Ep 9. Pay Your Respects. (4)

  Ksht.

  g.

  Thwack!

  The frozen dragon turned out to be literally frozen to its bones; even its innards were pletely encased in ice, and the temperature was even lower than it was outside. The only saving grace was that the ice was glowing brilliantly in blue, keeping the insides alit. Numerous icicles and pilrs barred their path, making the area seem like a cavern more than a corpse.

  But Raizel was fearlessly breezing past the jutting icicles and blocks of ice that were in her way. True to her title as a dragon of steel, even thick ice failed to leave the slightest scrat her as she effortlessly shattered them apart.

  ‘Well, this is ve.’

  Serenis was trailing after Raizel some distance behind. With the metal dragon up ahead destroying what obstacles there were, Serenis merely had to be cautious not to slip on the frozen floors.

  “Lord! Raizel! Wait!”

  “Ugh, this damn ice!”

  Following the only light glowing in the dark caverns, Ilias and Bruton soon trailed after them, joining Serenis’ side behind Raizel.

  The dragonlord spared a gowards the two, beaming an amused grin.

  “Decided to follow in, did you?”

  “Don’t look at me, it wasn’t my idea.”

  “Oh e father, you be a little excited! Aren’t you curious what lies at the end of a pce like this? What if there’s treasure?! We could bathe in gold and silvers, just like the dragons in those storybooks!”

  “…What sort of storybooks have you been reading?”

  Among the dragonkin, Ilias was well-known for being versed in human affairs. She often visited cities and towns, frequenting various shops aablishments that caught her i. But not even her own father khat his daughter sometimes speire days holed up in a library reading children’s stories. There was a reason why children liked her.

  While Ilias stammered to answer her father, Raizel interrupted from the distance. Her voice echoed throughout the frozen walls.

  “Are we going the right way?!”

  Bruton and Ilias looked towards their lord. Serenis rubbed her .

  ‘I actually have no clue. But I shouldn’t say that. And there only seems to be one way in anyways.’

  For all she khey were walking along the dragon’s iines. It just wasn’t obvious because the pce was all frozen up inside and out.

  “Just keep going, Raizel!”

  “Alrighttt!”

  Another loud smashing noise echoed as Raizel tio pave their way inwards.

  “Where exactly are we going?”

  Bruton asked with a puzzled gaze. Surrounded by darkness and walls of ice, even he couldn’t figure out which way was left in a pce like this.

  Serenis shrugged.

  “Deeper inside, I suppose.”

  “…’Suppose’?”

  “You didn’t actually think I know everything, did you?”

  “Well, I…”

  Kind of did, actually.

  Bruton was beginning to suspect he’d itted himself to the wrong leader when his daughter budged iween them.

  “Don’t worry, if a monster appears, I ha! I’m really really strong!”

  “This isn’t a piic, Ilias.”

  “But it is a treasure hunt! Right? Right?”

  “…”

  Serenis chuckled at the young girl’s enthusiasm. Dragons rarely ever entered something they could call a monster; more often than not, they were the monsters.

  She never uood the source of energy amongst the younger brood, but the dragonlord appreciated it heless.

  And fortunately (?), a younger brood even more enthusiastic than Ilias was taking the lead at the forefront.

  Schluk.

  “Huh?”

  The steel dragon came to a halt as she felt her entire body dipping in and out of a pool of water…except there was no such thing. She turned back around to see the empty air now flickering in waves, like the surface of a trembling ke. And it wasn’t just her that noticed the oddity.

  “Is that…a barrier?”

  “A pretty useless one, if I’m getting through this easily.”

  The group came to a halt, with Raizel separated by the translut barrier that she’d just crossed. Serenis raised her hand to exami, but Ilias had other pns.

  “Well, if yetting through just fi ’t be anything harmful…ack!”

  Ilias boldly walked forward and could feel her body sink in momentarily, only to feel a pang of pain on her head and back as she was bounced back out. She rubbed her head, feeling her horns throbbing in pain.

  “Hah. Is someooo weak to cross some water?”

  “Hey, it’s not that! Something just…”

  “Hm.”

  Serenis touched the barrier’s surface as it rippled outwards. It really did feel as if a yer of water was in her way. She reached in further, and could feel her hand escape the sinking feeling as it appeared oher side.

  She then took a few steps forward, managing to get through the barrier without aance.

  “Shame on you, Ilias. Even a little kid do it.”

  Ilias puffed her cheeks in anger and charged at the barrier.

  “Ilias!“

  Her father reached out his hand to stop her, but was far too te.

  Szzt!

  And once again, she bounced right back out with a throbbing pain on her head and back.

  “Ow, my head!”

  Serenis studied the dragon as she was bounced out a sed time.

  ‘…What’s stopping her?’

  The barrier was clearly not materially crete. If it were, it should’ve been blog out Raizel and Serenis as well.

  ‘What’s different?’

  Serenis exged gnces between Raizel and Ilias, then her own self.

  “Ilias, are you alright?”

  “…My head hurts. Wings too. And my tail.”

  Serenis looked at the youngling rubbing her head in pain. Her hands were rubbing against her horns.

  ‘Horns…wings, and tail?’

  The dragonlord threw an the steel dragon.

  Aside from Serenis herself who had a human boy’s body, Raizel was the only one who’d hidden all of her draic features. She hadn’t given it much thought before, but Raizel’s human form – oddly enough – had no signs of her draic heritage whatsoever. An onlooker may even take her for a human person wearing an attire made on scales.

  “Ilias. Bruton. Withdraw your horns…and your wings and tail.”

  “All of them?...But I ’t fly without my wings…”

  “Just for a bit. Try crossing the barrier without them.”

  Bruton studied his daughter and Raizel. If the barrier was discriminating based on physical differeheir dragoures were ihe most noticeable difference. Raizel’s morphed form had no horns, wings, or tail, and Serenis was a human boy to begin with.

  The elder dragon quickly withdrew his features, rendering him no different from an elderly man in appearance. He then boldly stepped forward, feeling his body sink into the barrier – then back out as he crossed it without aance.

  “Hm. They were the discriminatory factor after all.”

  Ilias grumbled as she withdrew hers as well. She quickly stepped across the barrier after her father.

  “Racist barrier. Hmph!”

  “…”

  Ilias was right. The barrier was, for a ck of better words, racist – at least regarding physical features.

  ‘But why would a site at the home ons discrimihe dragonkin?’

  Before Serenis’ thoughts could go any further, they were interrupted by Ilias who was frantically reag over her own shoulders, tapping herself on the back.

  “What is it now? ’t scratch your back?”

  “…This isn’t funny, Raizel! I…”

  “What?”

  “I...’t…”

  Ilias’ hands then reached towards her head, then her hips. Finally, both of them fell down as dread swept across her face.

  “My wings, I…’t bring them back…my horns and tail won’t e back either…”