Chapter 5: I Can’t Believe I Can Understand Dragon Speech

Feeling a mix of amazement and urgency, Safiya decided to seek refuge first. She briskly ran to Rollins’ front claw, using it as a shield against the wind. Sensing her proximity, Rollins carefully moderated his body temperature to prevent harming Safiya with his fiery heat.

“Rollins, they are the evil ones who slaughtered the farmers and razed the villages. Please chase them away,” Safiya implored.

“I think there has been a misunderstanding. We have not committed such acts,” Draxel responded, taken aback.

At that moment, the system activated, [Just because you didn’t personally carry out those acts, doesn’t mean others in your family haven’t. The sins of the father are visited upon the son, after all…]

‘Enough of your nonsense. Log off, system!’ Draxel inwardly commanded.

[System prompt: Very well. You will come to regret this attitude towards me.]

Safiya’s eyes brimmed with tears as she recounted the traumatic events of the past. “Do you know? Over a decade ago, the Count of Uxkhal led his knights in a brutal onslaught that decimated our entire village of Norma.”

“The old man has since passed away. I regret the atrocities he committed in his lifetime. Now, both Uxkhal and Norma are under my domain. I assure you, such atrocities will not be repeated,” Draxel solemnly vowed.

Rollins, having been wrathful just moments before, now seemed to be appeased by Draxel’s words. With benevolent eyes, he looked at Safiya and gently, yet firmly, declared, “Roar! Dragons possess the ability to discern the truth and falsehood in humans, child. He speaks the truth.”

“There, you see? I haven’t deceived you,” Draxel said, looking at Safiya.

Still unconvinced, Safiya questioned, “But how am I supposed to know what it’s saying? Rollins, is he telling the truth?”

Rollins responded with a slow, deliberate nod.

Upon seeing Rollins take his side, Draxel’s spirits lifted, and he began to crack jokes, “Respected Rollins, pardon my frankness, but dragon speech is indeed convenient. A single ‘roar’ can convey so many meanings.”

“Roar! Count, I know you envy our dragon clan. Roar! Follow me. I have been waiting for the prophesied chosen child of the dragon clan for thousands of years.” 

With that, Draxel walked under Rollins’ front claw. Rollins gently picked up Safiya and Draxel with each claw, effortlessly lifting them like an eagle carrying chicks and flying towards the depths of the mountains.

That was Draxel’s first time flying in the sky, overlooking the vast Calradia continent.

‘This world… it’s truly beautiful,’ he thought to himself.

In no time, they arrived at a humble dwelling in a valley, seemingly Rollins’ resting place. Hanging from a branch nearby were a bow and a quiver of arrows that looked frequently used.

‘Does Rollins practice archery in his spare time?’ Draxel wondered.

At the center of the dwelling was a gigantic dragon egg, lying quietly in a nest woven from branches. This delicate and skillfully made nest was Safiya’s handiwork.

“Roar! Legend has it that the prophesied child will grow up alongside my child, ‘Lein’, fighting side by side.”

“Pardon my rudeness, Rollins, but I don’t have the time to incubate the egg with you here.”

“Roar! Hey, watch your words, Count. I’m getting a bit hungry. Do you want to be my dinner? Roar! You will take my unborn child with you and raise it outside.”

“Meeting you for the first time, and you entrust me with your child. You truly have great faith in me, thank you,” said Drexel.

[System: Obtained dragon egg, Lein]

“Roar! You’re too polite. In our dragon clan, the young must break out of their shells on their own. Moreover, once this little fellow grows up, it will seek to claim its own territory. Dragons have a deeply ingrained concept of their own dominion and a strong desire to rule. I certainly don’t want it to compete with an aging me for control over the Abyssal Mountain Range in the future,” explained Rollins.

“It sounds like you’ve handed me a huge trouble, rather than a child,” Drexel complained.

“Roar! Alright, take the dragon egg and be on your way, prophesied child. We dragons prefer tranquility,” said Rollins.

However, Safiya couldn’t hold back any longer, “What? You’re just handing little Rollins over to this stranger? It’s your child!”

“Safiya, its name is Lein, not little Rollins,” corrected Draxel.

“What a terrible name. Did you just make that up? You want to be its father already?” Safiya said crossing her arms.

“Roar! If you think it’s a terrible name, then fine, consider it named by you, Count,” Rollins said with a smirk.

‘I should not argue. My five soldiers are still out there at the mountain entrance, battered by the wind. And my base only has four rookies on guard. No, I really should be on my way,’ with that thought, Drexel was reluctant to stay any longer.

“Rollins, I’ll have to trouble you to take me back the way you brought me here,” Drexel said.

“Roar! What a hassle. But alright, this is an exception,” Rollins responded with a sigh.

“Wait a minute! Rollins, you’re really heartless. I can’t bear to part with the little guy,” Safiya looked at the dragon egg in Drexel’s arms, feeling increasingly distressed. “No! Drexel, if you’re leaving, you have to take me with you.”

“You naive and innocent girl, you have no idea how dangerous the outside world can be,” Draxel admonished.

“Then you and Lein will protect me. You promised that you wouldn’t let that kind of thing happen again,” she responded.

“Listen, I am a noble Count, and I have many responsibilities. I have–”

“Roar! Roar! Enough! Stop bickering like a married couple in front of me. Just go, both of you,” interrupted the dragon with a roar.

Rollins knew that Safiya had long wanted to leave and that following the prophesied child would be a safer choice. Since he loved Safiya, he should fulfill her wish and let her see the beautiful continent of Calradia.

“Alright, Safiya, Rollins has agreed to take you with us. Once we leave the mountain range, I will protect you,” declared Draxel.

Soon, Rollins brought the two to the entrance of the Abyssal Mountain Range.

“Roar! Count, I hope you take good care of her and Lein,” the dragon said.

“My command is their command, my blood is their blood. They will live and die with me,” Draxel vowed.

He took the dragon egg and Safiya, and, leading Owens and the other four, began the return journey.

However, a crisis had quietly surfaced. While the journey there had been smooth, the return trip wasn’t guaranteed to be easy. Carrying the precious dragon egg, Lein, had attracted numerous enemy forces.

As soon as the group stepped out of the Abyssal Mountain Range, forest bandits swarmed in again. This time, their numbers had doubled from the last encounter, totaling 28. This inevitably made Draxel nervous. Defeating the enemy wasn’t the problem; protecting the dragon egg and Safiya while doing so required close coordination.

“Owens, I need you to protect Miss Safiya while fighting the enemy,” Draxel instructed.

“Yes, my lord,” Owens replied.

“Hey, listen here, Draxel. I think you’re underestimating me,” Safiya complained.

But Draxel responded with a smile, “Do you want to wield a knife too? Your beautiful hands are better suited to holding bowls and chopsticks.”