Legacy (1)
That day was like any other day.
An ordinary moment, with a cool breeze blowing in a clear, sunny sky without a single cloud, and the sound of waves crashing on the beach.
however-.
[Horus.]
The change started with a single word calling him.
“Yes?”
[Come here.]
Horus, who had been confining himself in the magic laboratory as usual to train himself, tilted his head as the serious voice of his guardian, the Elder Dragon Shreehartgen, echoed in his head.
‘What’s going on?’
These days, he doesn’t say anything and just watches me quietly.
But that puzzlement lasted only a moment, and Horus, who blinked his eyes a few times, immediately stopped what he was doing and turned around.
‘You’ll find out when you get there.’
Immediately after, a slight magical power occurred and the stocky body of the blond child floated into the air.
Huh—
And in an instant, the body was cut through the wind and shot into the lair.
In the blink of an eye, Horus crossed the residence and arrived at the place where the person who called him was.
What appeared before his eyes was, without any exaggeration, a golden creature the size of a garden.
‘···Of course, that thing is amazing every time I see it.’
A gigantic fuselage that combines an intimidating feeling that makes you bow your head and a beauty that leaves you spellbound.
Golden scales covering a mass tens of meters long scattered the surrounding light, spreading its overwhelming presence in all directions.
One thing about jade is that the luster of its scales, which once shined brilliantly, is now somewhat dull and dull.
Horus looked at the figure from the corner of his eye, then moved at a quick pace to where Schrihartgen’s head was and opened his mouth.
“I’m here, what’s going on?”
Perhaps because my tongue was short, it was inevitable that the end of my words would leak out whenever I wasn’t conscious of it.
Even though I’ve tried to fix it several times, I still see it like this, so I guess I’ll have no choice but to just assume it’s Horus’s personality until his body grows…
[I will die soon.]
“Huh?”
However, as if to dispel those seemingly good thoughts, the huge old dragon in front of me indifferently made an explosive statement.
Horus, who had paused for a moment at the content that did not match his calm tone, gradually began to widen.
“uh···.”
It’s probably not a joke…
Of course, I always assumed that that day would come someday.
Didn’t he say it himself on the day he first came to see him in the first place?
He says his lifespan is not long left.
‘No, no matter what, that’s true.’
However, I never expected that the notice would be announced so suddenly, as if that day was not that big of a deal.
Although we’ve been together for quite some time, he doesn’t show much, so I thought it was because he was a long-lived dragon and had a different sense of time.
“···Soon, when exactly?”
So Horus had no choice but to open his mouth like that, even though he knew it was a pathetic question.
Maybe you don’t know?
That ‘soon’ may be in years.
[Right now. Right here.]
However, his cautious doubts were immediately swept away by Schrihartgen’s firm words.
I couldn’t bear to say anything to the answer, which was so refreshing that it made me question whether it was right to talk about his own death.
[To be more precise, I should say that I am finally ready to die. If you can simply endure it for a long time, it will be possible for a few more years, but it is pointless to try to survive like that.]
At that point, I could understand how he could so confidently predict his own death.
In other words, he gave up holding on to life any longer and declared that he would end his life here and now.
Should we say that it is indeed an old dragon that has lived for thousands of years?
“No, even though I have cancer, I have to try my best to survive!”
In response, Horus frowned and protested in protest, feeling an instinctive repulsion that came out without him knowing.
No matter how much you want the family legacy that will be inherited after his death, how can you just let someone you have been in a relationship with for more than a year want to voluntarily choose to die?
[Horus, it would have been like this without you.]
“···Yes?”
However, despite that reaction, Schrihartgen just looked down at him calmly, yet with a hint of pride, and spoke calmly.
[Forcing myself to endure more here is the same as twisting the power of cause and effect to cut down everything I have and burn it to use as fuel. Not only the magic and vitality contained within my body, but also the status and karma I have accumulated over the years, as well as the fate given to me.]
A quiet explanation, like a grandfather telling a story to his grandson.
He spoke calmly so that Horus could understand why he made that choice.
[However, even if you try to gain longevity like that, there is nothing left. It literally becomes nothing. Of course, if the destruction of the clan was certain, I would have held out as long as possible without worrying about such things, but…]
Then, he stopped talking and lowered his huge golden pupils to look at the small boy standing right in front of him.
[Now that there is another method, we should choose the most efficient method for the current situation.]
If I’m going to end this, shouldn’t I leave at least a proper gift?
After looking down at Horus like that for a moment, his eyes gently opened and a smile formed in his pupils.
“······.”
Horus could not bear to say anything due to that one-sided favor.
What more can he say here?
He’s not a ‘real’ dragon worthy of your expectations?
If I leave something to you like this, does that mean I’m just a stranger who can leave this world at any time?
···No, that was not something to say to the old dragon who had made up his mind and was preparing for the end.
I knew very well that this was also a deception, but now it just seems new to me.
‘Because my very existence is no different from a fraud in the first place…’
When I first heard about the miscarriage, I was just excited and excited, but we ended up being together for a longer time than I expected and it seems like I developed a fondness for it.
If you think about it, it’s not like our bond was deep enough to fall into this sentiment, but seeing something so disturbing.
In the end, Horus, unable to find anything to say, sighed and muttered softly as if complaining.
