DEB 74

“So, you’re saying all these dragons are your disciples?” 

The voice, as it glanced at Ash, Vina, and Moot one by one, was full of doubt. 

Yasha gently stroked the heads of Vita and Zenith, who behaved like newborns despite their adult appearances. 

The dragons’ eyelids slowly closed and reopened, as if by reflex. 

This scene reminded Yasha of the time he had first taken Ash, Vina, and Moot into his lair.

They were just as bewildered back then.

Remembering the innocent youth of his current disciples, Yasha smiled faintly. 

Vita and Zenith looked up at him with wide eyes.

“Are they such good disciples that they make you smile?”

“Yes, they are all precious bonds to me.”

“They do seem like precious bonds… but isn’t this too many?”

Vita, still dazed by the sight of different kinds of dragons living together, remarked that he had never seen such a thing in his life. 

Ash snorted and pressed down on the head of the green dragon who had entered their home.

“What does it matter if there are many or few? The treatment is over, so once you’ve recovered, just get out.”

“Ash.”

“Yasha, as I’ve said before, is this place a dragon shelter? How many more are you going to bring in?”

Not satisfied with just Vina and Moot, now there were two green dragons. 

Ash, genuinely upset, thumped his tail on the ground. 

It had been a long time since Yasha had seen him act like this, it reminded him of Ash’s childhood.

Yasha laughed and narrowed his eyes.

“Ash, don’t be disrespectful. Sit down.”

With a loud thud, Ash’s knees hit the ground. 

Clearly, it wasn’t by his own will, as his eyes filled with frustration, he shouted, “Yasha!” 

Vita, watching this, sighed deeply.

“…Is he really your disciple?”

“Yes, he is.”

“I see.”

Vita, who had tilted his head in confusion, soon seemed to give up on thinking too deeply and relaxed in Yasha’s embrace. 

Ash, shouting in frustration at Yasha, caught the attention of the green dragon, who approached and, mimicking Ash’s earlier actions, pressed down on his head.

“Who do you think you’re talking to so casually? I’m hundreds of years older than you.”

“You’re just out of the hatchling stage, what’s with the age bragging?”

Ash, scowling, retorted snidely. 

Vita crossed his arms and looked down at the red dragon. 

Yasha and the others, including Zenith, watched the scene with interest, showing no intention of intervening.

Soon, Vita spoke with a broad smile.

“Hey, how old are you?”

“A thousand years, why?”

“Ash, you just turned 520.”

“Yasha!”

The lair remained as lively as ever with each new bond formed. 

While Ash cried out in protest, Yasha chuckled softly, and Vina and Moot teased him. 

Vita’s smile grew wider.

“Only five hundred years, and you’re acting all high and mighty?”

“So what? You’ve just outgrown the hatchling stage yourself.”

“That’s because of circumstances. Anyway, I’ve lived for seven hundred years.”

“…What?”

“Pardon?”

“…Seven hundred?”

The shock was not just from Ash. 

Vina and Moot also widened their eyes in surprise and looked at Yasha. 

They were seeking confirmation, but unfortunately, Yasha was just as surprised.

He had expected they might be older than the usual hatchling age but didn’t expect them to be seven hundred years old.

This raised serious concerns. How long had they been stuck in the hatchling stage?

Realizing something serious was happening, Yasha immediately asked Vita and Zenith to explain how they ended up here. 

The two dragons, grateful for the help they had received, readily shared their story.

Vita and Zenith had been living in a green dragon group during their hatchling stage. 

Just a day before they were to become adults, it happened.

“A demon suddenly invaded the green dragons’ territory. It was a very strong, high-ranking demon, unlike any we’d ever heard of from the elders. Even the elders were shocked and hastily ordered its extermination. But it wasn’t alone. Of course, no demon would enter a green dragon’s forest alone.”

Recalling the event, Vita’s expression twisted. 

The memories seemed vivid, and the old emotions were evident on Vita’s face. 

Zenith patted her twin’s shoulder.

“But at that time, we overlooked that fact. The enemy before us was so strong that we had no time to think of anything else. As a result… we were captured by the demons.”

“What?”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“…Can demons invade our territory without Yasha knowing?”

Vina’s eyes were filled with doubt and a hint of anger. 

Yasha had to swallow his confusion.

Never before had demons stepped into dragon territory without Yasha knowing. 

And this had happened over four hundred years ago. 

Even if he was in seclusion, he couldn’t have ignored such a powerful intrusion.

There were two possibilities.

Either the demon was as powerful as Yasha, or it was extremely skilled at concealing its presence, enough to evade Yasha’s detection.

When Yasha explained this, Vina wiped his face with his hand.

“Both are terrible, but I’d rather it be the latter.”

Yasha nodded in agreement and looked at Vita with apologetic eyes. 

Apologizing for not noticing and helping earlier, Vita raised both hands and shook his head. 

Zenith mimicked his actions, telling Yasha not to feel sorry.

“That was a matter for the green dragons. Besides, we heard you weren’t around at that time, Yasha. We were told you had left because you were disappointed in the dragons.”

“It wasn’t disappointment… It was fear that made me leave.”

“Pardon?”

“I’d like to hear the rest of your story first.”

Not wanting to leave the misunderstanding uncorrected, Yasha gently patted Vita’s head, urging him to continue. 

Vita rolled his eyes as if trying to understand Yasha’s words, then resumed his story.

“Anyway, we were captured by the demons, and they implanted shard-like things in our hearts to prevent us from growing into adults. Because of that, we remained in the hatchling stage, unable to transform into adults for three hundred years. During those three hundred years, we were subjected to various experiments by the demons, but we can’t remember much about it. Zenith, you too, right?”

“Yeah. …Sorry, I can’t remember clearly.”

Zenith awkwardly apologized, and Yasha, like them, shook his head and reassured them.

“If you can’t remember, don’t force yourself. Forgetting painful memories means you need to forget them to endure.”

Yasha’s tone was kind, but his expression was grim. 

Demons had invaded dragon territory, kidnapped young hatchlings, and subjected them to torture and experiments. 

Undoubtedly, many green dragons must have died trying to protect the young hatchlings.

I didn’t realize there were fewer dragons because new hatchlings had already been born by the time I returned, thanks to Ash.

Realizing his oversight, Yasha apologized once more to the two dragons and turned his gaze beyond the mountains, towards the human territory. 

Yasha thought of the demon lands beyond and sighed deeply. 

His feet tingle, and his fingertips prickled—a sign of something ominous.

Trusting his instincts, Yasha came to a conclusion. 

“It seems a great battle is imminent.”

The two species, whose territories had been separated and who had occasionally clashed, would soon face a significant confrontation. 

Otherwise, the demons wouldn’t have abducted hatchlings for experimentation.

They were clearly studying dragons.

Smelling blood on the wind, Yasha held his breath as Ash rose from his knees and laughed heartily.

“I actually welcome it. If we give them a proper beating, they’ll stop messing with dragons. Isn’t it a chance to show the difference in our power?”

“It’s not something to take lightly.”

“Shut up, Vina. Do you think I don’t know more about the world than you?”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

“Moot, don’t answer too!”

Thanks to Ash, the gloomy atmosphere didn’t last long, and the lair quickly regained its lively spirit. Yasha looked at his disciples playfully bickering and smiled gently.

Yes.

Even if a great battle is approaching, there’s no need to cower in fear.

Just as Ash said, it’s an opportunity to show the corrupt beings in the western lands their strengths.

That there is a guardian, Yasha, on this land. 

That there is good standing against them.

As if responding to his determination, the guardian’s heart began to beat strongly.