…This is really the worst.

The Red Dragon wouldn’t actually kill me. Even if she tortured me, she wouldn’t do it to the point where my life was at risk.

So, if I could just endure it and wait for her interest to wane, I might eventually get out of this.

But why did White Wolf have to show up now of all times?

I couldn’t move, couldn’t help, couldn’t do anything to protect her.

If she’d been here from the beginning, maybe we could have planned an escape together.

But she had to come at the worst possible moment.

“Ge-ge-ge-ge-eek!” I screamed, hoping she’d run.

“Little one, let’s keep you quiet for a moment, okay?”

Swish!

Chains tightened around my mouth, binding it shut.

Now, I couldn’t move, couldn’t scream.

With my body so weakened, there was no way I could struggle free.

All I could do was watch.

“Mmph! Mmph!”

I tried to scream again, desperately trying to warn her to flee, but it was too late.

White Wolf turned around, releasing a fierce wave of cold energy.

Crack-crack-crack!

The chill was so intense it seemed to freeze the very air around us.

Even a high-level spirit beast would be hard-pressed to withstand that kind of cold.

But her opponent wasn’t an ordinary creature.

Whoosh.

A surge of heat directly opposed the cold.

In a volcano saturated with fire energy, facing the Red Dragon, who embodied fire itself, White Wolf’s cold was overwhelmed.

“Well, well. Finally, I get to see your face. I almost gave up on finding you since my little one wouldn’t say a word, but here you are, coming straight to me. How considerate.”

“…You did this to him?” White Wolf growled, icy gaze fixed on the Red Dragon.

In her wolf form, White Wolf was no match for the Red Dragon, who was still in her human form. If she transformed into her full form, the difference in power would be even more overwhelming.

But White Wolf didn’t back down.

“What do you mean, ‘did this’? I was careful to hold back,” the Red Dragon replied with a wicked smile.

“You call this ‘holding back’? His scales have holes in them.”

White Wolf bared her fangs, staying on guard.

“Well, I suppose a furred creature like you wouldn’t understand.”

“What?”

“This is just a little affectionate playfulness.”

“Playfulness? He’s bleeding right now!”

“Oh?” The Red Dragon tilted her head, seemingly surprised, and looked my way.

“You’re right. He’s bleeding more than I expected.”

She looked genuinely puzzled, as if she couldn’t understand why.

This insane dragon. How could she not realize what she had done to me?

“You crazy witch!” White Wolf snarled.

Crash!

A massive pack of ice wolves appeared, all formed from White Wolf’s freezing energy.

The familiar shapes of Ilrang to Chirang emerged from the cold.

“Oh, I thought you were just another wolf, but this could be interesting,” the Red Dragon said with a sly grin.

Swoosh!

Another fiery chain extended, this time covering my eyes.

“Keep your eyes shut, little one, alright?”

Unable to speak or see, all I could do was listen.

“Don’t worry too much. I’ll make sure you’re still breathing by the end.”

No amount of struggle would help me.

I was forced to listen to the sounds of the battle.

---

Boom!

“Wow, this ice sculpture is pretty entertaining! Every time I shatter it, it just keeps coming back,” the Red Dragon laughed.

White Wolf’s cold was weakening, while the Red Dragon’s fire grew stronger.

The result was inevitable.

I heard White Wolf yelp in pain, her cries drowned out by the Red Dragon’s mocking laughter.

“Ahahaha! Is this really the best gift my little one could prepare? I love it!”

“Shut up…” White Wolf growled, her voice strained.

Boom!

I had to move somehow.

If I did nothing, White Wolf would be killed.

But the Red Dragon’s chains held me tightly; even moving a finger was impossible.

“So, is there a trick up your sleeve? If you’re stalling for time, why don’t you show me?”

The Red Dragon’s fire surged once more.

And in response, White Wolf’s cold gathered again.

KRAK-BOOM!

CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!

A deafening explosion filled the air.

My instincts told me the battle had reached its end.

The fire and cold coexisted, meaning both were likely still alive.

Thud.

Someone approached me.

“…Hey.”

It was White Wolf’s voice.

I didn’t hear the Red Dragon.

…Did White Wolf win?

“Can’t you see anything?” she asked, touching my scales.

“What did you even see in something that dangerous?”

Clink.

The chains around my body began to loosen.

“You should have returned after taking down that fire rat.”

I still couldn’t see, but it seemed White Wolf had defeated the Red Dragon.

How was that possible?

Although White Wolf’s power had increased, she shouldn’t have been able to defeat the Red Dragon.

Not that it mattered.

White Wolf had won the fight and was now in her human form, working to free me.

“There’s a lot I want to say, but we don’t have much time.”

Right. She must not have completely defeated the Red Dragon.

We needed to get out of here quickly.

White Wolf had to be exhausted; I’d have to carry her to escape.

“Ge-eek!”

As she continued to remove the chains from my body, she finally freed my eyes.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.

Her golden eyes were slightly unfocused as she looked down at me.

Her snow-white hair was streaked with blood, and her body was covered in wounds.

She looked as though she might collapse at any moment.

“You’re really… such an idiot,” she muttered, smiling faintly despite her exhaustion.

