Chương 21: Reborn as the Dragon: — Chapter 21 - Transforming the Basic Furnace

The Kobolds hadn't tasted a victory this satisfying in a long time. As beings whose combat power sat near the absolute bottom of Silvermoon Forest, small clans like Bolikri's, with only a few dozen members, mostly survived by hiding inside their caves and hoping the world forgot about them. Their traps were genuinely formidable, but only inside the narrow tunnels where they worked best. Today's victory came mostly from Su Nian's two blasts of dragonfire, which had left the bandits too dazed to function.

He was only a level 30, third-tier Juvenile Dragon, technically still in the 20-30 range. But in the outer reaches of Silvermoon Forest, Su Nian walked sideways and nobody argued about it. The human bandits had also turned out far weaker than he expected. He'd seen none of the mages-thick-as-dirt, knights-around-every-corner picture he'd half-imagined. Maybe Silvermoon Forest was just too far from anything that mattered.

After wiping out the Gale Bandit Group, Su Nian paid a nuclear-friendly visit to the Direwolf Bandit Gang in exactly the same fashion. Same tactic: Kobolds concealed in the surrounding brush with traps ready, Su Nian waiting for his moment and then going in to breathe. This time, unfortunately, the enemies didn't helpfully bunch themselves together. His dragon breath caught maybe a third of them. He pushed the kill speed as hard as he could, but it still wasn't fast enough.

Too many bandits made it to melee range with the Kobolds. These Kobolds, sixty to seventy centimeters tall and barely forty pounds, were simply no match in a straight fight. Their weapons only reached the bandits' lower half, which meant their strikes landed in places that were more humiliating than fatal: below the belt and at the rear. It mostly just made the bandits angrier. When it was over, Su Nian had gained five hundred-odd system points. He'd also lost seven Kobolds.

Including the one who always wore underpants. Su Nian observed 0. 1 seconds of silence on its behalf. Wherever it had gone, at least it was free from standing guard outside the Dragon's Nest every day.

"Kobolds hate all tall humanoid creatures." Bolikri said this flatly, then spat hard on the nearest bandit corpse.

"Present company excluded, of course, great master." His tail wagged as he said it. Kobolds were tightly knit internally. Aggressive and ruthless, yes, but never toward their own. Before a fight, they shared targets and worked out plans together. It was a fundamental difference from Goblins, who spent most of their energy attacking each other. The surviving Kobolds carried their fallen into the fire.

The ones who had been friends with the dead began crying in low, yelping whimpers, then wiped their eyes and reached for the roasted ribs, eating through their grief.

"May these children return to Kurtulmak's embrace." Bolikri's face had gone quiet and sad. Many of the Kobolds who'd died today were ones he had raised himself. Su Nian lay coiled nearby, studying the upgrade system, and felt relatively little. If something happened to Anna, that would devastate him. For Kobolds, though, it was... it was fine. The proud blood of dragonkind ran through him. The fact that he didn't oppress these Kobolds at all already made him a decent Black Dragon by most standards.

"Anna believes these Kobolds will find their way back to their god." Anna was draped across Su Nian's back, her big, bright eyes open. Something in the Kobolds' grief had reached her, and her voice came out soft and small.

"Because they were very brave." She had no love for humans and certainly no sympathy for bandits. She had tied herself to the Black Dragon completely. But she meant what she said. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Anna's words drew every Kobold's gaze. None of them spoke. But the way they looked at her was different after that, softer.

"System, I want to exchange for the Basic Furnace transformation." [Ding! Basic Furnace exchange successful. 1, 000 system points deducted. This transformation is extremely painful. Please protect your throat, Host.] Su Nian opened his dragon maw in a grin, ready to tell it to bring it on, and then the pain hit. A tearing, ripping agony from deep in his throat, specifically from the sac that stored his acid. It wasn't clean pain.

It was mixed with something worse: a maddening itch that crawled through the same area, both sensations layered on top of each other until Su Nian wanted to rip his own throat out just to make it stop.

"Mr. Dragon, what's wrong?" Anna noticed first. She looked down at the Black Dragon writhing against the ground, stretched out her small hands, and began stroking his neck gently. As if that could help. As if anything could help. It couldn't, obviously.

