In one of the forests of Arcadia.
There was a massive dragon flying above it, covering it as if it were a fallen meteor searching for its prey to destroy.
It stopped in front of Rin, flapping its wings, and the gusts of wind produced by the beating of its wings were enough to uproot the entire forest from its roots.
It looked at Rin as if it were devouring him with its gaze—one eye, blue, cold and beautiful, yet terrifying.
It opened its mouth and released a powerful, thunderous roar,
It was heard throughout the entire continent,
Making everyone who heard it flee in fear.
Rin spoke with fear and anxiety:
"—What do you want? And also… how are you still alive?"
The dragon answered while laughing:
"—How am I still alive?.. Ask yourself that question instead. How are you still alive?"
Rin was astonished by his words, overwhelmed by great confusion, and his expression alone showed how shocked he was.
The dragon said:
"—Let me answer you. First, have you ever wondered why your father sent you to planet Earth among all the planets he ruled?
Because planet Earth is the most heavily monitored planet by his enemies, so there you would be exposed to danger more than anywhere else.
And it is also the most closely watched place by the rulers, and the rulers were aware that you were a survivor from your father's bloodline, yet they did nothing."
Rin's eyes widened in shock. Why?… Why did his father send him to a place where his chances of survival were extremely low instead of sending him somewhere safe?
"—Why? Why did he send me to a planet like this if it was dangerous?"
The dragon did nothing, but instead touched Rin's forehead and made him see one of Nitharayion's memories.
Nitharayion spoke from within the shadows, saying:
"—Falkis, do you really think that experiment will succeed?"
Falkis answered:
"—My lord, you are performing a forbidden experiment on one of your children who has not yet fully developed!"
Nitharayion replied angrily:
"—Then tell me, what should I do?! If I don't do this, a catastrophe will happen! We will fall…!"
Falkis answered hesitantly, his sorrow clearly visible:
"—But my lord, he is your son! Do you not feel any compassion for him? How can your heart allow you to perform such an experiment on a child who does not even know how to think yet?"
Nitharayion said as he clenched his fist:
"—Please stop! I am doing everything I can to preserve the existence of dragons! I am sacrificing a member of my own family for the survival of the dragon race!
Do you think I do this without caring? My heart is nearly shattering from pain, but I must do it."
Falkis understood how much Nitharayion was suffering, that it was difficult and at the same time necessary, but he did not want that experiment to happen—yet in the end, it did.
In that experiment, Nitharayion placed his child inside a laboratory,
And the experiments to create a new race began.
In that experiment, it was proven that a new race could be created resembling the race that Nitharayion had annihilated.
But the experiment was not completed.
After a few brief moments, the bells of war rang, announcing that the enemy had arrived!
Nitharayion rushed out in panic at full speed, reached the window, and jumped from it…
In the sky, he transformed into his dragon form.
He ascended, and there stood a tremendously great delegation—a legion of rulers beyond imagination.
One of them stepped forward and said:
"—Did you do it?"
Nitharayion answered:
"—No, I did not."
He replied coldly:
"—Then you are sentenced to annihilation for several reasons, the first being your arrogance and conceit."
Nitharayion looked at him with indifference, his gaze containing no mercy or compassion, only bloodlust.
Nitharayion advanced toward him.
With a single swing, he cut his body into a thousand pieces as if it were gelatin.
All those present were shocked by what they saw, and then the war began!
Both sides advanced into a battle that lasted for years, and in the end, not a single dragon remained in the universe—
Only Nitharayion and his family remained!
They were all looking at Rin with deep sorrow, and his mother said to him:
"—What a miserable life you will face, Rin!"
All of them, in a single moment, transformed into their human forms and embraced one another—for the first time in their lives.
Before the enemies reached them, Nitharayion asked everyone to hold hands and form a circle.
They followed his command and formed a circle.
Rin was crying, afraid of what was happening outside.
Nitharayion stepped toward him and said with deep sorrow:
"—Don't cry! Rin, I promise you that your new life will be much better than this one!"
He placed his finger on Rin's forehead and began drawing out the power and authority of those present, gathering it within himself, adding his own power as well, then passed it all as an inheritance into Rin. As he opened a gate, he said:
"—I hope you forgive me, for I will not be able to attend your next birthday. But consider this a gift from all of us—me, your mother, and your siblings."
At first, Nitharayion hesitated to send Rin to Earth…
At that moment, even the tyrant and overlord of the ancient world collapsed into his son's embrace, wishing he would not go.
Rin's mother tried to calm Nitharayion, easing the one who believed the world should be ruled by reason, now overtaken by emotion.
But the enemies began to approach, so Nitharayion steeled himself and hurled Rin toward planet Earth, wishing that Rin would die there!
Rin's eyes filled with tears from those memories, but there was something he did not understand—why did his father wish for his death?
The dragon answered (it was Falkis himself):
"—It was not meant in a bad way.
The inheritance your father placed inside you was originally meant to resurrect you anew!
Your father sent you to that planet filled with people who hated you and watched closely by the rulers because—
He wanted you to die, and then be resurrected again by the inheritance he placed within you."
Rin said with anger and suppressed sorrow, clenching his fists as tears were about to pour from his eyes like waterfalls:
"—That makes no sense! Why? He sent me to his enemies—does he think that this way I would obtain a beautiful life? What foolishness! And who told him that I wanted to lose my memories?"
Falkis said:
"—Yes, it may seem illogical, but it was for your own good…
He did that because he wanted you to forget everything that happened in the past, remember nothing, and have all emotions erased from within you so you would not feel pain or recall anything from the past."
Rin said:
"—But I do have emotions now, and I remember everything that happened! And if the inheritance was meant only to revive me, how is it still inside me?"
Falkis was confused, not knowing how to answer:
"—What do you mean you remember everything? And you have emotions? And the inheritance is still inside you even though it was already activated…!"
After some thought, Falkis concluded:
"—The inheritance inside you does not belong to your father—it is another inheritance.
Your father's inheritance dictates that you must die and then be resurrected,
With no emotions and no memories of the past."
Rin said:
"—That's true. At first, when I came to that planet, I had no emotions. But after I ate a strange fruit, some emotions began to appear…
And the memories! They began to surface when I confronted someone—I don't remember exactly who it was.
But I remember that my emotions reacted intensely, and I began to regain my past memories, and suddenly I became strong."
Falkis understood that someone had interfered with the inheritance and altered its original form. But an inheritance from Nitharayion could not be changed so easily, so he asked Rin:
"—When those powers came to you, what did you look like at that time?"
Rin said:
"—I remember that a black tail grew from me, black wings as well, and a black horn too, I think!"
Falkis's eyes widened. He smiled and whispered while laughing:
"—Black? Then that means the one who altered the inheritance is someone from the Underworld. But there is only one person capable of doing that."
Falkis whispered:
"—The only one capable of changing Nitharayion's inheritance from the Underworld is the Eighth Progenitor… Florahil. And it must have been planned by him for Rin to eat that fruit…!
What is Florahil planning?"
Falkis was utterly bewildered, countless questions filling his mind about the reason behind such actions.
---
In the Underworld.
The Eighth Progenitor, Florahil, was walking with Zaloria and speaking to her.
He stopped for a moment and glanced sideways. His hair covered one of his eyes, and he smiled faintly—a smile so devilish it suited him perfectly.
To be continued…