Moving

His improved flying ability made hunting easier than ever. Over the next few days, Sol returned laden with prey almost every time he went out.

Whether because of the plentiful food or the effects of that vitality, he discovered that his growth had sped up once again.

In just a few days, he had grown another foot from head to tail, reaching nearly ten feet in length.

In the section beneath the wheel in his mind that displayed his basic information, his challenge rating had also risen from three to four.

Everything seemed to be moving in the right direction, yet Sol couldn't feel happy about it at all.

His so-called mother had been gone far too long this time, and she still hadn't returned.

Her usual hunting trips rarely lasted more than a day. Occasionally, she took longer, but even then, it was only about three days.

But more than five days had passed since she last left, making it hard for Sol not to grow suspicious.

At first, he could still convince himself that the dragon mother might have gone to take revenge on the creature that had injured her. But as time passed, he became fairly certain that she had simply abandoned her young and run off.

After all, chromatic dragons had no familial affection to speak of, and in their youth, they could lay a clutch of eggs almost every year.

To them, the hatchlings might be nothing more than some unusual kind of pet, or property, hardly worth cherishing.

What angered and depressed Sol wasn't that he had been abandoned, but why the dragon mother had abandoned her young.

Considering the wounds she had sustained earlier, even someone thinking with their ass could guess that the damned creature really had led the centaurs here.

I can't stay here any longer. I have to leave, the sooner the better.

Those centaurs haven't shown up yet, but most likely they just haven't pinpointed the dragon's lair. It's only a matter of time before they find it.

And three live red dragon wyrmlings are probably worth as much as three pieces of gold of equal weight. Once they're discovered...

Sol crouched in the shadow of the cave entrance, the sunlit wilderness reflected in his pale golden eyes. He planned to leave under cover of darkness as soon as the sun set.

Before that, though, he had to find a way to bring his so-called younger brother and sister along. It wasn't that he was particularly kindhearted; they were also a form of property to him.

As evil dragons, those two produced abundant negative emotions almost constantly. They were his best source of spiritual essence at present, and his only one, so he couldn't simply abandon them.

As he pondered, he crawled into the cave, raised the tip of his slender tail, and lashed it at the sleeping Xisitana and Kalpu.

A sharp smack rang out, followed by two yelps of pain.

The two wyrmlings sprang to their feet, their rump muscles twitching as they glared at Sol.

"Have you gone mad, you damned bastard?"

"Why did you wake us up?!"

Looking at the two idiots, who still didn't understand the situation, Sol couldn't help showing a trace of disdain.

How did that saying go? A creature's mind wasn't determined by how much knowledge they possessed, but by what they had experienced.

Just like his foolish younger brother and sister: despite possessing the dragon inheritance, they were still merely knowledgeable, short-tempered, and naive hatchlings.

"You two idiots with maggot-eaten brains are still in the mood to sleep? Haven't you noticed that the dragon mother hasn't come back for days?"

"So what?"

Xisitana tilted up her snout disdainfully and scratched her rump with a claw.

"Even without that old thing, I can live just fine."

Kalpu nodded repeatedly in agreement beside her.

"That's right! That's right! I hope she died out there, so I can inherit her estate."

The flames surging through Sol's blood sent anger rushing into his head. Without another word, he raised his claws and gave them a thorough beating.

"Damned idiots! That old thing didn't die out there. She ran away after running into a powerful enemy! Understand?!

"This place has probably already been exposed. We have to leave as soon as possible and find somewhere else to live."

The two wyrmlings fought desperately against Sol's assault, but with the huge difference in their sizes, all they could do was take the beating.

Before long, they had been beaten flat on the ground, only their resentful glares at Sol remaining as a final act of resistance.

"What proof do you have? I don't believe you."

"Since the old thing has run away, does that mean the treasure she left behind is mine?"

The two wyrmlings were concerned with entirely different things, and Xisitana's words made Sol's heart skip a beat.

But then he realized that, given a true dragon's greed for wealth, she would surely have taken everything she could carry before leaving. Even if she couldn't carry it, she would have swallowed it rather than leave a single copper coin behind.

"Naive idiot, what treasure could possibly be left in this cave? There's nothing but rubble all over the ground!

"If you don't believe me, go and see for yourself. Whatever you find is yours."

"Do you mean it?"

"Mine! Mine!"

Xisitana and Kalpu scrambled to their feet and raced toward the back half of the cave, tumbling over each other. No one could have guessed they had just been given a brutal beating.

Although Sol was certain the dragon mother would have taken all her possessions, curiosity made him follow them.

He watched as the two wyrmlings frantically tugged at the boulder blocking the back half of the cave. After great effort, they pulled it open just enough to squeeze through, stretching their necks as they went in.

Then two piercing wails echoed through the cavern, as though their own mother had died, heartbreaking to hear.

"No!! How can there be nothing at all?!"

"That damned old thing! She didn't leave us a single coin!"

Sol watched from a distance, disdain once again showing in his eyes, yet he couldn't help feeling a little empty inside.

Just moments ago, he had been thinking of an excuse to go back on his word, ready to rush in and snatch any valuables the two wyrmlings found.

His only reason for doing so was to make them produce more spiritual essence.

"Do you believe me now? Get ready. As soon as the sun sets, we leave."

He told them to get ready, but what did three wyrmlings living in the wilderness have that was worth packing?

All they owned were some shiny stones they had found while hunting, and those were worthless.

Even so, Xisitana and Kalpu carefully tucked them into the gaps between their scales, paying no mind to the discomfort.

After night fell, the three wyrmlings glided out of the cave as they usually did when hunting. Once they landed, they exchanged glances before, as one, looking at Sol.

He was the strongest of the three wyrmlings and the one who had proposed leaving, so naturally, it was up to him to decide where they would go.

But although Sol possessed the dragon inheritance, he was just as ignorant of their current location. How could he know which way to go?

He could only pick a direction at random and take off on all fours, leading the two wyrmlings in a mad dash.

Not long after they left, a dense clatter of hooves surrounded the mud-and-stone hills.

A sliver of moonlight emerged from the darkness and crept up to the cave at the top of the hill. A large, bony hand reached out and picked up a broken scale from the ground.

"Found you!!"