Page 211
Story: The Dragon of Dreams
Late Evening - Late Fall : The Tree of Prayer
-Wait a minute... She couldn't be her, could she?- A series of dots suddenly connected the instant I thought about it. -Her voice is different, but her figure and way of speaking...-
Although there were definitely some discrepancies, too many dots connected for me to pass it off as a coincidence.
-But.. even though my gut says not to trust her, I can't deny that she's has helped me quite a bit.
..- I knew she had an ulterior motive ever since she started suddenly being nicer to me, but it was also true that, so far, her advice hadn't been bad for me.
-Maybe I should.. just take her advice with a grain of salt. ..-
Idly looking to the side as I thought to myself, I noticed the apostle from earlier still groveling with her forehead pressed against the floor.
-She's still there, huh...- The other apostle had run away while I was talking to the suspicious goddess, but the one who paid respects to me stayed with her head lowered. -How loyal...-
Finally noticing that the beam of divinity had finally putzed out and I had finished absorbing everything I could, I carefully lifted Ilios onto my back and stored my slightly damaged sword under my wing. -Now, how would a god greet one of their subjects...-
As I finally walked over to the apostle, I noticed her body starting to shake, but it didn't seem to be from nervousness. -Is she shaking from excitement?-
Once I eventually got up moderately close to her, I laid down and relaxed some. "You may raise your head."
Her shaking stopped the instant I spoke. "C-congratulations on being reborn, Lord Nott! I cannot express my joy with words!" Her excitement was shockingly genuine.
"I'm glad to see that one of you could still recognize me.
" It felt a bit odd to respond to a different name, but it was nothing I couldn't get used to.
"The others didn't seem to be so accepting of my new appearance.
" I glanced at the adjacent entrance where the fearful apostle was with an annoyed expression.
"Y-your new appearance is just as majestic and enchanting as the one described in ancient texts, my Lord!
The others who rejected it simply didn't have eyes worthy of witnessing your beautiful and enchanting body anyways!
" She lowered her head as she spoke, seemingly unable to speak while maintaining eye contact.
But I was too busy enjoying the praise to care. -She really knows how to make a good impression!- "Your name was Leif Vilulf, correct?" (Meaning Descendant of the Wolf's-Will)
"T-th-that is c-correct, my lord!" She became incredibly flustered the instant I said her name.
"Are you a descendant of a famous apostle or a family of apostles?" It was an odd question, but the meaning behind her name made me curious. -Did her family have a direct connection to Nott or Dagr at some point?-
"Yes, that is indeed the case, my Lord. For the entirety of our family's known history, the Vilulfs have served you as apostles." She spoke with pride and confidence, yet still sounded humble.
-So, her family produces an apostle every generation?
Are they just born as high-demihumans?- Unable to hold back my curiosity, I carefully scanned her body with aura to see a large net of divinity spread throughout her body as well as a general lack of many organs.
"Ah..." -Is what makes a race capable of absorbing divinity the position and volume organs occupy? -
It was a bit of an odd theory, but based on what I knew, it made sense.
-Having fewer, smaller organs would give the divinity significantly more space to grow and spread through before it carved its way through any vitals.
.. If a normal demihuman acquired even nearly as much divinity as she has, it would have probably bored through their heart or some other vital organ and killed them. ..-
It was truly fascinating to think about, but I quickly halted my curiosity before I got carried away. -Maybe I'll ask her how she acquired the divinity itself later...- *vwoom* "Sorry for the intrusiveness of my aura. There was something I was curious about."
"I do not mind in the slightest, my Lord!" She gave me an ecstatic look as I pulled my aura away.
-What an odd apostle she is...- "In any case, I should show some appreciation toward the loyalty and dedication of you and your family.
Is there something you would like?" Although I knew it was probably unnecessary, I wanted to make a good impression as well.
