Under a sky that seemed perpetually dark.
The colossal body of the Ancient Dragon almost filled the entire Ancient Castle courtyard, its jet-black scales gleaming with a metallic sheen in the setting sun. Its massive head was lowered, its amber vertical pupils fixed on Ian, its nostrils flaring slightly, and the hot breath it exhaled carried the smell of sulfur, causing the moss on the ground to tremble slightly.
It slowly lowered itself, its massive head drooping, its breathing heavy and slow, carrying a smell of sulfur and decay. It pressed its nose close to Ian's body.
From head to toe, it sniffed every inch, as if trying to confirm some extremely important information.
"More than one," it said in a low voice, its tone certain, even carrying a hint of great wisdom. "You possess the aura of more than one Ancient Dragon."
The Dragon's voice was deep, yet it carried an undeniable pride. It was a dead witness to history, the last royal family in the long river of time.
"You must have killed several Ancient Dragon recently." The Dragon's voice was deep and rumbling like thunder, carrying an undeniable certainty, as if it were very certain of the information it had observed.
"Are you trying to collect twelve Dragon to prove your Legend as Dragon Slayer?" The Dragon before him showed no anger whatsoever at Ian's slaughter of his kin.
Perhaps it was because it had never seen or interacted with any other Dragon since birth; after Dragon, it was the last Pureblood Dragon in the world while it was alive.
He lived a solitary life from a young age.
They mingled among humans.
It's understandable to have little sense of belonging to one's original race—it's similar to the mindset of someone who has lived abroad since childhood and can no longer be considered a native.
"What twelve-headed Dragon? The Dragon Slayer?" Ian stood on the stone steps in front of the Ancient Castle. The night was deep, and the moonlight shone on the Dragon's jet-black scales, giving them a cold luster.
The Ancient Dragon before us was larger than the entire Castle, its spines spiky like mountain peaks, and each scale seemed to carry a thousand years of memories.
to be honest.
Ian was genuinely surprised.
He had indeed killed Ancient Dragon before, and more than one, after all, he had traveled to the ancient era and encountered several incidents involving Dragon along the way.
In total.
Ian probably killed about three Ancient Dragon. However, because he was already Legendary Wizard, he was not able to obtain Proof of Legend from killing Dragon.
The young Wizard's confusion.
The Ancient Dragon spirit on the Castle side did not respond immediately.
"It seems you've traveled through time." It continued to make its judgment in its deep, muffled voice, acting as if it were the most deductive Dragon in the entire universe.
Ian paused, raising an eyebrow slightly.
"Why are you so sure?" He wasn't in a hurry for an answer, so he was curious why something that no one else had noticed had been seen by a Dragon.
In response to this...
The Dragon let out a breath that sounded almost like a sneer, its thick tail lightly slapping the ground, causing the stone bricks in the courtyard to tremble slightly. "Because I am the last Pureblood Dragon —that is an indisputable fact." It raised its forepaw, its sharp claws lightly touching the ground, "If you have slain a dragon, then you have only traveled through time."
The Dragon raised its eyes.
Ancient wisdom shone in those enormous pupils.
What it said was indeed correct.
Ian then finally realized that the Dragon before him was not a wild, untamed creature, but a Pure-blood personally raised by the Four Founders of Hogwarts —especially Rowena Ravenclaw.
Its knowledge base is probably more extensive than that of most Wizard.
"So, it's feasible for a Wizard to travel through time and slaughter Dragon from the past, right?" Ian knew that this contradicted the knowledge about time travel in the textbooks.
but.
Textbooks are something like that.
The above records are not necessarily entirely accurate, but they are relatively correct for most Wizard. There are always some exceptionally talented Wizard who can defy common sense.
"Yes, that's right."
The Ancient Dragon nodded, confirming the agreement.
"Did Lady Ravenclaw study time travel?" Ian asked curiously. He felt that the knowledge of the Ancient Dragon must have come from the founder of Hogwarts.
This view is not wrong.