Sizzle…

The moment she touched the red chains, her hand began to emit black smoke.

I knew better than anyone what these chains were made of.

And I knew what would happen if someone touched them barehanded.

“What’s so great about a lizard covered in scales?”

Thud.

She slumped forward, falling into my arms.

“How could you… do something like this…”

Crack!

At that moment, I heard the sound of ice shattering.

“I’m impressed. So this is the power those horned creatures granted you? It was enough to freeze even me, if only for a moment.”

And then, I understood.

White Wolf hadn’t defeated the Red Dragon.

She had used all her power to momentarily trap her in ice.

If she had that level of skill, she could have at least saved herself.

But despite that, she’d come to free me.

“If you hadn’t tried to release me, you could have hurt the Red Dragon more,” I thought bitterly.

If she’d focused on escaping, she wouldn’t have been hurt like this.

“Little one, keep your eyes closed, alright?”

Still lying against me, White Wolf slowly wagged her tail.

Despite her battered body, she was smiling.

Why do you always throw yourself in harm’s way for me?

Why do you remind me of things I’d rather forget?

Why do you make me repeat the same mistakes?

I wrapped the fire rat’s pelt around White Wolf to shield her from the heat.

“What are you doing, little one?”

“Grrrr…”

I bared my teeth, growling at the Red Dragon.

“Are you really protecting that female?”

The Red Dragon sounded genuinely surprised.

“…And you’re baring your fangs at me?”

Her voice, which had been hot and mocking, turned cold.

“Little one, hand over that wolf while I’m still being reasonable.”

“Don’t touch her.”

“What? What did you just say?”

There’s no way I’d hand White Wolf over now.

“Haha… ahaha!”

The Red Dragon laughed wildly.

“My little one… you finally spoke!”

I gently laid White Wolf down and prepared for a fight.

Feeling elated, the Red Dragon allowed me time to get ready.

“Fine. This isn’t so bad.”

Creeeak.

The Red Dragon returned to her true form.

Compared to her massive frame, I was tiny.

She was the apex of all creatures, a dragon.

The flames and molten lava danced at her command.

Whoosh.

“Roooaaar!”

When she roared, the ground split, and lava surged.

“Isn’t this a foolish choice? Do you really think that wolf can survive the heat of the volcano?”

The heat intensified around us.

Just as the Red Dragon had warned, White Wolf couldn’t withstand the volcanic heat.

With the fire rat’s pelt now shielding her, it was hard for me to keep going.

But I couldn’t back down.

White Wolf had risked herself to save me from this heat.

[An extraordinary energy surrounds your body.]

If I wanted to face her now, I’d have to evolve into the Salamander form.

But that wasn’t an option.

My evolution would leave me vulnerable for a critical moment.

However, there was one exception.

One person had shown me an evolution that was different from my own.

Nefila Jurassic—a being whose evolution was triggered at the peak of intense emotions.

Kang So-young had called it a true rebirth.

My anger rose, and my regret intensified.

[Congratulations! 【Komodo-Raenia lv30】 has evolved into 【Komodo-Fire Dragon lv1】.]

My dragon scales had grown tougher, my forelimbs thicker and sharper.

“Oh my… hiding your power, were you?” the Red Dragon said gleef

ully.

“From the look of it, a low-tier dragon?”

But even with this power, it wouldn’t be enough to protect White Wolf.

Even if I defeated the Red Dragon, the volcanic heat would eventually kill her.

“This isn’t bad at all… even if it’s just a lower dragon…”

There was only one option left: destroy this cursed mountain itself.

[The divine energy exceeds the limits of your body.]

A true rebirth only occurs when emotions reach their peak.

As Kang So-young had said, it’s strongest when you desire to protect.

My anger and regret surged, but something else mixed in—a feeling beyond words, spiraling chaotically.

[A divine energy transcends your physical limits.]

A Komodo dragon is a beast of determination.

Determination means standing by Nefila’s side against the ant army.

Determination means fighting the Caiman for Tus and Pus.

Determination means facing the Dilophosaurus for Kang So-young.

For a stranger, I killed a Cockatrice; for the small, I fought a Megatherium; for the Snake Queen and Hiss, I stood my ground.

Maybe I hadn’t acknowledged it then, but I always acted out of determination, whether as a Gecko, Green Basilisk, or Komodo Monitor.

Determination is a mindset to protect.

[Congratulations! 【Komodo-Fire Dragon lv1】 has evolved into 【Komodo-Storm Dragon lv1】.]

Yes.

This is what I needed.

[You have temporarily gained access to the power of the unknown.]

The volcanic heat began to fade.

“No… this can’t be…”

The Red Dragon muttered in disbelief.

It was neither cold nor fire, nor poison—something else entirely.

Whooosh…

Heavy rain poured down from the sky.

Rumble.

Plants began to grow from the scorched ground.

“…Not a low-tier dragon, then?”

The volcanic heat gradually subsided.

The cracked ground mended, and flowers and trees started to sprout.

“Grrrr…”

It wasn’t a mere imitation, but the power to control the weather itself.

The true path of the dragon had begun.