Countless stars dotted the sky beneath a night curtain like black velvet.
The Red Iron Dragonet stood atop a towering, jagged cliff, looking back as his gaze slowly swept over the entirety of Sinkhole Territory.
Especially the pockmarked ground below this cliff, riddled with hollows of varying depths, which held nearly all of Garos's memories of his dragonling years.
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From now on, there's no turning back. I'm completely on my own.
Garos glanced at the two moons in the sky, as well as the Magic Satellites mixed among the real stars, impossible to distinguish from them. His mood grew slightly heavy.
Bernardo Planet's magical standards were extraordinarily high, especially its Alchemy involving magical constructs.
The many monsters and savage beasts of the Wilderness were secondary. The kingdoms formed by intelligent beings were the truly dangerous threats.
"Arrogance, conceit, greed."
"These are the dragonkin instincts most likely to cause a Hatchling Dragon's premature death. I must remain vigilant at all times and cannot afford to be careless."
Hatchling Dragons who left their nests had only two endings—becoming a new Calamity, or becoming nourishment for the Wilderness.
Garos naturally did not wish to become nourishment, but neither was he interested in becoming a Calamity. His goal was simple.
—To live, for as long as possible.
Only after dying once could one better appreciate the preciousness of life. Garos cherished this life as a dragon immensely, which was why, after realizing how dangerous this world was, he had persisted in training and strengthening himself.
"Hahahaha! I will establish a dynasty of my own! Countless creatures will submit beneath my wings and bow before me!"
Samantha's shout into the night wind interrupted Garos's thoughts.
This six-year-old Hatchling Dragon was covered in fiery red scales that seemed to burn like flames in the darkness, dazzlingly vivid and brimming with lively vitality.
But scales of such a color were not actually suited for survival.
They were too conspicuous.
Garos, covered in a layer of blackish-gray Buffer Scales that allowed him to nearly blend into the darkness at night, found it much easier to lurk and hide.
As for Iron Dragon Brother Gordon.
His black dragon scales were somewhat better, but the faint silver gleam on their surface still made him somewhat conspicuous.
Moreover, Iron Dragon Brother was even more ambitious than Red Dragon Sister.
"I will establish a kingdom ruled by dragonkind, and then I will rule all dragonkind."
He planted his claws on a protruding boulder, raised his head proudly, and declared his intentions to the world.
Garos was calm by nature and did not make a noisy fuss.
Looking toward the two Hatchling Dragons, the Red Iron Dragonet thought briefly before saying, "Samantha, Gordon, the two of you should follow me so we can survive together."
Having two Hatchling Dragons under his command and sticking together for warmth would be more conducive to survival.
Furthermore, Garos held a reverence for the danger-filled Wilderness. A year of exploration had also given him a better understanding of the surrounding area.
With him leading them, the two Hatchling Dragons had a greater chance of surviving.
Following Garos would actually be a win-win situation for them.
Unfortunately, the two Hatchling Dragons did not see it that way.
"No!"
Sparks burst from Red Dragon Sister's nostrils. She snorted disdainfully and said, "I am a Red Dragon destined to stand at the pinnacle of the world, the foremost of the Chromatic Evil Dragons. I can become the ruler of the Wilderness on my own. I have no need to follow you."
Iron Dragon Brother shook his head as well.
"I'm going to the wealthy south. I heard that even the teeth of southern humans are set with gemstones."
As he spoke of gem-studded teeth, he made no effort to hide his greedy longing.
Hearing this, Garos said no more and merely shook his head lightly.
Just as when the two little dragons had first broken from their shells, he had once again offered them a choice, and they had once again given him their answers.
Fate and a dragon's life were made up of one different choice after another.
Garos did not insist that the two Hatchling Dragons follow him. If they were unwilling, forcing them to come with him would only bring him trouble, given their personalities.
Still, he gave the two Hatchling Dragons one more chance.
Looking at them, Garos said unhurriedly, "If you change your current foolish thoughts and wish to seek my protection, go northwest, to the hills about ninety kilometers from here."
"There is a dense Iron Fir Forest there. It is easy to recognize."
"If I am still in those wooded hills, I may take you in. Of course, that is only if you are prepared to serve as my slaves and obey me unconditionally."
After saying that, Garos no longer lingered. He withdrew his gaze from Sinkhole Territory and flew toward the hills where he had once subdued the Earth Violent Bear.
"Damn Garos, you're too conceited! You completely look down on us."