The Dragon lazily flicked its tail, its scales rustling metallicly. "She's written over a dozen papers on the subject, speculating in detail on the possibility of Time Travel."
It squinted, as if recalling, "One of the most famous pieces is called ' On the On the Deceptiveness of Time,' the core argument of which is that time is not immutable, but rather requires sufficient skill to 'deceive' it."
It has to be said.
As the dragon of Hogwarts.
This Ancient Dragon certainly knew a lot of Hogwarts secrets.
Ian became interested.
I decided to sit down on the stone steps in the courtyard.
How to scam?
He always enjoyed learning things he didn't understand, and the Ancient Dragon in front of him could even be considered his senior, having spent countless years at Hogwarts.
Upon hearing this...
The Dragon grinned, revealing sharp, white teeth, as if in a smile, "It's simple—if it remains unknown and doesn't trigger a chain reaction, then it won't suffer the backlash of time."
It scratched several marks on the ground with its claws, as if drawing Timeline.
"If you could go back in time and do just one insignificant thing, like... picking up a stone and putting it back, or talking to a tree, time wouldn't even notice."
"As long as you do it cleverly, no one will notice."
"If your actions don't trigger a chain reaction, time will automatically smooth out those minor fluctuations. History is like a Mirror; it may occasionally be cracked, but it will always heal itself."
It has to be said.
Ian probably underestimated the wisdom this Dragon possessed.
It is also erudite and knowledgeable.
"But what if something important changes?"
Ian continued to ask questions.
"That depends on your methods," the Dragon snorted. "A skilled Wizard will create 'alternative events'—making history appear to follow its original trajectory, even if the details are different. Time is lazy; as long as the general direction is correct, it won't punish those who play tricks on itself."
This still contradicts the knowledge in the textbook.
However, perhaps the theory of Ancient Dragon is the correct one.
Ian seemed lost in thought.
He thought of everything he had done in Ancient City of Pompeii —it certainly "disrupted time," yet history remained unchanged.
"A kind of Time Deception?"
Ian recalled his experience in Ancient City of Pompeii —he had saved a young girl and changed her Destiny. At that moment, he clearly saw the fear and hope for the future in her eyes.
But back in modern times, history books still record the date of Mount Pompeii's eruption and the fact that countless people lost their lives.
No one remembers that girl.
No one remembers what he did.
The gods must have used some more sophisticated method.
It completely deceived time.
Ian listened intently, his gaze gradually becoming focused.
"Then... how can we do it 'without being noticed'?"
The Dragon remained silent for a moment, seemingly pondering whether it should impart such confidential knowledge to a human.
Finally, it spoke:
"First, leave no trace. This means you can't let anyone remember what you've done. You must come and go like the wind, leaving no evidence, no name."
"Second, do not alter key events. You can kill a passerby or steal a stone, but if you change a decisive event, such as stopping a war, saving a monarch, or killing an infant... then time will immediately notice and begin to correct itself."
"Third, exploit loopholes in the rules. Some points in time are natural blind spots, such as solar and lunar eclipses, the boundaries between dimensions, and the convergence of multiple universes. In these places, the perception of time is weakest."
Fourth, let history explain you. Have you ever wondered why some legends sound absurd yet are actually true? Because they are altered versions of reality. When your actions are vague and ambiguous enough, history will create a plausible explanation for you, making your existence 'legitimate'.
to be honest.
It's astonishing that Dragon could provide such a detailed answer to something like this.
It may have actually read Ravenclaw's paper.
Ian was stunned.
He suddenly remembered Dumbledore.
"So... Dumbledore became Legend because of this kind of method?" he murmured to himself, feeling that many of Dumbledore's previous actions might make sense now.
perhaps.
The former headmaster had also read Lady Ravenclaw's papers.
I learned some rules about time.
even.
This may not only involve how to become Legend, but also how to deceive time and resurrect the dead. As the headmaster of Hogwarts, he is of course the most likely person to preserve the Founders's legacy.