"ROAR, COUGH —" Su Nian convulsed with a violent cough, thrashing his head. Acid sprayed from his maw, streaked with crimson dragon's blood, carrying the faint sharp reek of sulfur. Anna panicked. She grabbed his neck and held on, her face draining of color. Her beautiful eyes filled with tears and she turned to the Kobolds, voice shaking:"H-hurry, please help him! Help Mr. Dragon!"

"Wuwu... Mr. Dragon, what's happening to you..."

"Be calm." Bolikri's voice was steady. He spoke in clumsy Common Tongue.

"Master is probably undergoing a Dragon's Inheritance." He kept his eyes fixed on Su Nian's swelling throat. Red light pulsed beneath the scales there. The sulfur smell thickened in the air around them, getting stronger by the second. He'd never seen anything like this. In his entire life, Bolikri had only ever encountered one true dragon, and that was now. But something told him what was happening to his master was not a bad thing.

With Anna's quiet, kitten-like sobbing as its backdrop, the Basic Furnace transformation finished. Su Nian emerged from the pain and the itch and lay still, catching his breath. If he could have seen inside himself, he would have found the sac that stored his breath fluid had changed. The organ wall, originally bluish-black, had grown new cells, bright red, spreading across the interior.

Those cells were actively secreting concentrated molten material, fusing smoothly with the existing gray-green acid, producing something new: a blue-green magma that pulsed like hellfire. It should have been impossible. But the System had made it real. His external appearance had changed too. The throat area glowed faintly blue-green now, pulsing in slow rhythm, not unlike a Red Dragon's throat, just a different color. Red Dragons ran orange. His was the color of ghost flame.

"I'm fine, Anna." He said it instinctively, and what came out was a low Draconic hiss. He'd forgotten his vocal cords still couldn't form Common Tongue. No other option. He curled around Anna, drawing her close, and pressed his dragon's head gently against her cheek. Hoping that would be enough.

"Mr. Dragon — are you really alright?" Anna cradled his head carefully in both arms, her big eyes scanning every inch of his face, her own cheek resting against his scales like she needed to feel him breathing. Honestly, the hard texture wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world. She didn't care. Su Nian nodded and began to lift his head — but Anna didn't let go. Tear tracks ran down her face. Fresh tears were still falling, one after another. She had clearly frightened herself badly.

When she finally spoke, her voice was thin and hiccuping, barely above a whisper:"M-Mr. Dragon... since Anna was taken, you're the only one who's been kind to her... hic... dragon..."

"An... Anna doesn't have any family anymore. Anna might not live very long. But Anna doesn't want to lose you..." [Anna Hathaway Affinity +10. Current Affinity: 50 (Close)] [Congratulations, Host, for reaching Affinity Stage Two. Obtained: Intermediate Devour. Special skill has been permanently solidified.] [Congratulations, Host. +3, 000 System Points.] [Intermediate Devour: Beyond restoring physical condition, devouring prey will now enhance strength and promote bodily growth. Not restricted by age.] Lore Note (feel free to skip) The Kobold god Kurtulmak resembles an unusually large Kobold in appearance. He stands about five feet tall, covered from head to tail in mottled green-black scales. His long rat-like tail ends in a venomous stinger. Divine Power: Intermediate Domains: Kobolds, Traps, War, Mining Worshippers: Kobolds Alignment: Lawful Evil Kurtulmak is a savage deity who keeps constant watch over everything occurring in the Prime Material Plane.

He is fiercely dedicated to securing every advantage for his people.

He teaches his Kobolds that so-called "fair" combat is a principle for fools and the unlucky. Retreating and returning stronger is always better than going down in defeat. And as long as a single Kobold still breathes, vengeance is not optional. Kurtulmak often says that revenge is one of life's sweeter luxuries for Kobolds, even when it requires a very long wait.

He also taught his children the art of clever tricks, cunning plans, and well-laid ambushes, which he considers infinitely superior to charging in recklessly with a sword and no brain. As a final note: Kobolds are not called Kobolds because they look like dogs. They're called Kobolds because their cries sound like barking. ➤ Next: Hear the Dragon's Explanation