Tale of the Red Dragon Without Dragon’s Might
Chapter 133: Faith

Chapter 133: Chapter 133: Faith

Leon slept for nearly a day in one breath, which isn’t considered long since he could sleep far longer if he wished—it was an excellent way for him to while away the time, decades could pass like fleeting moments.

Waking up with a yawn, Leon felt more refreshed than ever. Turning his head, he noticed Cecilia wasn’t beside him; the Green Dragon had awakened earlier and was lying on the cliff, admiring the view.

"When did you wake up?" Leon approached the Green Dragon, feeling something was different about her, yet he couldn’t pinpoint what; her scales were still emerald green, as shining as jade, and her figure as lean as always.

"I woke up half a day ago," Cecilia replied.

"Have you been gazing at the scenery all this time since you woke up?" Leon asked, "Is my breakfast ready?"

"It has been prepared for master a long time ago," Cecilia tilted her head, motioning Leon to look aside, "Master can dine at any time."

Following the Green Dragon’s gaze, Leon spotted a large pile of food, already cooked, which was outrageous as he had only been joking.

"Master, did I do well?" Cecilia proudly asked, her face eager for praise.

Indeed, the Green Dragon had outdone herself, so Leon did not skimp on praise, saying, "Excellent, very excellent. Keep it up."

Leon, whose stomach was now growling, began to feast, unaware that the Green Dragon was standing behind him with a meaningful gaze—not necessarily malevolent, but definitely scheming.

After eating his fill, Leon lay on the cliff to rest, overlooking the vast land with a broad view that made him feel utterly relaxed.

No wonder Red Dragons prefer to live high in the clouds, and no wonder many people prefer to buy high-rise apartments, progressively more expensive the higher the floor—it makes sense, except for the hassle of using an elevator... Leon was starting to resent his Molten Lava Lake, situated in a hollow among mountains with no view at all.

"Did master meet with the Emperor yesterday?" Cecilia suddenly asked, "Master was so disrespectful to the Emperor yesterday, speaking rudely, the Emperor must have been angry enough to confront master."

"Not at all," Leon said, "It would be petty to storm off over just a few casual words. Besides, didn’t I apologize?"

"The Red Dragon is indeed the Emperor’s most cherished child, even such disrespectful words don’t matter," Cecilia said enviously.

"I am not her child," Leon retorted, flicking his mouth even though Tiamat indeed created the Red Dragons, it didn’t change that he only acknowledged his mother who raised him.

Leon wrinkled his nose, suddenly unsure what his current state meant. Though he possessed a Red Dragon’s body, his soul was human, coupled with his absolute disbelief in Tiamat—it was indeed possible that even though Tiamat as the Evil Dragon Queen could connect with Divine Power to all Colorful Dragons, she couldn’t connect with him.

"I just noticed you’ve been simply referring to her as ’the Emperor’ today without mentioning the full title," Leon also realized the Green Dragon’s address was off.

"One shouldn’t utter the Divine Name directly, lest it is overheard," Cecilia whispered, "Has master forgotten? I only remembered it today too."

"That does sound familiar," Leon nodded thoughtfully.

Better to avoid trouble if there’s no benefit; Leon decided not to be stubborn and said, "Then I also need to be careful not to call out her name directly, to avoid trouble."

Cecilia’s thorny crown shifted as she spoke, "Master truly does not believe in the Emperor."

"Do I believe?" asked Leon. "Have you ever seen yourself offering a single Gold Coin to her?"

Cecilia was speechless for a moment but then said, "The Emperor has countless treasures, she won’t miss my little bit."

Leon burst out laughing, "If she wants me to believe in her, there need to be benefits"

"You don’t believe in the Emperor, she definitely won’t give you... Although she won’t give you treasures, she would grant you power, helping to awaken the Red Dragon’s bloodline isn’t an issue," Cecilia stated unperturbed.

Leon thought about his journey so far, all thanks to the rewards from the Golden Finger, Tiamat’s help in awakening his bloodline wouldn’t be of much use, and besides, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, he said, "Whether she helps me awaken my bloodline or not, I’m already strong. I don’t need her help."

Leon, quite sensitive, looked at Cecilia, saying, "I noticed you keep talking about how she’s this and that; it feels like you’re constantly preaching for her."

"Yes, I’ve been helping the Emperor spread her faith," Cecilia confessed, "If I can convince such a powerful master to believe in the Emperor...she will surely notice me and then bestow her grace upon me?"

Leon, seeing no clear issue, thought how cunning a Green Dragon could be, and often there’s no catching them in a potential deceit, and said, "She is greedier than anyone; to gain her grace, your payment would definitely outweigh your gain."

"Better to serve me well; I give you far more than she ever could..." Leon remarked, "You know, I’m no ordinary Red Dragon, I’m not that greedy, I’m generous."

