Alicia stood to one side, her expression dark.
"It looks like Xiluo has developed ideas he shouldn't have after all."
"He's getting far too full of himself! He's actually forgotten his place! What a pathetic fool! Next time! We'll have to teach him a proper lesson!"
The two hatchlings growled, their hostility toward Xiluo rising.
They discussed how to find an opening when he could not use his breath weapon and teach him a good lesson.
Even the other hatchlings had thoughts stirring in their minds.
It was not until nightfall.
Only when a group of lizardfolk appeared carrying an enormous Spiny Beast weighing at least a thousand pounds did Xiluo come down from the treetop.
He had memorized all the spells. All he needed to do now was practice them more.
All the hatchlings gathered around the enormous Spiny Beast.
This monster looked like a gigantic porcupine. It was highly nutritious, with firm meat, making it excellent food.
Dragons were quite fond of this food.
The meat on its legs was especially delicious.
As the hatchlings began their meal, most eyed the chunks of leg meat, but only the strongest few were entitled to taste them.
Previously, there had been several powerful hatchlings around, including Gordon.
Even Xiluo had found it somewhat troublesome to get a taste of leg meat because his body was not strong enough.
Now, with several powerful hatchlings absent, he sprawled over a chunk of hind-leg meat and feasted, without even needing Alicia's earlier promise.
As he ate with relish, Xiluo sensed something amiss and turned to look to one side.
To his surprise, the two Young She-Dragons, Alicia and Martha, were not eating. They simply stared at him, their expressions indescribably strange.
He was rather puzzled.
He blinked.
Although I've become a cute, handsome male blue dragon, my body hasn't even fully developed yet. How am I already attracting Young She-Dragons?
Do these female dragons develop and reach sexual maturity faster than males?
This is far too strange!
He paused, baffled, then frowned and buried his head in his meal again.
The three hatchlings bound in midair also noticed their companions eating. Listening to their crunching, they all whimpered and struggled nonstop, looking deeply distressed and remorseful.
The hatchlings were only the size of leopards, but their appetites were enormous. Each could eat nearly a hundred pounds of meat. Once all the dragons had eaten their fill, before they could rest, Barbara spread her wings atop the Giant Tree and slowly descended through the air.
The ground shook with her landing.
No words were needed.
The hatchlings all turned their gazes toward the young adult green dragon, waiting for her to speak.
"You should all have seen just now that Xiluo and I talked up in the tree for a long time!
"He's different from you! Though he's just as young, he already possesses considerable wisdom! As for you fools, who only ever fight among yourselves to establish who's better!
"He even came up with a brilliant idea!
"Do you want to show how strong you are? Prove your abilities?
"It's simple! Just compete properly in the four events we'll be holding soon!
"Whoever gets the best overall results will be the strongest dragon!
"And the future leader of the Dragon Legion! Not only will I acknowledge your strength!
"I'll also report the results to the Dragon Mother! I'll let every creature in the Green Forest know how strong you are! You'll become the true number one dragon in the Green Forest!"
"Tell the Dragon Mother and every creature in the Green Forest?! The number one dragon in the Green Forest?"
The hatchlings trembled at her words, their eyes shining.
Wasn't this precisely what they dreamed of?
The strongest dragon, standing above more than a dozen hatchlings! The future leader of the Dragon Legion! Recognition from the Dragon Mother! A mighty dragon revered and feared by every creature in the Green Forest!
And the number one dragon in the Green Forest?
Wasn't that just... far too cool?
"So what are the four events? How do we compete?" Alicia immediately asked. The other hatchlings also gazed eagerly at Barbara, brimming with anticipation.
"It's simple! These four events.
"They'll test strength! Speed! The power of your breath! And the number and strength of the spells you've mastered!
"For the strength contest, you'll pair up, stand inside a circle together, and grapple, testing pure strength! Whoever gets pushed out of the circle first loses!
"The winners will keep competing until the last one remaining is declared the strongest!
"For the speed contest, all dragons will participate together, running one kilometer at the same time. Whoever finishes first wins!
"As for breath power..."
Barbara explained, one by one, the methods she had discussed with Xiluo earlier.
The little hatchlings all looked surprised, struck by the realization that they could compete this way too.
Many hatchlings voiced their admiration. Excited, they rubbed their claws together, ready to prove themselves in the coming competition.
At the edge of the gathering, Little White Dragon Allen craned his neck, looking at Xiluo with a slightly different gaze.
The two Young She-Dragons, Alicia and Martha, exchanged a glance.
That Xiluo! He actually thought of a way like this to resolve the hatchlings' fighting! He'd solved a little problem for Lady Barbara!
What a little bootlicker of a hatchling!
Still, at least the leader's throne would ultimately be decided by strength!
Just you wait, Xiluo! I'll beat you flat in the coming competition! I'll make you give up those ideas you shouldn't have!
But then again.
What had Xiluo gained from helping Barbara solve her problem?
Could it be gold coins and gems?
Yes! It had to be gold coins and gems!
When none of the hatchlings had any way of obtaining those treasures, you got them from Barbara. You must feel so pleased with yourself, right?
Pleased that you accomplished something the other hatchlings couldn't, pleased that you're above the rest!
Damn it!
I've actually been surpassed in this respect?
The base instincts rooted in their draconic genes twisted the two Young She-Dragons' faces with jealousy at the mere thought.
"All right, that's everything I have to say. As for the first competition.
"It'll be held in a month! Until then, if you want good results, train hard! If anyone gets into pointless fights, I'll disqualify them! They'll be placed dead last! They'll become the weakest dragon in the entire Green Forest!"
After finishing, Barbara gave the hatchlings another fierce glare before flying away again.
Seeing that it was getting dark, the hatchlings returned to their dens one after another.
Xiluo had just returned to his den and lain down to rest.
Then he sensed something watching him from outside. He immediately crawled back out, only to see the two Young She-Dragons, Alicia and Martha, standing not far away, staring at his den.
"These two female dragons haven't really fallen for me, have they? But... I haven't even fully developed yet!"
Both startled and bewildered, Xiluo looked down at the tiny, scale-covered thing on his lower body, his expression strange.
The two hatchlings in the distance said nothing. They stared back at Xiluo for a long time before slowly leaving.
"Strange female dragons."
Xiluo sighed, returned to his den, and quickly fell asleep.
His consciousness grew hazy.
It began sinking steadily.
Suddenly, he was once again beneath that starry sky, above that sea from before his rebirth as a dragon!
That incomparably enormous skeleton floated upon the sea, its limits still nowhere in sight.
But today seemed somewhat different from last time?
There seemed to be something extra beside that immense skull?
Xiluo stared fixedly at it. His view drew closer and closer until he could finally make it out.
The phantom of an extremely young white dragon lay facing the enormous skull, prostrate in the posture that signified submission among dragons. A long, thin chain attached to its body linked the two.
There seemed to be a subtle connection between them.
(End of chapter)
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