CHAPTER 459: CHAPTER 272: UTTER DEFEAT

All the Metal Dragons in the vicinity who heard the name ’Bahamut’ showed looks of astonishment and uncertainty.

They were shocked that David, this Red Dragon, dared to directly call out the name of their Platinum Dragon God, and were even more puzzled as to why such an offensive act hadn’t incurred any divine punishment.

It was only because they were dragons and not humans that they didn’t break out in a cold sweat from the terrifying implications.

Even without sweat glands, their minds overheated to the point where they all stuck out their tongues, their eyes vacant, appearing rather unintelligent.

Their brains were nearly fried by this single statement, which carried an enormous amount of information and simultaneously struck at the pillars of their faith.

"How... how is this possible?!" An indescribable panic began to spread among the dragons.

"You actually dare to publicly desecrate the great Dragon of Justice..."

"Tsk, it’s impossible to reason with you Metal Dragons."

Recalling how their group had nearly met disaster in the Grey Wilderness due to the sudden appearance of that ’Dragon of Justice’, the Wrath buried deep within David’s heart began to stir. He scoffed, "Desecration? Perhaps. But the King of the North Wind I met was neither just nor great. He was no different from our Aunt Tiamat, who is greedy, despicable, and loves to scheme behind other dragons’ backs."

These words undoubtedly left the group of dragons speechless once again.

They realized they might have misjudged this Red Dragon. The fellow was ruthless enough to desecrate even his own Dragon God when provoked.

But on second thought, that was typical. Red Dragons were like that. When their Wrath flared, they recognized no kin.

In stark contrast to the Metal Dragons prostrated on the ground, David, this Red Dragon, slowly rose onto his hind legs as he spoke, "If you want a fight, then bring it on! When words become redundant, let claws and fangs do the talking!"

No sooner had David finished speaking than his shoulders and head were occupied by his three daughters—each embodying Pride, Wrath, or a ’Greed-driven Far-sightedness.’ They bared their teeth at the assembled dragons. Octavia, his third daughter and a Red Dragon herself, was especially defiant, her gaze contemptuous as she roared, "You want to fight?! Come on, then! Come on!"

"Hey! Children, come back here!" Serisilis, their Silver Dragon mother, had looked away for only a moment to find all her children had darted out. The shock made her scales stand on end.

She then realized it wasn’t just the three young dragons; Attilicia and his daughter Tania had also, at some point, moved to David’s side, adopting attack stances.

This was an understanding they had reached before setting out: if a fight was inevitable, they would fight their way to the Silver Dragon King. They did this for the safety of their entire family and for the fate of the entire Dragon Race.

Just then, another Silver Dragon landed before David’s family, positioning himself between the two sides like an experienced peacemaker. "Darkels, don’t be so rigid, man. As the eastern proverb from Toriel goes, ’All who come are guests.’ Give me, Sebriz, some face."

"Sebriz! You get your tail back here!" yelled Sebriz’s father from the crowd of dragons. He had only just made an exception to allow Sebriz back into the clan due to his outstanding talent, and now his vision blackened; he nearly fainted from rage.

Is this really a matter of face right now? Sebriz’s father fumed internally. This dangerous stunt could drag our entire clan onto the scrutiny list!

Darkels, who had grown up with Sebriz, seemed to completely ignore the dragon who had suddenly darted out. He took a deep breath and pointed his tail tip at David. "Take them down!"

But just as the dragons dived towards David’s family, and it seemed a battle was about to erupt on Dragon Island, a voice shouted from a distant main peak, "Wait!"

However, like arrows already loosed, their charge couldn’t be halted instantly.

Some members of the Claw of Justice, in particular, had long been irked by David, a fellow young dragon. They planned to seize this chance to thrash the uninvited Red Dragon first and ask questions later.

The Gold Dragon who had called for them to stop finally grew desperate and shouted again, "This is a supreme decree from the Dragon Court!!!"

Motherf***ers! The members of the Claw of Justice all cursed internally in unison.

