Tale of the Red Dragon Without Dragon’s Might
Chapter 208 - 207: Return to the Dark Territory

Chapter 208: Chapter 207: Return to the Dark Territory

At the bottom of a well in a plague-stricken village, there might be a massive hole leading to the Dark Territory. A gang’s underground hideout might also have an elevator leading there, and the Green Hag’s lair may contain a teleportation array connecting to it... there truly are entrances to the Dark Territory scattered all over the world.

Of course, while there are many such entrances, most only allow a single adventurer party to traverse using climbing tools or spells. You can’t bring pack animals through, nor can large forces pass. For raiding parties or trade caravans, these entrances have little value and are hardly worth paying attention to.

Leon had thought that Cecilia’s search party would take at least three days to locate a cave leading to the Dark Territory. Perhaps one hidden deep within a forest, or maybe along some coastal cavern. To his surprise, she found one the very next day.

"You found a Dark Territory entrance so quickly?" Leon had only woken up recently and was enjoying his breakfast—or rather, it might as well have been lunch—when Cecilia showed up dressed as a maid.

Cecilia enjoyed addressing him as "master," so Leon had taken the opportunity to demand she wear a maid outfit. Unfortunately for her, despite the painstaking design of the outfit—reminiscent of tight-waisted, chest-accentuating attire popular during the Sui and Tang periods—it utterly failed to highlight any curves on her.

"There was no need to go looking," Cecilia said as she casually took the expertly prepared eggs and bacon from a Tiefling maid’s hands and placed them before Leon. "I merely called upon my subordinates and casually asked. It turns out there are three entrances to the Dark Territory nearby."

The eggs and bacon were merely snacks. A whole roasted lamb was Leon’s actual main course, and at the moment, his mouth was smeared with oil and spices from devouring it.

Leon wiped his mouth with a napkin before saying, "Well, since you found one, let’s get going... Just handle the necessary arrangements, and we’ll move out."

"I know..." Cecilia muttered, hesitating for a moment before lowering her head slightly and nervously tugging at her drooping bangs, the longest strand reaching the bridge of her nose. "Master, doesn’t staying on this Volcanic Island every day bore you?"

Leon gave Cecilia an almost amused look and replied, "Not at all."

He hadn’t detected Cecilia’s intentions; he merely said it for the sake of it.

Compared to the past, he genuinely had a lot more to occupy his time: apart from devoting most of his day to eating, drinking, and sleeping, he could chat with Tassera, engage in certain... less-than-appropriate activities, read books, soar through the skies or dive into the sea, or manage Watchtower Port... There simply weren’t enough hours in the day.

"Spit it out. Don’t beat around the bush," Leon said as he picked up a piece of bacon with his ivory chopsticks—custom-made, of course—and took a bite. "If you want me to accompany you to the Dark Territory, just say so. Don’t start with asking if I’m bored. If I were bored, then sure, I’d agree to go to the Dark Territory with you."

"I’m just a lowly maid; what right do I have to demand my master accompany me to the Dark Territory?" Cecilia responded in feigned grievance. "All I can do is ask if you’re bored and then hope you’ll show me some mercy."

"Quit the act," Leon said knowingly, fully aware of Cecilia’s antics. "Why don’t you just go by yourself? You can bring your subordinates as well."

"Master, you know why," Cecilia said.

"You’re afraid something might happen?" Leon leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. "The Dark Territory is indeed dangerous—Mind Flayers, Beholders, Purple Worms. None of them are foes you should provoke."

Leon chuckled, noting that a lone Mind Flayer had a challenge rating of 7—Cecilia could defeat one, but Mind Flayers never traveled alone. Beholders, with their challenge rating of 13, surpassed even adult Green Dragons in power. And Purple Worms were even stronger—massive burrowing creatures capable of tunneling through solid rock and large enough to swallow an entire horse whole, with a challenge rating of 15.

As a Green Dragon herself, Cecilia was loath to admit fear. But she knew Leon was more likely to help her if she played her cards right. Though stubbornly proud, she muttered, "You know... my luck’s never been great..."

"Ah, youth," Leon remarked with a laugh. "If you were an adult Green Dragon—better yet, an elder—you wouldn’t have to worry about any of that."

"Not all of us can measure up to your legendary heroics," Cecilia retorted with exaggerated admiration.

Leon shot the short-haired girl a sideways glance, begrudgingly impressed by her ability to flatter. Still unwilling to agree outright, he said, "Your bad luck doesn’t exactly bode well for me either. If we run into a Drow Matron Mother, I can’t guarantee we’ll make it out unscathed. You’re scared? Well, so am I."

"Unless, of course, Master intends to attack a Drow city—a big one, at that—there’s no chance of encountering a Matron Mother," Cecilia pleaded coyly, "Please, I’m begging you!"

"Enough of that tone," Leon interrupted her, grimacing. "You’re giving me goosebumps. Fine, I’ll come with you, but..."

Though life on the Volcanic Island wasn’t dull, it wasn’t as if Leon had no desire to venture out after all these years. Although he’d been to the Dark Territory before, his previous visit had been focused solely on retrieving refined gold, leaving him with some lingering regrets over not exploring more thoroughly.

