A Triumphant Escape

His powerful limbs alternated across the humus-covered forest floor, while the wind howled past his ears. Jose ran at full speed, not daring to stop for even a moment. Entering the forest did not mean absolute safety. He had to get as far away from the battlefield as possible—the farther, the better.

After running for quite some time, the sounds of battle had faded beyond hearing, and no flying enemies could be seen overhead. He finally let out a long breath.

"All right, Kashi. We're safe for now. Good luck to you too."

With that, he strode off into the distance, pondering where to go next as he walked.

He had not yet decided where to go when he heard soft footsteps behind him. Turning around, he spotted the White Dragon tiptoeing after him.

"Why are you still following me?"

"Th-the loot," Kashi said. He loosened his folded wings, and the spoils wedged between his wings and back clattered onto the ground.

Jose did not spare the loot a glance. He only looked at Kashi.

White Dragons were called the shame of the Five-Colored Evil Dragons because they were stupid, but they possessed every draconic instinct without exception: greed, cruelty, hoarding, and more. What Kashi was doing went against those instincts.

After spending several days together, Jose had come to understand Kashi much better.

Though his temporary ally stuttered and lacked judgment, he possessed beast-like instincts when it came to battle and survival.

"Go on. What is it?"

"C-can I keep... f-following you?"

"Why are you still following me?" Jose raised a brow. "The Red Nest is gone, the mission is over, and Yaligris has left. Our alliance is finished."

"Y-you're smart. If I follow you... I can s-survive."

Jose frowned. Kashi's words stirred up his worries—worries about the brutally realistic matter of survival.

The Dragon Hatchling stage had the highest mortality rate among dragons. Without their mother's protection, Dragon Hatchlings in the wilderness could easily be hunted down by other predators. If survival had not been so difficult, why would the Red Dragon brothers have signed a Protection Contract that was practically a deed of slavery?

He began considering the possibility of forming a survival team with Kashi.

White Dragons were weak. Though Kashi was two or three years older than him, he was only two-thirds Jose's length. That comparison might sound vague, so to put it more clearly, it was like the difference between Yao Ming and Pan Changjiang.

Still, Kashi was a true dragon with Dragon Heritage. Having one more companion to watch his back was better than fighting alone.

"All right. In principle, I agree to continue our alliance."

"Th-thank you. From now on... I-I'll listen to you."

Jose nodded in satisfaction.

Kashi might not have been very intelligent, but he was obedient and did not fight for authority. That was one major reason Jose had decided to bring him along.

Of course, the main reason was that Kashi had proven himself to be a reliable companion in the earlier battle.

The two dragons then discussed the specific terms of their alliance and swore an oath in the name of the Dragon God of Evil—Tiamat.

After swearing the oath and splitting the loot evenly, the two dragons hurried onward once more.

"P-pack... p-pack... p-pack up your bags~, the moment you leave home, you realize that real life has so many special ch-ch..." Jose hummed as he imitated Kashi, securing the loot between his wings and back while continuing down his path of escape.

Free from the Red Nest Sinkhole, he felt utterly unburdened!

He decided to flee the Red Nest Matriarch's territory.

After all, the chances of encountering powerful beings in this region were far too high. Former enemies were still enemies, while former companions were not necessarily friends.

Besides intelligent beings, Tydanore Continent was home to many strange beasts that wielded magical power. These creatures that surpassed common sense were collectively known as Extraordinary Beasts, and the countless varieties of Extraordinary Beasts made up the greatest danger in the wild.

Due to the instinct of living creatures to seek advantage and avoid harm, wild Extraordinary Beasts were almost nowhere to be seen within the Red Nest Matriarch's sphere of influence.

After fleeing for an entire day, the two dragons had reached the edge of the Red Nest Matriarch's territory. They did not dare keep running and instead continued on foot, moving quietly while observing their surroundings.

Jose looked up at the sun. It was around four in the afternoon, leaving only two or three hours before sunset.

"Kashi, if we can't find shelter before dark, we'll look for low ground and dig a hole ourselves. If time permits, we'll hunt and fill our stomachs."

That was right. In Jose's mind, finding shelter took priority over filling their stomachs. Going hungry for one night would not kill them, but wandering about in the dark could lead to serious trouble. Powerful predators often rested by day and hunted at night.

Because their red scales were so conspicuous, Red Dragons had a hard time concealing themselves in any environment. This was especially true at night in the jungle. A flash of bright red in the darkness was practically announcing to every other predator, I'm here. They had to avoid spending the night out in the jungle whenever possible.

These were survival strategies recorded in the Dragon Heritage—valuable lessons their ancestors had earned through firsthand experience. Jose had no intention of trying to be different.

The two dragons cautiously explored the jungle, overlooking no trace or clue.

Suddenly, Kashi noticed something unusual about a tree several dozen meters away. "L-look over there!"

Following his companion's pointing claw, Jose saw a pine tree. Its trunk was straight and tall, its bark rough.

There were many pines like it nearby, nothing remarkable about them. What was remarkable were the marks on its trunk.

The two dragons approached for a closer look. Between two and two and a half meters above the ground were crisscrossing downward claw marks. They were territorial markings, and they were fresh.

At the sight of those claw marks, Jose could not help thinking of a scratching post.

"A large feline. Judging by the proportions of a house cat, this big cat is at least one and a half meters tall and over four meters long."

After giving his assessment, Jose turned to his companion. "Cats shed fur easily. Search the area and see if you can find any loose hair, tracks, droppings, or anything else. And don't leave my sight, in case something happens."

"O-okay."

The two dragons searched the surrounding area and found some fur shed by the large feline.

Jose held the collected fur up for close inspection. It was yellow and black. Tiger fur.

He could not help letting out a breath of relief. A tiger being this large was normal. If it had been a medium or small feline like a lynx, they would have needed to be on high alert, because animals with abnormally large bodies were most likely Extraordinary Beasts.

"Split up and search. Find this tiger's den. If we're lucky, we'll have both shelter and food for tonight."

The two dragons were lucky. After searching for a while, they heard the sound of snoring and followed it to a burrow where the tiger was hiding.

Tigers were fierce beasts with no natural enemies on Blue Star, but they ranked nowhere near the top of the food chain in this fantasy world. Both Jose and Kashi were confident they could defeat one.

Hard scales, sharp claws and fangs, powerful muscles, and their trump card, Dragon Breath—those were the foundations of their confidence.

To be safe, Jose decided that he, the stronger one, would make the move.

He reined in his Dragon Might and crept toward the entrance. The soft humus beneath his feet absorbed the sound of his steps so well that the tiger did not notice anything wrong until he was ten meters from the burrow.

The instant the snoring stopped, the predator no longer concealed its presence. Jose sprang forward, pouring surging Dragon Flame straight into the burrow.

"Roar!"

A pained tiger's roar rang out, gradually weakening until it became a feeble wail. Before long, it fell silent.

After extinguishing the flames, Jose entered the burrow. Not far from the entrance, he saw his dinner: a tiger burned beyond recognition.

The tiger had been alert and quick to react. The instant it sensed something wrong, it had charged for the entrance. Unfortunately, its enemy had been far too strong.

Sharp Dragon Claws tore open the charred hide, revealing translucent fat connected to bright red muscle. The glistening fat looked incredibly tempting, greatly whetting the dragon's appetite.

"Thanks for the meal. Let's eat."