Chapter 240
Chapter 240
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 240
Chapter Title: The Departed and the Returned (15)
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Splash!!!
Legion shot up toward the sky, circled once through the air, and in the blink of an eye transformed into the form of a massive dragon. Black wings, vast like a curtain of darkness, spread wide to blot out the night sky. Moonlight and starlight alike were blocked, plunging the surroundings into momentary blackness.
Legion, wings unfurled, flew slowly over the lake for about three laps.
It dipped the tips of its wings and claws into the water as if testing the temperature, sending long ripples across the surface. Water droplets sprayed up, sparkling beautifully.
“Legion!”
Legion, which had soared as high as the moon, returned at my call with the speed of an arrow.
SPLASHHH!
Water droplets sprayed once more.
THUD!
When it landed in front of the lake, the ground trembled. The vibration was similar to what the sequoia tree caused when it walked.
‘An incredible size….’
The last time I’d seen Legion’s true body, it had been about the size of the mansion. No, maybe even bigger? But one thing was certain: the current Legion was on a scale that made comparing it to a mansion laughable. A warship—that expression suited it better.
‘…I get what they mean when they say a single dragon can bring down a nation.’
A dragon was an army—no, more than that. A living fortress, a god or demon given form with bones, blood, and flesh… I could see why people described it that way with my own eyes. Majestic, powerful, terrifying…!
Legion was only one year old—no, if you wanted to be precise, just six months. And yet it already boasted such a fearsome body and power. Besides, Legion’s growth was only just beginning.
Dragons grew nearly their entire lives. There were rumors that ancient green dragons could rival entire mountains in size. There were horror stories about deep-sea dragons so massive they devoured krakens, tales famous among sailors.
Of course, dragons that reached such enormous sizes were rare. Desert red dragons, cliff-dwelling blue dragons, and black dragons like Legion were relatively smaller compared to green dragons or sea dragons. Relatively speaking, that is. Even “smaller” dragons were typically castle-sized. Legion would probably reach that scale after a little over a year. Maybe even bigger.
‘How am I supposed to throw a stone feast for it…?’
Worries upon worries. I chuckled to myself and approached Legion, who was stretching with its wings folded. To meet its eyes, I had to crane my neck to an dizzying height. It had already grown this big. Adults were right—kids grow fast.
The lake was just big enough to fit Legion snugly. Like a half-submersion bathtub. Once Legion got in and out, half the water would be gone. It would refill soon enough, though.
“Come on, let’s get in. Legion.”
「Theo. Yeah.」
Legion glanced around before slowly wading into the lake. Thud, thud, thud, thud—each step made the earth rumble and shook the trees and grass. I could hear birds fleeing in the distance.
SPLASH!
SPLASH!
The water, which had filled the lake to the brim, began to overflow. Since Legion was entering slowly and carefully, it wasn’t like plunging into a full tub—no massive waves surged out. A relief. If it had, I’d have been swept away to the far side of the forest by the waves.
“Slowly. Slowly.”
「Theo. Me. Slowly.」
“Yeah, you’re doing great.”
Following my instructions, Legion eased its body into the lake. It sat down slowly, lowering itself, glanced at me once, then dunked its head into the water.
*Blub blub*
*Blub blub*
Massive air bubbles rose from below as Legion exhaled underwater. The surface rippled. Soon, I realized what it was doing. It was digging up the lakebed mud, turning the water into a murky sludge. It seemed to prefer soft mud over plain water.
「Theo.」
“Yeah?”
Legion poked its head out of the lake, face caked in mud, and called to me. I stepped a bit closer. My knees were soaked from the overflow, but it didn’t matter.
「Theo. Me. Need. Warm….」
“You need warm water?”
「Theo. Yes.」
Legion nodded and gaped its mouth wide toward me. Unlike its soft, lizard-like mouth before, it was filled with razor-sharp teeth that sent chills just looking at them. A spiky, barbed tongue protruded, and deep in its throat, black flames roiled.
I realized what Legion wanted and shook my head.
“No, Legion.”
「Hing….」
Legion literally wanted to boil the lake bubbling. By dunking its head in the churned mud and blasting breath into it. It wanted to molt leisurely in nicely warmed sludge, but…
“If you do that, the whole lake will evaporate.”
