A Dragon against the Whole World

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Methods of Raising an Evil Dragon

The morning breeze gently caressed the crimson maple leaves, fluttering them through the air. A man and a woman stood before the crying Red Copper Dragon.

The man was flawlessly handsome, with a tall, slender frame, long arms, and a narrow waist.

His long silvery-white hair was tied up with an ice-crystal hair clip, and a prismatic ice crystal dangled from his left earlobe. His skin was as pale as fresh snow, almost translucent, and when he smiled, the breath he exhaled condensed into tiny frost flowers in the air.

The woman beside him was elegantly beautiful, with a face sprinkled with freckles that always held a mischievous smile.

Her skin was a honey hue, and copper-colored curls interwoven with metallic strands.

They were the parents of the Red Copper Dragon, Deborah. Although they appeared human, they were actually mature dragons over two hundred years old—the Metal Dragons favored human forms in their aesthetics and often lived in human guise.

The man was the father of the Red Copper Dragon, a Silver Dragon.

[Frost Mark] Adri.

The woman was the mother of the Red Copper Dragon, a Red Copper Dragon.

[Copper Flame] Selena.

Their clasped hands did not loosen because of their sobbing child, as if they were the true love story and Deborah was merely an accident.

”The dignity of a Metal Dragon is as important as its treasure.”

”As a descendant of Metal Dragons, you should be brave and have a steadfast will.”

”Since you were able to return safely, it’s no big deal. Stop crying; crying doesn’t solve any problems.”

The Silver Dragon father said.

The Red Copper Dragon mother gave her partner a sideways glance and said displeasedly, ”Don’t be so rigid, Deborah was bullied by an Evil Dragon on her first adventure out, so it’s normal for her to cry.”

When it comes to choosing a mate.

Red Copper Dragons highly value their partner’s intelligence and sense of humor, considering these the keys to a long-term relationship.

Those who can catch their puns, solve riddles or pranks, can even turn the tables on them, and have an appreciation for verbal art or are good at improvisation, are more likely to be appreciated by Red Copper Dragons.

And these were skills that Silver Dragon Adri was not adept at.

He was a rather stern and uninspiring Silver Dragon.

But even so, Selena found it difficult to refuse his courtship, or more accurately, it was Selena who pursued him.

—The Silver Dragons were just too handsome.

Among the various Dragon Race, the Silver Dragon’s looks were second to none, and both males and females were highly sought after.

Getting back on track, Selena cast a smile at her child and said, ”My dear Deborah, what have you been through? Tell me everything in detail to amuse me.”

The father was stern.

The mother even found amusement in her own child.

Deborah cried even more sorrowfully, sobbing so much she could hardly speak.

Selena kicked a stone by her foot, sending it bouncing onto her daughter’s head, and said with a giggle, ”Now it’s riddle time—what makes you feel pain and sadness, yet makes you stronger?”

Red Copper Dragons have a natural fondness for riddles.

Deborah stopped crying, hesitantly answering, ”Failure?”

Selena snapped her fingers, blew a kiss through the air, and said happily, ”Correct! Your reward is a flying kiss from your mother.”

After getting the riddle right and understanding her mother’s intention, Deborah’s emotions slowly stabilized, and she communicated the situation in detail.

”A Red Iron Half-blood Dragon?”

Selena blinked, looking at her mate.

The Silver Dragon nodded slightly and said, ”It’s likely the offspring of the Steel Queen and the Mountain-Burning Wings.”

Examples of Red Dragons and Iron Dragons combining are rare, and as far as the Silver Dragon knew, there was only one pair in the Sel Wilderness. Unexpectedly, they had produced a Mixed-blood Dragon, and based on Deborah’s description, it was an outstanding hybrid that had inherited the powerful traits of both.

”If a Dragon is alone in the wilderness, it has likely been exiled and is struggling to survive independently.”

The Silver Dragon shook his head slightly and said.

”It’s truly pitiful; Evil Dragons are just too unreasonable.”

”To have defeated Deborah, with all her alchemy tools, and to be so mentally mature, it must have gone through many hardships.”

Selena sighed as well, saying.

Across from them.

The Red Copper Dragon Deborah widened her eyes.

This isn’t right.

This isn’t right at all.

Aren’t you supposed to be furious? How did you end up sympathizing with that dreadful Red Iron Evil Dragon instead?

Seeing through their daughter’s thoughts.

The Silver Dragon spoke unhurriedly, ”Deborah, Evil Dragons are evil partly due to their lineage and character, but also because of their life experiences.”

”Your mother and I believe that if an Evil Dragon could grow up surrounded by kindness, there is a chance it could become a kind and just individual.”

”Sadly, almost all Evil Dragons abandon their young, and young dragons struggling to survive on their own endure great hardships, their evil hearts infinitely magnified, their natures twisted, becoming the evil entities we know as adults.”

Upon hearing this, Deborah fell silent, feeling a bit sympathetic toward the poor dragon that had robbed her.

”Why is it like this? Shouldn’t familial bonds bring Dragons closer together?”

She asked.

Selena thought for a moment and said, ”This act of abandonment is actually a way for Evil Dragons to train their offspring.”

”In battles of the same rank, we Metal Dragons often can’t match Evil Dragons, because from a young age they struggle against life and a harsh fate. Though their mortality rate is high, those who grow up become formidable, whereas among us Metal Dragons, the results are uneven.”

Deborah paced around in place, her tail swaying left and right.

A few moments later, she steadied herself and hesitated, ”Then what should I do? Should I just swallow this grievance and allow it to take my things?”

The Silver Dragon and Red Copper Dragon exchanged a glance and said, ”Of course not.”

”What you should do is defeat it, capture it, train it, and gradually turn it into a righteous Dragon Race.”

”Turning an Evil Dragon into a good dragon is an achievement a hundred or even a thousand times greater than just defeating it.”

Deborah’s eyes lit up, realizing what she needed to do.

”My dear Dad, give me some more powerful alchemy tools. I want to find it and make it mend its ways!”

The Red Copper Dragon girl rubbed her head against her father in human form, pleading coquettishly.

”Relying solely on alchemy tools is not the right path.”

The Silver Dragon said sternly, ”You lack real combat experience. I will discipline myself to personally train you for a while; then I’ll give you one alchemy tool and let you go out to handle your own affairs.”

This failure also made Deborah realize just how lacking she was in actual combat experience.

She nodded, without refuting.

Iron Pine Hills.

Under the scorching midday sun, after a long period of training, Galos lay resting on a rock slab, lazily basking with a good mood brought on by the effective training results using alchemy tools.

”It’d be nice to encounter another wealthy Metal Dragon, or to rob the Red Copper Dragon again.”

Galos thought, then closed his eyes to sleep, basking in the sun.

Several days later.

Galos was having Samantha blast him with Dragon Breath to further improve his flame resistance.

With treasure as motivation for Samantha, she worked harder than ever, her Dragon Breath burning Galos, bringing both pain and delight, and the buffering scales on his body shimmering with the glow of cast iron under the impact and burn of Flaming Dragon Breath.

After some time.

Samantha was nearly burnt out, flopping onto the ground, tongue out, gasping for air.

Galos plucked one of the buffering scales from his body, watching the cast iron sheen gradually fade away, but at the very edge, a trace remained, suggesting the scales were evolving in some uncertain direction.

Crunch.

Suddenly, the ground in front of him cracked open.

Galos shifted his gaze, staring as an earth spider scurried out of the crevice.