Shut Up, Malevolent Dragon! I Don’t Want to Have Any More Children With You

Vol. 3 Ch. 31

A massive steel-blue dragon streaked through the night sky, its wings beating powerfully, causing a deafening sonic boom.

Clutched in its talons was the head of one of its own kind.

The head had long been reduced to a ruinous state, and its owner should have been at rest underground.

But those old fools from the Empire had turned him into that chaotic and pitiful monstrosity.

Fael wasn’t sure how to describe what he was feeling at that moment.

He didn’t pity Konstantin. Dragons rarely felt such emotions for members of other clans.

Yet, he couldn’t help but worry if his own fate would one day mirror Konstantin's.

Even in death, there was no peace.

"Perhaps Ravi was right. Once you get entangled with the Empire, it's hard to escape unscathed..."

Fael quietly recalled those conversations he had with Ravi in the far northern lands, where the Dragon King, skilled in spatial magic, often expressed his distrust of the Empire.

But for various reasons, Ravi had no choice but to cooperate with them.

In the end, he lost his life to his own out-of-control spatial magic.

And tonight, after witnessing the Empire's attitude and Konstantin's fate, Fael was more determined than ever to withdraw from their entanglements.

He just needed to wait for the right moment.

Otherwise, considering the Empire's methods, making Fael the common enemy of both humans and dragons would not be difficult at all.

"I'd heard that the Ironwing Dragon King was incredibly fast, but I never thought I'd get to experience it firsthand."

The human man on the dragon's back spoke leisurely.

"Mr. Scott, the reborn Konstantin, whom you all had high hopes for, has once again fallen at the hands of Leon Cosmod."

Fael reminded him, "Mr. Arlandi is likely to be very displeased with this."

In other words, he was saying, *Don't stand there pretending you're unaffected. Just imagine how your master will torture you when you get back.*

"Displeased? Hmm... Of course, he'll be displeased, but it’s not a big deal."

Scott was a little nervous, but still tried to maintain a calm demeanor. "The reborn Konstantin was just a test product for the fusion technique. If we lose him, we lose him. Anyway, the Empire still has plenty of materials, and we can always create more ultimate beings like him."

Fael knew exactly what Scott meant by "materials."

In addition to various organs from dangerous creatures, the most crucial material was dragon heart scales.

Those scales were the key to perfectly integrating Konstantin’s dragon head with the other dangerous organs. They could merge powers from different bodies and eliminate rejection between organs.

To be honest, until recently, Fael hadn’t even known that his kin’s dragon scales had such a function.

It could only be said that those humans were, in some ways... even more insane than dragons.

Their thirst for power was just as overwhelming as the dragons'.

Collaborating with such a race... it was only a matter of time before Fael himself became fuel for their ambitions.

Fael was a smart dragon. The risks involved in this collaboration far outweighed any potential benefits.

So, in the end, the only real solution was to escape!

Behind him, Scott was still bragging about the Empire’s upcoming plans, saying how the fusion technique would be perfected and how, next time, a revived Konstantin would definitely kill Leon.

Fael found it irritating to listen to.

But suddenly, he sensed a surge of energy.

Fael looked down, and his dragon eyes widened in disbelief.

That surge of energy... came from the head in his claws.

"Konstantin... could you still be alive?"

Even more shocking to Fael was that his silent question seemed to receive a response.

He listened carefully to the whispers of the undead.

As a fellow dragon, he didn’t need to feel sympathy, but lending a hand wasn’t much trouble, was it?

"I understand, Konstantin. I hope you succeed in your revenge."

The steel-blue figure cut through the night, heading straight for the human Empire.

...

Inside the imperial capital, in the fusion technique laboratory.

Scott hurried over, feeling nervous and anxious.

When he had taken Konstantin to the Red Dragon Sanctuary, Lord Arlandi hadn’t pressured him, saying it was just a test and that they didn’t necessarily need to eliminate Leon.