Perhaps Dumbledore found Ravenclaw's secret library, or perhaps every headmaster inherits that legacy of knowledge; in any case, there's a reason why Dumbledore would have such thoughts.
Lady Ravenclaw's papers and research on deceiving time and history are most likely the driving force behind Dumbledore's bold attempts and speculations.
You need to know.
Ian had seen Dumbledore's memories and knew that Dumbledore had been conducting research in this area since he was young. If there were any of Lady Ravenclaw's research results that had survived, he would surely have found them.
Professor Dumbledore himself said that one of the reasons he chose to become the headmaster of Hogwarts was that the headmaster of Hogwarts had access to knowledge that others could not.
"So, the ancients were already experimenting with this method."
Ian suddenly felt something was absurd. Time, a law that is inviolable in the eyes of ordinary people, seemed like a draft that could be revised repeatedly in the eyes of true powerhouses.
"And what if..." He hesitated for a moment, then voiced his own speculation about Dumbledore's plan, "... what if someone did something great in the past that wasn't recorded in history?"
The Dragon's eyes narrowed slightly.
"That means a higher level of power has intervened." It raised its head, gazing at the darkening sky. "Perhaps the gods, or... some beings that have touched the rules."
Upon hearing this...
Ian recalled Dumbledore's words about the plan to resurrect Ariana, which would inevitably involve Ian's participation. And wasn't Ian, in turn, a symbol representing the rules?
If he truly was Raven, then he represented the one closest to changing the Destiny of the past. This coincided perfectly with what the Dragon was saying.
The possibility that Ravenclaw's research findings were in Dumbledore's hands increased once again. A brief silence fell over the courtyard. A night breeze rustled through the distant forest.
Ian stood up and dusted off his robes. "Thank you for the explanation."
The Dragon lazily lay back down, its tail curling up to cover its nose.
"You're welcome. I haven't talked about these things with anyone in a long time anyway." It closed its eyes, its voice gradually fading, but Ian still shook it awake again. "Hey!" He reached out and patted the Dragon's nose, his voice not loud, but with a hint of urgency, "Don't sleep! I still have questions for you!"
The Dragon, which had been slowly closing its eyes, opened its golden pupils again upon hearing his voice, its gaze filled with a mixture of impatience and scrutiny.
"What?" it muttered under its breath, its tone carrying an air of authority that said, "You'd better have a good reason for disturbing my rest."
Ian did not back down; instead, he stepped forward, his gaze resolute. "It's about the Dragon Slayer."
The Dragon slightly raised its head, a hint of interest flashing in its eyes.
"You want to become Dragon Slayer?" Its voice was low and slow, as if assessing a soul about to step into the abyss.
"It's not that I want to know, it's that I want to know," Ian said. "Twelve Dragon made Legend... What does that mean? Why twelve? What's the significance of that number?"
The Dragon remained silent for a moment, then slowly spoke:
"This is an honor."
Its words echoed in the air like the tolling of an ancient bell.
" Dragon Slayer is more than just a title."
"It is an achievement that only a very few people can attain in the long run."
"When you slay a Dragon, you leave a deep mark on history. When you slay twelve, you are recognized as a ' Dragon Slayer '."
"This is a ritualistic achievement," it continued, "And a response from the world. You proved your power by slaying a dragon, and the world will reward you in some way."
"A reward?" Ian's eyes lit up. "What kind of reward?"
The Dragon shook its head slightly, a hint of helplessness in its voice. "How should I know? I'm not Wizard. You humans always like to label, categorize, and rank everything."
"But the world's reward for Dragon Slayer is not fixed. It may be knowledge, it may be power, it may be some kind of hidden authority... or even an enhanced sense of 'presence'."
Ian frowned in thought, "An increase in presence?"
"That's right." The Dragon nodded. "It's like standing out from the crowd of mortals, specially marked by the lines of Destiny. It's hard to describe, but you can think of it as you becoming 'more important.'"
Ian listened intently.
He knew.
If Dumbledore knew the answer.
perhaps.
Eleven Dragon are about to suffer again.
(End of this chapter)