"At this age, there’s no Red Dragon more formidable than master, master’s future is boundless," Cecilia flicked her forked tongue, "Not to disrespect master, but compared to the Emperor, you’re still lacking quite a bit."

"Whether as a person or a dragon, one should look far ahead. I may not match her now, but that doesn’t mean the future holds the same."

Leon didn’t notice anything peculiar about the Green Dragon; it’s just that he isn’t superstitious about gods. The stories he read as a child were all about defying authority, with emperors taking turns ruling and the idea that everyone could have a chance at power. He was raised to believe that even nobles and generals must prove their worth.

Cecilia was shocked by Leon’s audacity, her pupils slightly constricting as she asked, "Who gave you the confidence to surpass his Majesty?"

This time, she did not call him master or brother.

"No one gave me confidence... I was just saying, just listen to it and don’t take it too seriously," Leon laughed, thinking about how he used to boast about becoming a scientist when he was young, but ended up just another cubicle worker... Now, with the Golden Finger, things were different.

"Where are we headed now?" Leon, having had a restful sleep, was reinvigorated, and his Mana fully restored, no longer needing to tread cautiously.

Cecilia pondered for a moment and said, "I figured it out; you don’t like the Lost Plateau."

"That’s right, I don’t like the Lost Plateau, even though it’s actually a lot better than the desert," Leon said. "There are so many Dwarfs and Fire Giants here; there must be plenty of minerals. The land is barren but if you’re willing to cultivate it, you can still grow something... There are also plenty of animals: Highland Goats, Giant Goats, Giant Elks, and Saber-toothed Tigers."

"I’d like to go to the seaside," Leon said. "We can get there by crossing the Lost Plateau, right?"

"Yes," Cecilia paused before asking, "Do you still want to continue walking?"

"It’s all the same to me," Leon said. "What do you think?"

"It’d be too slow to walk; let’s fly," Cecilia suggested. "My idea is to visit all the unique places in the Lost Plateau first, otherwise it’d be a wasted trip, and then head to the seaside afterward."

"What are the unique places in the Lost Plateau?" Leon asked.

"Spider Web Mountain?" Cecilia said. "I hear it’s full of spiders."

Leon, no longer afraid of spiders at least for now, responded, "Continue."

"I heard that there are Cloud Giants in the Lost Plateau. Have you ever seen a Cloud Giant?" Cecilia asked. "It’s said that Cloud Giants live on mountain tops and in tangible clouds, tending miraculous gardens with grapes as big as apples, apples as big as pumpkins, and pumpkins as big as horse carriages."

Leon recalled an animated film he had watched, where the protagonist used a Magic Pea to grow a stalk all the way to the sky, climbing it to rob a Giant’s home, and in the end, to escape the Giant, chopped down the stalk and lived happily ever after. He asked, "What else?"

"That’s all," Cecilia said with a grim face. "It’s my first time to the Lost Plateau too... Maybe we could fly up and have a look."

"You’re right, we’ll understand everything with a look and a walk," Leon said. "Let’s go."

Leon stood on a cliff and jumped down, spreading his wings and taking flight moments later.

Cecilia followed closely behind.

Leon didn’t know where to go specifically; he chose to fly around randomly.

Leon didn’t find Spider Web Mountain, but he did find a canyon full of spiders and saw a Phase Spider—a spider that could freely travel in and out of the etheric plane. It suddenly appeared from somewhere and just as quickly vanished without a trace, moving a distance in the etheric plane before shifting back to the Material Plane, making it seem as though it could Teleport.

Flying high up, it was easy to spot the snow-capped mountains; the plateau couldn’t possibly be without snow-capped peaks, and Leon certainly wouldn’t miss them.

Leon tried shouting loudly, triggering a massive avalanche.

The snow creatures appeared to be long-horned, snowy-white huge gorillas, obviously much larger than usual gorillas being major creatures.

Leon finally saw the White Dragon, whose streamlined body looked quite nice, but its head left much to be desired; he did not like its bony crown, and seeing it provoke both a Red Dragon and a Green Dragon showed it wasn’t very smart, proving the adage "fame is not real until seen."

Leon held back, while Cecilia rushed forward. Despite her slender build, she was able to pin the White Dragon down and beat it into a deep valley.

"Look there, what’s in the clouds?"

If Cecilia hadn’t pointed it out, Leon wouldn’t have noticed the castle hidden in the clouds on the mountain top.

"Why is there a castle here?" Leon curiously asked.

"It’s either the castle of the Cloud Giants or the Silver Dragon," Cecilia said. "Shall we go take a look?"

"A Cloud Giant’s castle is okay; Cloud Giants aren’t that strong, but we should be careful of the Silver Dragon," Leon said, more cautious now after the events of the previous day.

"Are you scared, master?" Cecilia laughed teasingly. "I’m a bit scared too; let’s just go to the seaside."

Leon wasn’t easily provoked, but he did have a bit of male pride, reluctant to show fear in front of a woman.