Exactly. The lake water would boil away from Legion’s breath. Or mix with the mud and turn into a swamp.
That would affect the sequoia forest. We were just borrowing this lake temporarily. We couldn’t evaporate the precious drinking source for the forest’s inhabitants just for Legion’s molt. So, naturally, rejected.
“Let’s try another way.”
「Ung?」
“Hold the breath in. Don’t breathe it out—just keep it simmered below your throat. Just enough to warm the surroundings a little.”
「Hmmm….」
“That’ll be plenty comfortable. How about it?”
Legion smacked its lips in dissatisfaction but soon nodded. It drew a deep breath, puffing out its chest massively. Pop, pop—small explosion-like sounds came from its chest. Black flames seemed to ignite and extinguish repeatedly in its heart.
*Hiss…*
White steam finally billowed from Legion’s nostrils. After exhaling it for a long while, it curled up, sinking into the mud. Splish, splish—the sound echoed briefly. I touched the overflowed water to check the temperature. Not as cold as before. Not warm, but this would suffice.
Legion closed its eyes and stayed still, as if asleep. As time passed, the outer layer of its mud-caked scales began to separate in a hazy, translucent film. Twitch—each subtle movement made the glossy new scales beneath glimmer faintly through the film.
The lakeside was quiet and serene. Perfect for molting. I watched Legion, who looked asleep, in silence.
*Grrrr…*
How much time passed like that?
Legion slowly lifted its head from the mud. Mud clinging to its epidermis slid off slowly, revealing the translucent film encasing its face. I approached cautiously. Legion shifted its posture sluggishly and, to keep me from falling in, gently scooped me up with its foreclaw and pulled me closer.
Legion licked slowly around its eyes with its tongue. Like the first molt, the translucent film clouded its red eyes. I drew my dagger from my belt and carefully sliced the film away. A ruby-like red eye gleamed brilliantly. I did the same for the other side, and Legion blinked its eyes slowly.
「Theo. Thanks.」
“No need to thank me. It’s what I should do.”
I pocketed the sliced film and stepped back. From here on, Legion had to molt on its own. My job was just to watch.
‘This is the sixth time helping with a molt, and I’m still nervous every time.’
I carefully gathered the epidermis that was hardening and shining like crystal. It was for Khalid, so I had to handle it intact.
*Shrrrk…*
SPLASH!
*Shrrrk…*
SPLASH!
Legion’s molt progressed smoothly. It licked the epidermis with its tongue, peeling it off slowly. Just as I’d asked beforehand, careful not to damage it. The cleanly shed film sank gooily into the mud.
Once fully molted, Legion, with its still-tender new scales submerged in mud, caught its breath briefly before slowly climbing out of the lake and shaking off the water gently. Its scales sparkled in the moonlight, beautiful like obsidian.
I waded into the lake to retrieve the shed skin. A lot of water had overflowed, so it wasn’t as deep as before. I recovered the sunken epidermis safely, rinsed it in clean water, and sorted it. Like the eye films I’d cut earlier, the rest was drying and hardening into crystal.
“Good job, Legion.”
「Mnya….」
“Hungry?”
「Theo. Hungry. Me.」
“Yeah. Hang on a bit. I’ll prepare a meal.”
Freshly molted, it must be drained and ravenous. I stroked Legion’s glossy snout, tidied up, and lit a fire. I filled a pot on the flames with clear spring water I’d prepared earlier and tossed in plenty of vegetables for a deep broth.
‘For now… two deer should do.’
I grabbed my bow and arrows and gazed into the dark forest. Then back at Legion. It was quiet around us. Forest animals, scenting Legion, wouldn’t approach the lakeside…
‘I can leave it alone for a bit.’
I watched Legion drying in the moonlight for a moment, then took a step toward the forest.
“Stay put here and wait nicely.”
「Theo. Yeah. Me. Wait.」
“Be back soon.”
「Theo. Yeah. Come back.」
Aigoo, such a good boy. So good. I smiled warmly and entered the forest. They’d probably fled already nearby, so it might take time to hunt. No helping it. Even if it took longer, I’d catch a plump, fatty one. And cook it deliciously.
“Alright, let’s go.”
At that point, I had no idea.
What was waiting for me.