Just as Leon was contemplating what reward he might ask for, it occurred to him that Cecilia really had nothing he needed. He could have "eaten" her as a form of repayment, though that would feel more like a reward for her. Ultimately, he decided against being overly transactional and said, "Forget it. There’s nothing I need from you... When should we leave?"

"It’s up to Master’s schedule," Cecilia replied while motioning for the Tiefling maid to clear the table.

"Then tomorrow," Leon decided.

To someone like Leon, the Dark Territory was no big deal. There was no need to carefully choose a date or overly prepare. Still, as they might be gone for several days, he’d need to inform the Efreeti and Tassera to keep an eye on the Volcanic Island and Watchtower Port during his absence.

Leon and Cecilia set off the next day, aiming to enter the Dark Territory through a deep shaft.

Compared to the labyrinthine caverns Leon had ventured into years prior—those teeming with all manner of creatures, from spiders of every size to Cave Trolls and Behirs—their current destination was a plain, massive well. All they had to do was jump in to enter the Dark Territory.

The shaft had a diameter of seven or eight meters—large, yet not enough for Leon and Cecilia to transition between their Dragon Forms freely within it.

Leon chose to shapeshift using Gathering Form and Scattering Energy, transforming into a plume of Clean Energy to descend effortlessly. As his power had grown, so had the duration of this form.

Since Cecilia, not being a Storage Dragon, lacked spells, her solution was to activate a Feather Badge—a small metal disc engraved with a feather symbol—to cast Feather Fall on herself.

"So this is the Dark Territory?" Cecilia exclaimed. Though she had heard of the region, this was her first time experiencing it. Everything fascinated her: from the glowing patches of glow rock to the twinkling Night-Glow Crystals. She was tempted to take some home, though the utter lack of greenery—aside from mushrooms, fungi, and occasional moss—left her disheartened.

Leon didn’t have a concrete destination in mind, so he simply picked a random path and began walking.

"Look over there—a Minotaur," Leon said, raising a hand to point it out to Cecilia.

In some games, Minotaurs were gentle, peaceful, and harmonious beings. But not in this world. Here, Minotaurs appeared as upright bulls wielding massive axes, born of a Demon Ritual performed in the Mortal Kingdom. They were savage conquerors and carnivorous hunters.

The scent of fresh blood and the cracking of bones could ignite a Minotaur’s bloodlust, overriding all reason and thought as they rampaged relentlessly, killing until either they or their target was no more.

"A Minotaur! How exciting," Cecilia played along enthusiastically.

"I despise Minotaurs," Leon stated bluntly, for reasons he decided not to explain; his dislike wasn’t directed at the specific Minotaur before him.

"I’ll take care of it," Cecilia offered, stretching her arms.

"Don’t bother," Leon replied, unsure how to clarify that his distaste for Minotaurs wasn’t related to this particular one. "In your human form, you might not even beat it, and your Dragon Form will cause too much commotion."

Leon was inclined to let the Minotaur be, but then it spotted them. Eyes glowing red, it roared furiously and charged at them, swinging its massive axe.

With no alternative, Leon drew the Catastrophe Blade and sent it flying forward using Sword Control Technique, severing the Minotaur’s head with a single slash. Only afterward did he recall that he could’ve simply activated his Fearsome Aura. The moment he did, any low-level creature wouldn’t have dared move a muscle in his presence.

"Master enjoys beef, doesn’t he? Have you ever tried Minotaur meat?" Cecilia mused as she examined the headless corpse, clearly eager to experiment before recoiling from its stench. "No good; it’s too gamey and foul-smelling."

The Dark Territory was indeed crawling with creatures. In less than half an hour, Leon and Cecilia had been ambushed several times, facing enemies that ranged from giant spiders to cave bears.

Parts of the Dark Territory featured vast expanses where a Dragon Form could freely soar, while other sections were so narrow that even in human form, one could touch the rocky ceiling overhead. The poor lighting and numerous obstructions made navigation challenging... Let alone finding Gray Dwarves, which left Cecilia increasingly impatient. "We need a guide," she finally said.

"I’m aware we need a guide. But where are we going to find an intelligent creature to act as one?" Leon replied. "If we hadn’t killed that Minotaur earlier... Then again, it probably didn’t speak Universal Language, so communication would’ve been useless."

Where there’s a will, there’s a way... And the pair didn’t actually have to try too hard before stumbling upon a patrol of male Drow.

Drow—or Dark Elves—were malicious and deceitful. They weren’t easy to negotiate with. However, upon seeing Cecilia transform into a Green Dragon, these Drow suddenly became quite agreeable.

"Ahead—it’s right up ahead."

"There’s a Gray Dwarf city there."

With the help of the Drow, a sprawling Gray Dwarf city soon came into view. It shone with a blazing, wrath-like red light emanating from the molten steel of its incessantly active Melting Furnaces, endlessly supplying iron and bathing the city in an unrelenting fiery glow.