-As long as I have her loyalty, Siratha will be in the palm of my hand. -
But honestly, her response was about what I expected. "You acknowledging us is more than enough of a reward, my Lord!" Her joy and excitement were still overflowing like an endless waterfall.
-But if she doesn't want a reward, how should I...- "How could I help you then? Considering I just killed two other apostles, you might need someone to take their positions, right?"
She paused to think for a moment before speaking. "In the modern era, priests suitable to become apostles are hard to come by, so if you have someone in mind, I will happily take them under my wing!" She sounded a bit awkward, but that wasn't too surprising.
"In that case, there is a young woman named Liv Sigmond who should be able to fill a position. She is an ascended race already and even has experience in leading people. Should you deem her unfit though, you may use her how you wish."
"I-I would never deem someone acknowledged by your greatness as unfit, my Lord." She quickly got nervous.
-Haah.. I should have figured she'd respond like that...- "Don't give her any special treatment just because I recommended her. If you need to be hard on her, be hard on her. You should raise her to be an apostle you can be proud of, alright?"
Her nervous expression quickly turned determined. "U..understood! I will do my best to raise her into an apostle worthy of serving you!"
-Much better...- Casually glancing above us, I noticed the fog was starting to get a little close, and figured it would be smart to play it safe.
"Since the fog is descending on us, I will end our discussion here.
" I continued talking as I stood up. "You may expect more frequent visits from me in the future, Miss Vilulf. I'm excited to see how you grow."
She looked paralyzed after I finished talking, but once I went to walk past her, she snapped out of it. "R-r-right! I will take my leave now. Thank you for everything, my Lord!" Hastily standing up, she gave me a deep bow and darted out of the tree before I could say anything else. *FWOOSH*
-Damn she's quick...- Although it was nothing compared to the god-possessed apostles earlier, her speed was nothing to scoff at. -Divinity really closes the strength gap between creatures quickly, doesn't it...-
*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* The thump of my footsteps echoed through the empty room as I made my way back to the opening in the side of the tree trunk. -Now, what should I do while I wait for Ilios to wake up...-
But that idle thought didn't last long. "Huh?" Confusion washed over my face instantly when I looked out into the exposed canopy and saw two elder dragon skeletons strewn across a couple large branches. -How'd those get there? Are they even real?-
Wanting a closer look, I quickly leapt into the air and flew out of the room.
But that only made things worse. "W..wh..what the f*ck..." Instead of only going to get a closer look at the two dragon skeletons, the moment I entered the canopy, I noticed they were far from alone. -Just.. how many...-
Lining each and every branch without exception was an appalling number of scattered bones and skeletons, and they had lain there for so long that the tree started to grow around them. -So the thing I caught myself on earlier wasn't a brittle branch.. was it...-
Looking down at the lower, larger branches, I saw the thousands upon thousands of monster, humanoid, and draconic corpses that had long since rotted away, with only brittle, stained bones and scattered armor, weapons, and artifacts being left behind as proof they ever existed.
But those countless long-lost skeletons and treasures weren't the ones that bothered me.
Drooped over innumerable branches above me were countless skeletons of massive elder and ancient dragons that completely dwarfed me.
The thousands of skeletons were all indiscriminately eaten away by the passage of time, no matter how large or strong they may have been when they were alive.
Some of the skeletons even belonged to dragons that would have been nearly 100-meters-tall, but regardless of the endless strength and wisdom that would come from living nearly 2000 years, they were still dead and hanging over the branches of the Tree of Prayer.