“···Well, then, what should I do from now on? “To be honest, I have no idea what to do.”
[nothing. The current situation cannot be resolved by leaving it to just one hatchling. Until the time comes, you can just live the way you want. As a result, it would be inevitable even if our clan were to be exterminated with you, Horus.]
These were extremely irresponsible words compared to the expectations he had placed on himself so far.
Surely that would be realistic.
[First of all, since we have succeeded in buying time by passing on the generations, we will have to follow Dracalion’s wishes for the future. You’re a smart kid, so it won’t be that difficult to seize the opportunity when the time comes.]
After saying those carefree words, Shurihatgen gently closed his eyes.
It seems like that’s all there is to say.
“I···!”
The moment Horus, who had hesitated, opened his mouth again.
As if I couldn’t wait any longer, change began.
Wow—
An enormous magic circle appeared as if filling all sides of the wide cavity, and a dazzling golden light brightened the room in response.
At the center was a huge old dragon lying on the ground.
Each of the dull golden scales covering his large body began to glow, and soon his entire body was engulfed in light, emitting enormous energy.
[It was fun so far, Horus. Let me give you a parting gift. You’ll probably like it. It will be more helpful to you now than anything else.]
Just in time, Schrihartgen’s voice rang in my head again.
And the moment Horus heard those words, he could sense that the biggest reason he made his current decision was because of that ‘gift’.
‘What on earth is going on like this?’
He cried out to himself as he struggled to control himself in the swirling storm of energy, but the situation was already spiraling out of control.
It didn’t take long for Shurihatgen’s body, which resonated with the rare magic circle, to transform beyond the frame of a living being into a mass of mana in the shape of light.
[Ah—Drakalion.]
A conglomerate of energy the size of a mountain that is slowly collapsing.
At the same time as it was oxidized in the atmosphere with a brilliant light, its parts began to coalesce and compress into one point.
The lump of light that once filled this space shrunk to the size of a small hill and then to the size of a large rock, and finally—.
[Horus, then this…]
“Shrihatgeong!”
I couldn’t finish it like that and ended with scattered voices.
A golden crystal the size of a child’s head appeared in the air in the middle of an empty cavity.
A crystal that shines beautifully and is several times larger than the hatchling’s dragon heart that served as its medium, revealing its presence against the background of the still softly luminous magic circle.
···No, it was not just a dragon’s heart, it was the culmination of power created by an elder dragon who had lived for a long time by processing his own spirit and body.
Although significant losses were incurred in the process.
‘That’s…’
Horus, who had been staring blankly at the figure shining with light as if to tempt him, swallowed his saliva without realizing it.
I shouldn’t be like this, but for some reason I couldn’t take my eyes off that thing.
Boom!
Meanwhile, what was floating quietly in the air soon began to pulsate violently with an enormous flow of energy.
And then—.
“Huh? Hey, wait a minute…!”
The crystal that flew towards Horus in an instant penetrated into his chest and was absorbed as if seeping into him.
Still pulsating with enormous energy.
‘Ugh! This···!’
Horus, who had been staggering, sat down on the spot and clutched his chest.
Even though a crystal the size of his head had penetrated his body, it didn’t show anything on the outside, but I felt good about such physical phenomena now.
As he clutched his chest, he realized instinctively.
He said he was still far from prepared to fully handle its power.
His body, with all its modifications, had already surpassed the limits of a hatchling, but even in that state, it took a lot of mental energy to draw even a small portion of the power contained in it.
‘···It’s absolutely impossible to absorb everything right away. First of all, we have to put this to rest somehow…’
Was this a reaction to Horus’s embarrassment?
Even after entering the body, it showed off its fierce presence by spewing energy everywhere, but it gradually quieted down, and soon began to calmly obey control by gathering the energy it had been leaking.
As expected, it was a gift prepared with great care, and it seems like this level of consideration had already been thought of.
‘Whoa, I’m surprised. Still, if you’re going to give me a gift like this, at least let me know in advance.’
I grumbled for a moment, but it was only a brief complaint.
Perhaps Shurihatgen was also in a hurry to avoid further affection.
Horus remembered how he had always treated him harshly, and felt a vague feeling. He gently stroked his chest, which felt heavy and strong, a few times.
‘I had no idea things would happen so suddenly.’
Does this mean that we will live together in our hearts forever?
Although his soul left as soon as the ritual ended, and there was nothing left of him, he felt reassured, pounded his chest, grinned, and jumped up from where he had fallen.
And that moment.
《The potential of the individual is forced to bloom. Limits expand and growth accelerates.》
《The object grows by meeting the conditions. Acquire the special skill “Heart of the Elder Dragon”.》
《You will be given the power to become the last gold dragon. Acquire the special skill “Golden Treasure”.》
Messages began to appear before his eyes.
Changes resulting from the last gift left by Shreehartgen and the authority to head towards the clan’s pre-ordained legacy.
Still, I expected this to some extent…
《Achievement achieved! I became the last remaining ‘last gold dragon’ in this world.》
《I have become the one and only Gold Dragon in the Outerica dimension. As a reward, you will receive the special “Dragon Rare”.》
《He achieved great achievements and had a great impact on the world. Karma increases further.》
The contents of the next message were things that even he had not thought about.