"Just wait! Sooner or later, we'll make you see us in a new light!"
"Even if we die and get eaten by savage beasts or monsters, we will never beg you!"
Under the moonlight, the Dark Gold Tail Ring was plated in a layer of pure radiance. Garos heard the shouts of his dragon brother and sister behind him, but the Wilderness wind soon swallowed the clamor.
Two weeks later, Iron Fir Hills.
This place was not large, and its various resources were limited. It was not a good habitat, but Garos had nowhere better to go for now, so he settled here temporarily.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Earth Violent Bear's two palms were encased in heavy, hard rock as they struck the dragon before it again and again.
Garos endured the Earth Violent Bear's heavy blows. His body trembled slightly, Buffer Scales flying everywhere until they revealed the black scales streaked with red beneath, which gradually cracked and dented.
But just as cracks began spreading across the black-red scales and they sank slightly inward—
The Earth Violent Bear stopped.
"Get up and continue."
Garos lifted his eyelids slightly, speaking with dissatisfaction.
The Earth Violent Bear had only knocked off one layer of his Buffer Scales. The true tempering of his body was only beginning.
"Roar, your scales are harder than steel. I really can't hit you anymore."
The Dire Bear roared, then dropped onto the ground with a thud, panting heavily.
Its thick bear arms could barely be raised, while the rock attached to its paws had also been shattered by the Buffer Scales, exposing paws full of cracks and steadily seeping blood.
Garos was still unsatisfied.
Though both were impacts in essence, this was different from the intense training of ramming mountains and earth. After experiencing it for some time, Garos felt that this method of enduring blows was more meticulous, and its tempering effect was quite good.
Aside from having the Earth Violent Bear strike him with its paws.
He also had it attack him with Spell-like Abilities, using them to temper his corresponding resistances.
Naturally, this process was not pleasant. Pain was unavoidable.
The Earth Violent Bear was a level-eight monster. Even Garos could not withstand its attacks without injury.
But perhaps because he had undergone so much similar training, Garos had developed an exceptionally high tolerance for pain. Not only that, as he felt the pain and knew it meant he was gradually undergoing Adaptive Evolution, he even felt somewhat excited.
"Hurry and draw upon Earth Power to rest. We'll continue in a while."
Garos allowed the Dire Bear to rest briefly.
The Earth Violent Bear wore a miserable expression.
When it had submitted to Garos, it had imagined that perhaps Garos was temperamental and liked beating his followers to vent his anger. But it was thick-skinned and tough, so as long as Garos did not beat it to death, it could slowly recover.
However, what it had never expected was this.
Garos was the exact opposite. He had a peculiar hobby and instead made it beat him.
At first, the Earth Violent Bear had been full of enthusiasm.
But it soon discovered that this was not a good job.
Every time it was exhausted half to death, Garos still had not had enough. Fortunately, the Earth Violent Bear's recovery abilities were strong enough for it to barely endure.
No, if this keeps up, I'll be exhausted enough for my Life Level to drop.
The Earth Violent Bear racked its brains while resting.
Suddenly, inspiration struck it, and it called out to Garos, who was rubbing his dragon tail against an Iron Fir nearby.
"Dragon Lord!"
Dragon Lord—this was one of the common honorifics followers used for dragonkind, similar to calling someone master.
Even through mere friction, the hard Iron Fir had been sliced with countless deep marks by the sharp dragon scales on his tail, as though it had been carved by knives and axes.
Garos spared the pitiful Iron Fir and turned toward the Earth Violent Bear.
The Earth Violent Bear scratched its head, a shrewd smile appearing on its honest-looking face.
"Hehe, you must want more Earth Violent Bears as followers."
Under Garos's gaze, it explained in detail.
It turned out that—
The Earth Violent Bear, Mobel, had once come from a small Dire Bear pack.
Its father was also the pack's chief. Aside from the Dire Bear Chief, there were several female bears and a number of cubs that had not yet grown up.
In certain respects, Earth Violent Bears had habits similar to lion prides.
Males held the dominant position and were stronger than females. Furthermore, they could not tolerate other adult males living in the same territory and would drive away their male offspring as they approached adulthood.
"You mean to take me to conquer your pack?"
Garos asked.
"That's right! As long as we kill my father, I guarantee that the other female Dire Bears and cubs will submit to you."
Mobel nodded heavily, thumping his chest as he guaranteed it.
What a case of a father dying and a son rejoicing, Garos thought.
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