The Transmission
A tear drop of the purest, gem-like transparency lingered between her fingers.
She licked it gently, and a faint salty taste bloomed across his tongue.
Clear.
Swallowing the tiny amount, the healing wave surged through his inner wounds.
Again!
It was effective against poison.
Phoenix Tear.
Though not yet an Adult, the God’s bird’s tear that burned away impurity had healed the wound perfectly and restored one whose inner injury ran deep.
Moreover, even the hot aura of his dantian had been soothed.
Luck beyond expectation had him breaking into a soft chuckle.
This little chick… you’re more useful than I thought.
Coo. Kyukuk.
Huh?
Even though the sound was happy, the Hatchling’s laughter carried an odd hint of mischief.
That was when he felt it—someone watching.
You woke up. You’ve rested well?
Christina entered the room with a simple meal in her hands.
Here.
Coo.
The Imugi gave a brief reply and nodded.
Despite how much healthier he looked than expected, a quiet relief filled Christina as she continued.
You must have been shocked. Now you’re fine. It was just that you were too young a Hatchling, but once you grow a little more, a Mandragora will be nothing.
A gentle hand stroked the fluffy little head.
The Imugi raised his upper body to meet her gaze, a sign that he was well enough.
Coo. Kyu!
This much… I’ll be fine soon.
Christina felt another surge of surprise.
When they had brought him, he had been groaning in pain, but apart from looking a little tired, there was not a single sign of injury.
When I heard the situation from Rai, it was hard to believe. Even without using movement magic, despite a severe internal wound, he recovers in an instant.
There was the help of the Green Dragon Lize, but this kind of recovery was astonishing.
For a normal Hatchling to grow, the child possesses far too much talent. Perhaps this one is the one who will become greater than anyone else.
The Imugi sensed that something was off and looked at Christina.
Could it be that he suspected the strange little one? If so, I could give him a hint if necessary.
Sitting quietly while thinking of the baby bird, her hand softly grasped the tiny front paw of the beast.
Agi.
Coo?
I’m going to cast the Transmission Magic on you.
…Coo?
What is that?
As if answering his thoughts, Christina spoke.
Through the Transmission Magic, you will obtain or awaken the knowledge and abilities of our culture, magic, and ancient language. Like this time, you won’t eat dangerous herbs without knowing.
Does that mean you will transmit the knowledge of this world?
The Imugi’s eyes sparkled.
Receiving the Transmission Magic would mean stepping out of the frame of being a baby, and anticipation swelled.
Originally I was going to speak of it after your body matured, but I believe you possess the latent power to undergo the ceremony.
Not enough. I’ll do it no matter what.
The Imugi nodded vigorously, but Christina shook her head with lingering worry, her smile gentle.
Thinking about it again… it’s impossible, yet…
No dragon receives the Transmission within the first month of birth.
Maturity of the body is one thing, but this Transmission Magic was the act of planting the source of the dragon’s knowledge.
The information and abilities poured into the unconscious were absorbed in accordance with the maturity of the mind and spirit, and blossomed.
However, because of the nature of magic, it placed a heavy burden on a newly born Hatchling to receive it.
A colossal conceptual magic—if misused, it could cause problems. But…
This magic requires extreme caution, but after the Mandragora incident, I judged it safer to grant the child knowledge and concepts with which he could handle power on his own.
Not only Mandragora. Since the Dragon Lord has learned of this child’s existence, creating a foothold for him to live on by himself would be far more helpful.
I would love to always help, but protecting from the side was not the only way.
After all, a child who had already mastered movement magic on his own could not be kept perfectly within my bounds.
It might be harsh, but I was certain it was the method suited to the child’s nature.
This magic will awaken your abilities, but it will also be painful and dangerous. And you must trust me completely and entrust everything.
Transmission Magic.
It was an ancient Word Magic that divine beings were said to have spoken to living beings of this world.
A magic that planted the culture, knowledge, and concepts known to the giver into the recipient, usable across species, ranking among the top ten on the continent.
Those who could use it properly were extremely few, and the conditions were strict.
The terrifying aspect of this magic was that the giver might unintentionally pass on wrong knowledge or ideology to the recipient.
For that reason, even among dragons, it was rarely cast on too-young Hatchlings.
Just the possibility of influencing the values of a Hatchling who knew nothing of the world was enough to make it a threat.
Because of that, the one who transmitted the magic faced a restriction.
Transmission Magic could be passed only once in a lifetime.
Therefore, it was usual for the dragon behind the scenes or the parent dragon to regard it as a precious being, or to carry it out like a coming-of-age ceremony for the Hatchling.