However, bound by the Silver Dragon King’s decree, they all spread their wings in mid-air to brake sharply, simultaneously veering away from David and his family.

This inevitably led to a comical outcome: like a cavalry troop in a chaotic charge, many members of the Claw of Justice collided with each other mid-air due to their abrupt evasive maneuvers and tumbled from the sky.

They plunged head-first, like upended scallions, into the perennially snow-capped peaks of Sweetland, creating a truly spectacular, if embarrassing, scene.

Many dragons witnessing this embarrassing display by the Claw of Justice raised their claws to their foreheads, unable to bear the sight.

"Uh..." David and his family, who had braced for a fierce battle, were instead left speechless, staring at the hillsides now dotted with wriggling dragon posteriors that resembled giant white radishes stuck in the snow.

David couldn’t help but turn to his dragon father, whose expression was one of shattered illusions. Clicking his tongue, David remarked, "So, this is the Claw of Justice you were so eager to join but couldn’t? Good thing you’re only a reserve member."

His father sighed. "I had no idea that when our Martial Technique instructor told us ’you are the worst batch ever,’ he wasn’t just trying to motivate us. The Claw of Justice... it truly seems each generation is worse than the last."

"Exactly! It’s a good thing I returned late," Tania chimed in with a sigh, as if worried that any association with the Claw of Justice would become a stain on her draconic reputation.

These comments from the family, whether intentional or not, undoubtedly twisted the knife in the wounds of the already humiliated members of the Claw of Justice.

Darkels finally managed to pull his head from the rock-hard ice layer. He looked up at the young Gold Dragon in the distance, who was now slowing his wingbeats to land. "What in the world is going on, Erickson?!"

David followed the gaze of the Silver Dragon guards and saw a young Gold Dragon wearing the Crown of Mana, a circlet embedded with magical crystals. This Gold Dragon displayed a lively disposition, a stark contrast to the typically aloof Darkels. Spreading his claws in a shrug, Erickson replied, "How should I know? You know I’m just the messenger."

"Hey! Brother Erickson! So, you guys who spend all day cooped up studying the Dragon God’s oracles finally decided to move your butts, huh?" chimed in Sebriz. This ’Will-o’-the-wisp’ Silver Dragon, despite having been away touring for decades, seemed to know everyone. He approached with cheerful, light steps, his tail swaying.

Erickson, showing none of the reserved stiffness expected of a Dragon Court Priest, openly bumped tails with Sebriz and rubbed cheeks, exchanging scents. Then, he nonchalantly replied, "You bet. Who else but me would be stupid enough to believe my old man’s idiotic life advice and choose a dead-end career like Dragon God Priest? I regret it every day! All I do is sit in the Dragon Court’s Temple, ’chanting and interpreting.’ We have a grand old time trying to make sense of it all, but the Dragon God never gives a clear answer. Sometimes the messages are even downright contradictory! My butt’s about to grow moss from sitting so long, damn it!" As he spoke, he lifted a paw and scratched his large rump, much like a big orange tabby cat.

The group of Metal Dragons couldn’t bear to watch. These two were their own kind, yet they were shattering Dragon Island’s image to smithereens right in front of outsiders.

This is kind of interesting, David thought. Contrary to his prior impression, Dragon Island didn’t seem as uniformly rigid and monolithic as he had imagined. There were still some amusing ’progressive youths’ around, even if their idea of progress wasn’t necessarily what the older generation wanted to see.

Finally, Darkels couldn’t stand it any longer. He cut short the leisurely chat between the two childhood friends and asked directly, "So, what do the elders at the Dragon Court intend?"

This time, Erickson, the Gold Dragon, grew serious and somber. "It’s not the elders. This is the will of His Majesty, the Silver Dragon King."

"His Majesty has awakened?" Darkels sounded incredulous. Awake at this very moment? Isn’t that a little too convenient? After all, securing an audience with the Silver Dragon King is no easy feat; such opportunities usually come only once every few decades.

But Erickson had no time to dispel his childhood friend’s doubts. Instead, he turned and looked deeply at David. "His Majesty wishes to see you. Come with me."