-But for so many old dragons to have come and died here. .. Why?-
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160
- Page 161
- Page 162
- Page 163
- Page 164
- Page 165
- Page 166
- Page 167
- Page 168
- Page 169
- Page 170
- Page 171
- Page 172
- Page 173
- Page 174
- Page 175
- Page 176
- Page 177
- Page 178
- Page 179
- Page 180
- Page 181
- Page 182
- Page 183
- Page 184
- Page 185
- Page 186
- Page 187
- Page 188
- Page 189
- Page 190
- Page 191
- Page 192
- Page 193
- Page 194
- Page 195
- Page 196
- Page 197
- Page 198
- Page 199
- Page 200
- Page 201
- Page 202
- Page 203
- Page 204
- Page 205
- Page 206
- Page 207
- Page 208
- Page 209
- Page 210
- Page 211 (Reading here)
- Page 212
- Page 213
- Page 214
- Page 215
- Page 216
- Page 217
- Page 218
- Page 219
- Page 220
- Page 221
- Page 222
- Page 223
- Page 224
- Page 225
- Page 226
- Page 227
- Page 228
- Page 229
- Page 230
- Page 231
- Page 232
- Page 233
- Page 234
- Page 235
- Page 236
- Page 237
- Page 238
- Page 239
- Page 240
- Page 241
- Page 242
- Page 243
- Page 244
- Page 245
- Page 246
- Page 247
- Page 248
- Page 249
- Page 250
- Page 251
- Page 252
- Page 253
- Page 254
- Page 255
- Page 256
- Page 257
- Page 258
- Page 259
- Page 260
- Page 261
- Page 262
- Page 263
- Page 264
- Page 265
- Page 266
- Page 267
- Page 268
- Page 269
- Page 270
- Page 271
- Page 272
- Page 273
- Page 274
- Page 275
- Page 276
- Page 277
- Page 278
- Page 279
- Page 280
- Page 281
- Page 282
- Page 283
- Page 284
- Page 285
- Page 286
- Page 287
- Page 288
- Page 289
- Page 290
- Page 291
- Page 292
- Page 293
- Page 294
- Page 295
- Page 296
- Page 297
- Page 298
- Page 299
- Page 300
- Page 301
- Page 302
- Page 303
- Page 304
- Page 305
- Page 306
- Page 307
- Page 308
- Page 309
- Page 310
- Page 311
- Page 312
- Page 313
- Page 314
- Page 315
- Page 316
- Page 317
- Page 318
- Page 319
- Page 320
- Page 321
- Page 322
- Page 323
- Page 324
- Page 325
- Page 326
- Page 327
- Page 328
- Page 329
- Page 330
- Page 331
- Page 332
- Page 333
- Page 334
- Page 335
- Page 336
- Page 337
- Page 338
- Page 339
- Page 340
- Page 341
- Page 342
- Page 343
- Page 344
- Page 345
- Page 346
- Page 347
- Page 348
- Page 349
- Page 350
- Page 351
- Page 352
- Page 353
- Page 354
- Page 355
- Page 356
- Page 357
- Page 358
- Page 359
- Page 360
- Page 361
- Page 362
- Page 363
- Page 364
- Page 365
- Page 366
- Page 367
- Page 368
- Page 369
- Page 370
- Page 371
- Page 372
- Page 373
- Page 374
- Page 375
- Page 376
- Page 377
- Page 378
- Page 379
- Page 380
- Page 381
- Page 382
- Page 383
- Page 384
- Page 385
- Page 386
- Page 387
- Page 388
- Page 389
- Page 390
- Page 391
- Page 392
- Page 393
- Page 394
- Page 395
- Page 396
- Page 397
- Page 398
- Page 399
- Page 400
- Page 401
- Page 402
- Page 403
- Page 404
- Page 405
- Page 406
- Page 407
- Page 408
- Page 409
- Page 410
- Page 411
- Page 412
- Page 413
- Page 414
- Page 415
- Page 416
- Page 417
- Page 418
- Page 419
- Page 420
- Page 421
- Page 422
- Page 423
- Page 424
- Page 425
- Page 426
- Page 427
- Page 428
- Page 429
- Page 430
- Page 431
- Page 432
- Page 433
- Page 434
- Page 435
- Page 436
- Page 437
- Page 438
- Page 439
- Page 440
- Page 441
- Page 442
- Page 443
- Page 444