Christina looked at the Imugi with a calm gaze as she spoke the heavy words that should not be placed on the mouth of a young Hatchling.
Little one. Can you trust me?
The Imugi’s eyes reflected Christina.
Rai swirled around, sensing her worry.
She smiled, as if telling him not to worry, and lightly tapped the spirit’s light with her finger, but her face darkened slightly.
Actually, I wanted to let you spend a more ordinary childhood. Knowing things too early that a child shouldn’t know so soon.
The fact that he was a lone Black Dragon.
About the ones who exterminated his race.
Whether it would truly be good for him to learn those things at a time when he could still live purely was something she could not be certain of.
The Imugi looked at such Christina and thought.
Unnecessary worry. I have already lived 999 years. …Still, being looked after is a thank you.
It didn’t sound light. The Imugi had expected some restriction or difficult condition to this magic.
She must have made a difficult decision. The gratitude would not be forgotten.
It was not so common to receive the real kindness that one should naturally show to a child.
It was far more common to teach the way of begging alone before learning warmth, and to learn to trample others before learning to show consideration, so one could stand on the peak.
It was a world that saw making a group suited to one’s level as more important than making friends.
To such a one, what Christina taught was rare and invaluable.
There will be pain. I can endure that much.
Coo.
The Imugi nodded heavily once more while looking at Christina.
Christina, with her eyes set in resolve despite his small and young form, hardened her heart as well.
***
A few days later, deep underground.
A place where even magic could not pass through and movement magic could not enter.
Christina had made her main body smaller and flown down with the Imugi.
Thud.
A heavy sound accompanied by a little dust being swept away by wind pressure.
The golden dragon looked back at the black Hatchling who was flapping its thin wing membrane as it descended.
The small Hatchling flapped its wings and landed lightly on the ground with a “Coo,” looking up at Christina.
Her body was gently enveloped in golden light and transformed into a human form.
This way.
A huge arched hole.
Unlike other places in the lair, the building’s original plainness was felt.
It has a feeling of an ancient ruin.
The faint unfamiliarness felt in the place indirectly conveyed the passage of time in this location.
How long had it been?
Uwoong!
A powerful energy condensed and pulsed regularly, spewing mana.
The vast space was so deep that distance was hard to gauge by eye.
The floor was covered with magic circles, and runes and ancient characters interwoven with mana had been carved into the ground.
So strong that even though the distance was considerable, the Imugi’s entire body prickled slightly.
His black scales stood up with tension.
Christina, noticing him, reached out and pulled the Imugi into her arms.
It’s all right, little one. Don’t tense too much.
Entering the center of the magic circle, she quietly chanted words she could not understand.
It looked as if she was praying for something or giving an order.
The lair’s mana began to resonate with the magic circle.
Christina placed the Imugi in the center of the magic circle, took a deep breath, and began chanting the Word Magic.
Under the name Christina El Arcadia, I will pass on the memories of my life to this child.
The beginning.
From Christina’s body, light ribbons stretched out and wrapped around the Imugi’s form.
Each ray of light was the knowledge, magic, culture, and ability she possessed.
Coo, Kyuuut!
Ugh!
The Imugi clutched his own head with his front paws and shook it to ease the throbbing pain.
The sensation of being scrambled and stuffed was like receiving electric torture directly in the mind.
Yet the sense of a vast knowledge being systematically built made his mind sharper.
It’s coming in! The words of this world!
Golden letters flowed across the Imugi’s red eyes.
Christina’s chanted voice changed as if into a single song, filling the hall while riding the flow of mana.
The Imugi writhed in agony from the knowledge rushing in with no time to breathe and his nerves being shredded.
Kyuhuk. Ugh!
It’s painful, but just a little more…!
He bit down hard on his half-erupted baby teeth, veins standing out on his forehead.
I can endure it! If I take all of these, then all the abilities and knowledge of this world will be mine!
It was like his vision whitening as he endured only with the will to swallow everything that came through the light.
Cack!
Come!
With a final cry, the Words and mana that filled the hall all rushed into the Imugi’s body.
Thud.
The light vanished completely and Christina staggered a little.
The Imugi sat down where he was.
Agi!
Christina approached, forcing her body to straighten.
Coo…
His original black body had been electrified from absorbing too much mana.
Are you all right? Agi, come back to yourself.
Coo… kekek.
The Imugi wiggled his chubby fingers and opened his eyes with effort.
Chris… tina.
High-level magic: Telepathy.