But Scott knew better. It was always best to only half believe what the boss said, or you’d find yourself in trouble later.

So, he went with the mindset of "we must kill Cosmod."

Yet, not only was Leon unharmed, but they had also reduced old Konstantin to just a head.

On top of that, they’d lost so many high-level dangerous creature organs, and the dragon scales had been wasted too.

The loss was significant, and with Arlandi’s bad temper, Scott could very well expect a severe scolding.

Then again, Arlandi had said it was just a test, so losses were to be expected, right?

As Scott reached the lab door, he made up his mind to first report the good news of the Red Dragon Sanctuary mission—however little there was—and then follow with the bad news.

After all, with some effort, there had to be *some* good news, right?

Finally, after an intense internal struggle, Scott found himself at the laboratory door.

He licked his lips, raised his hand, and was just about to knock when he heard Arlandi’s voice from inside.

"Will someone tell me what the hell is going on?!"

"If I don't have answers tonight, you'll all be on the gallows by morning!"

From the sound of it, Arlandi wasn’t so much a man right now as he was a raging bull.

Scott’s legs began to shake uncontrollably. He could already picture the expression on Arlandi's face as he yelled at the royal magicians.

But what could have happened?

Could it really be so serious that people were going to be executed?

Regardless of what it was, Scott thought it might be a good idea to head home and come back to report about Konstantin in a couple of days.

Just as he was turning to leave, the laboratory door suddenly opened.

"Scott?"

It was like hearing the grim reaper whisper. The sound sent chills down Scott’s spine.

He swallowed and turned slowly, "L-Lord."

"When did you return?"

"Ah, I-I just—"

"How did the mission go?"

Scott’s eyes darted nervously as he stammered, unable to answer.

Seeing the way he avoided his gaze, Arlandi snorted coldly. "You idiot. Where’s Konstantin? Did you bring him back?"

"Konstantin... I brought him back, but as for the rest, I didn't."

Scott nervously stammered out his response.

Arlandi frowned. "What do you mean by 'the rest'?"

Scott scratched his head awkwardly and clapped his hands.

Two attendants immediately entered, wheeling in Konstantin’s head on a cart.

Upon seeing the sight, Arlandi covered his face in exasperation. "You really are..."

At this moment, Arlandi felt a sudden urge to call Nacho back.

Both Scott and Nacho had failed before, but at least Nacho's failures weren’t so ridiculous.

"And the dragon scales? Did you at least bring back Bly’s heart scales?" Arlandi asked, his tone becoming more urgent.

Scott hesitated, his body leaning back slightly. "Ah, well... the heart scales were blown up by Leon too."

"Blown up?"

"Yes... he used some kind of long-range magic and blew up Bly’s heart scales, and then Konstantin... was torn to pieces."

Scott paused before quickly adding, "But, but, Lord, I risked my life to retrieve Konstantin’s head! As long as we have his head, and with the other heart scales in the warehouse, we can still create an even stronger fusion beast, right? Next time, we’ll definitely—"

"There won’t be a next time, Scott."

"W-what? Lord, you—Lord! Please spare me!"

Before Scott could finish, the massive Arlandi grabbed him by the collar and dragged him into the laboratory.

Once inside, Arlandi threw him to the ground.

"Leon Cosmod didn’t just blow up one heart scale."

Scott slowly lifted his head, looking toward the stone platform where the heart scales had once been stored.

It was now nothing but a pile of ash.

Arlandi’s voice grew colder, chilling Scott to his core.

"He destroyed the five other scales you brought back last time as well. The chain reaction from the explosion also wiped out the rest of the heart scales in the warehouse."

"In a single moment, that bastard destroyed years of the Empire’s work."

"If before, he had simply jumped out of this chess game, becoming an unpredictable variable..."

"Then now, he’s gone and flipped the entire chessboard."

"Leon Cosmod will never know what kind of force he has angered."

"From now on, the Empire will stop at nothing to kill him."

"Until... there's not even a speck of dust left of his bones!"