass would typically be a star.

 

‘The fact that it’s not proves this world is artificial.’

 

It wasn’t surprising.

 

This was a world where gods openly existed.

 

Creating a planet to their liking was no big deal.

 

Though he had become a divine entity… he couldn’t match true gods yet.

 

‘Moreover, bringing Jörmungandr and even Sasin here.’

 

He didn’t know the purpose, but it wasn’t something to be ignored.

 

‘I need to think more.’

 

He was curious about the motives of those who brought him here, but it was information he couldn’t obtain now.

 

Having conveyed to the Azure Dragon that he too had been dragged here, Jörmungandr returned to his cave with the small dragon on his back.

 

‘Caves are indeed comfortable.’

 

Was it because he was a snake?

 

Being coiled up in nature felt more secure than being in human civilization.

 

After laying the Red Dragon down, some time passed.

 

[Ugh…….]

 

The dragon, blinking away sleep, turned her gaze to him.

 

[Awake?]

 

[Eek…!]

 

The moment their eyes met, she jumped up and cowered in a corner of the cave, trembling.

 

[P-please spare me! I’m sorry!!]

 

Hmm.

 

It seemed she was thoroughly frightened.