One week later:
The figure of the dragon in his shrunken form sitting on his golden throne opened his eyes, the bright golden glow illuminating the massive throne chamber built of polished black volcanic stone, the light reflecting within the glossy black surfaces.
He was just sitting there, enjoying the feeling of the gold under him, 'The problem with large dragons is that we need lots of gold just to get comfortable.'
His loyal knight minion patiently kneeled on the glossy floor, "You Majesty, I have brought a drake as you requested!"
"Well done, my minion!" Vesuvius waved his clawed hand, and the ring on his finger glowed in faint red light, and ancient-looking scrolls materialized under his throne, "This shall be your reward! You may find it useful for yourself, or you can sell it."
The dragon stood up from his throne, his tall form towering high above his minion, the shiny crystalline wings on his back radiating with mana flowing through them.
He stepped forward, his claws scratching on the black stone, as he stormed out of the chamber, heading straight towards the exit.
'One more week of studying the magic, and I still lack so much knowledge...'
The bright daylight assaulted his eyes, used to the darkness as he stepped onto the sprawling paved castle courtyard, the silhouette of the massive volcano behind it throwing its enormous shadow over it.
His eyes stopped on the drake mindlessly prostrating on the ground, its animalistic instincts screaming at it to kneel.
'How did my minion even get this beast here? Does it also seem that it was without a fight? Is it possible that my authority also partially transfers to my minions?'
The drake was large, easily bigger than an average villa. Its body had the shape of a dragon, with four legs, a long tail, and massive leathery wings on its back. However, it lacked the majestic and long horns on its head that were the signature of dragons.
Its body shone in the sunlight, its vine-red scales reflecting the rays of light shining upon it.
'So it is some fire variant. Not bad, it will greatly mix with my blood.'
Just casually looking at it was enough for Vesuvius to know that the beast was much stronger than a wyvern, probably even slightly surpassing his dracodactyls.
The dragon slowly approached the drake, the beast tensing even more as the sounds of his steps and aura were getting closer and closer to it.
The dragon bit his tongue, and the luminescent red blood with traces of gold flowed out, pooling in his outstretched hand.
The drake's body shook, its massive nostrils moving as it caught the whiff of the blood. Still, it didn't even dare to move, the dragon lord's authority paralyzing its whole body.
'Before, the wyverns went berserk, but now a drake doesn't dare to even move.'
"You will be the first one. I want to see what the potential of your race is! Drink!" The blood raised into the air, forming a small, glowing, and floating blob that glided straight into the open, salivating mouth of the drake.
Its eyes were brightly shining as it awaited the chance to ascend.
'I will need to get more of them and keep some of them untransformed for breeding.' He had already noticed in his dracodactyls that while they could still breed, their fertility and breeding rate had dropped significantly.
'The more powerful the race the harder it is for them to breed. It will be more efficient to keep a large breeding population and then transform their descendants.'
In the meantime, the beast swallowed the blob of blood, its eyes igniting in bright golden light. Its whole body shook, the air around it heating up.
The next moment, its entire body ignited in flames so bright that it was impossible to see what was going on underneath them. A draconic aura burst out, flooding the whole courtyard, and spreading cracks through the pavement.
The dragon just silently stood there, watching the drake transform.
POV ???:
The merchant stood high on top of the black city wall, enjoying the new clarity of his sight brought to him by his transformation. He felt young again, all of the pain in his bones was gone, and his muscles were rejuvenated.
He looked at the long, zig-zagging road going out of the city, going far toward the horizon. When he looked at it, he clenched his fist, the air cracking under the sheer pressure of his hands, 'I have to fulfill my task. I have to build a trading route connecting both capitals.'
That was his mission, the mission given to him in the name of his master, to connect the dragon city with the rest of the kingdom, 'What is the point of the capital if no one cares about it? No, it is even worse. The city is not even on any maps. Most people consider it only to be a rumor.'
He looked at the city and field under him. The fields were vast and green, while massive workshops fueled by the heat from the volcano stood everywhere, 'There is potential for trade as there are lots of resources here. Especially the special alloys developed here and the plants cultivated within the dragon's domain, which give them magical properties.'
Dragons were beings of magic with an affinity toward life. Everything prospered within their domains, the magic energy radiating out of the bodies enriching and empowering every living being.
It was a slow process, but even mundane plants and animals would turn into magical beasts and plants under the constant magic radiation.
'Dragons are nature and life, and what is more natural than evolution?'
POV Vesuvius:
The flames settled down, revealing the huge beast standing in the courtyard. Its four legs became more muscular and stronger. Long and curled horns looking like hot metal grew out of its head.
Its whole body was covered in blazingly hot armor made of dark obsidian, volcanic glass, and dark metal. Super hot yellow, near white, magma flowed within the cracks and crevices in the armor.
A line of neon-red, crystal spikes grew from its head to its tail, lightning crackling and sparking between them.
Its whole body was larger than before, and its wingspan was big enough to cover two small villas instead of one. The golden but dull eyes also changed, gaining a tiny sparkle and luminescence of golden light.
'Lightning, metal, magma, fire. Not bad.' Vesuvius transformed so many beings over the years that he could safely conclude that the transformation process contained a large degree of randomness, 'Some of them manifested more of my affinities while others manifested less. The volcano one is especially prominent, it is as if it was my strongest one.'
Ding!
//
Analyze result:
Species: Arch-Drake
Level: 70
Danger level: dangerous
//
'Level sixty strength, not bad. Not bad. I wonder what is the level estimate of me.' The more he thought about it, the more obvious it became to him that the level in his interface and the level shown to others when getting analyzed likely differed, 'The first one came from being a player while the second one is likely to calculate in the same way as for other NPCs.'
Dragon's will expanded out of his body, using the connection between him and the drake. He smashed against the drake's soul, the massive body of the drake sprawling on the ground with a loud thud.
'I wonder what will happen if I further improve it with my marrow.' His eyes brightly shone with curiosity, and his mouth opened in a large grin that fully showed his long and sharp teeth.
POV Alesia:
The young elf and her fellow artisans stood around a table, watching a small ring with shining eyes. The ring was without any decorations, forged out of shiny, golden-colored metal with a red luster.
Intricate runes were engraved into it, slightly glowing in a faint golden light that dimmed with each passing second, blending with the golden metal.
"This... All these years have finally paid off! This ring will change the world!" She squealed in delight, her small hands slightly trembling.
The surprisingly sober dwarf mumbled, not even thinking about the alcohol as he stared at the ring, "The metal, the runes, the special core, and the enchantment are all working..."
The alchemist was mumbling to herself, her hair in an absolute mess after days of working without any break, "No one will be able to resist the allure of immortality and the eternal youth while their minds are slowly getting encroached by the ring. Who doesn't want to be young forever?"
Alesia was mesmerized, an unexplainable surge of energy still flowing through her body. She couldn't tell why, but the mysterious energy given to her by her master flooded her body the moment the ring was finished, her power and mana increasing through the roof.
It was the largest surge she had ever witnessed, 'The more I craft, the more advancements I make, the more powerful and skilled I grow. How could even the master give me such power?'
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