The Red Dragon Just Wants To Do As It Pleases
Chapter 64 - 63: Tattoo

Chapter 64: Chapter 63: Tattoo

At this point, David decided to address the more pressing issue at hand first.

He ignored the Drow, who appeared ready to accept any punishment, and the Drow Mage, who was being pressed into the mud, struggling desperately, and seemed on the verge of drawing his last breath. David slowly approached the cage and gave the captivating Green Dragon a thoughtful look from head to tail.

Truth be told, now that he had the leisure for a closer look, she was indeed an alluring dragon. Her scales were a dark, shiny green—healthy and undamaged. Her physique was slender yet strong, not thin or malnourished like the Red Dragon Lizrite, who one could tell at a glance wasn’t getting enough food for proper development. This indicated her body was vigorous and she lived well, rarely needing to fight for survival. She might even have had Kobold-like retainers for daily scale maintenance, leisurely polishing them with fresh grease concocted from animal fat and alchemical ingredients.

If one were to make a comparison, the very measure words used would be telling. A Green Dragon like Nifadora, similar to the Silver Dragon Tania, was simply ’a’ dragon—healthy and normal. The delicate and slender Red Dragon Lizrite could, at best, only be considered ’one’ such creature, implying her lesser state. As for David, strictly speaking, ’a beast’ would be a more fitting term to describe him.

Furthermore, she had appropriately sized, sharp, and towering dragon horns and spinal spikes, making her look both dangerous and beautiful. Hidden deep within her bright green eyes was a hint of radiant gold, lively and expressive. Just the sight of these eyes seemed to allow for an ardent exchange of souls with him, truly dragon-enticing. That tail, which had nearly cost him his life earlier, upon closer inspection was indeed long and powerful, emitting a charm that any decent-sized dragon could hardly ignore. As for the posterior at the base of her tail, it presented an even more tempting perfect curve, sumptuously shaped yet not overly heavy. This implied not only a better and more delightful responsive force but also an easier time producing Dragon Eggs with slightly larger radii, leading to healthier and stronger offspring. Of course, in today’s world where the era of great dragons has long since ended and community structures have mostly disintegrated, the latter advantage was far less attractive than the former.

The only possible downside was that she seemed a bit old. If she were a quickly maturing sub-dragon species or a White Dragon, at her age, she could practically be his mother. After all, converted to human years, she would be equivalent to a maiden of about fifteen. As for himself... he might still be considered just a toddler who had just learned to walk and talk.

And it was precisely for this reason that he felt no defeat about his previous failed challenge. After all, he had been mentally prepared for the possibility of defeat before the fight; the battle was less about challenging a young dragon and more about challenging his own limits and honing his combat skills. There was a gap of two age stages between them—over forty years of development time! Especially since she was a young dragon who had awakened the Arcane Craving. If he could have won against her, it’s likely that Tiamat from Barto Hell herself would have been impressed and would have subtly tried to lure him into becoming one of Her followers. David, although confident to the point of arrogance since his transmigration, still had some self-awareness.

It was also because of this that even at this moment, he was still unable to see the ultimate goal of this young Green Dragoness. The truth was, she fancied him—the Red Dragon youngling—for herself. After all, he was still just a child! Dragons shouldn’t, at least they ought not to... Thus, David first ruled out this correct answer, regarding his visitor as an opportunistic dragon looking to use him as a stepping stone to get closer to his legendary mother, the Red Dragon Pafila.

Having anticipated the other’s purpose, David then spoke with a low, laughing voice, "Quite bold, to dare come into my camp. Do you even know to whom this territory belongs?"

Relieved by the question, Nifadora adopted an even more humble demeanor, despite being more than twice David’s size. She curled her claws submissively in front of her chest and said, "Of course. Which dragon in Skanis doesn’t know that the entirety of the Katjana Mountains, centered around the crater, belongs to Lady Pafila, the Crimson Calamity?"

David immediately scoffed and reprimanded, "Knowing that, you still dared to barge in?"

Seeing that the situation was becoming clear, Nifadora’s expression grew unprecedentedly serious. She stopped beating around the bush and directly stated one of her main objectives, "Prince David Uthos, disaster looms. I, a mere young Green Dragon, only seek a... sanctuary before it strikes."

At this point, Nifadora’s gaze became soft and vulnerable as if resigning herself to fate. She said, "If this rash act offended you or Lady Pafila, I, Nifadora, am willing to accept any punishment."

David completely ignored the Green Dragon’s show of weakness; having been fooled once, he knew well enough that he was dealing with a manipulative old Green Dragon. She was probably more cunning than those Drow.

Still, the first part of what she had said caught his attention, prompting him to ask, "Disaster? What disaster? What kind of disaster are you talking about?"

The supervolcanic eruption caused by his mother Pafila could indeed be considered a natural ecological disaster, but could it really affect the leisurely life of a pampered Green Dragon?

"A military disaster, a looming threat of war," Nifadora answered.

David suddenly began to see the Green Dragon in a new light. "Oh? You discerned this even in the information-starved Old Continent? That’s impressive. But do you truly believe the war started by those long-eared Elves will spread here, threatening even a young dragon like yourself? So much so that you’d need to seek shelter under my mother’s wings? That’s rather hard for any dragon to believe, isn’t it?"

The Green Dragon explained, "I cannot judge how soon the fire ignited by the Elves will reach here. It will surely come, though not now. What I’m referring to is a threat of war from within Skanis, here on our Old Continent."

"Within our Old Continent? You’re not talking about those Barbarians, are you?" David suddenly found the thought rather amusing. Barbarians that he, a young Red Dragon, could rip through, could threaten a Green Dragon? Ridiculous.

"Yes, those very Barbarians and Ogres," the Green Dragon said. "Their threat may be different from before. Perhaps it’s still insignificant to you and Lady Pafila. But if the situation continues to worsen, in less than twenty years, I, at least, might be forced to relocate my nest."

After saying something that puzzled David, she then turned to the Drow with a request, "Miss Hiatt, could you please present the gift I brought, the Highland Barbarian, to Prince David Uthos."

The Drow was also surprised. The Barbarian trussed up like a roasted pig was the gift the Green Dragon had intended for her master. She looked to David for instructions, and following his nod, she dragged the Barbarian from another small cage nearby.

Upon seeing the struggling Barbarian under the Drow’s escort, especially his own expression of utter fury, David was initially stunned, then realization dawned. "Well, well, it’s you, lad. Thought I wouldn’t recognize you with that tattoo, did you?"

"MMM! MMMMM! MMMMMMMMM! (Monado! My love! I am so sorry!)" Barbarian Rosinde, looking at the Evil Dragon so close at hand, shed tears of defiance from his hate-filled eyes.