‘! Is this from Reije……?’
Christina calmly surveyed her surroundings and felt Reije’s lingering presence.
‘Although still young, she was the most outstanding in the field of healing among the Green Dragons.’
Christina sighed, feeling both relief and embarrassment.
‘Yes…… Reije was here. Lord Isha noticed the birth of the Black Dragon hatchling.’
She tried to hide it as long as possible, but if Reije, an ally of Isha, knew, then the Dragon Lord must have known as well.
‘Thanks to Reije, the Black Dragon hatchling was saved…… Should I consider this a relief?’
It was a relief for now, but Christina blamed herself.
‘It was my mistake. I thought it would be safe with just Lyman since it wouldn’t leave the lair.’
Teleportation magic spans the realm of space and time.
When it fails, it can have terrifying consequences such as getting stuck between spaces or only partially transporting a body.
It wasn’t the kind of magic one should attempt alone for the first time.
‘Who would have thought it would attempt teleportation, succeed, and come out of the lair.’
Although not a perfect adult yet, the fact that it had the courage and skill to perform teleportation was admirable.
Though the result was absurd.
‘To come out like that and then chew on a mandrake raw.’
Of all things, to pick an herb that could be poisonous to a young hatchling instead of other fruits or medicinal herbs.
The child, who was lying limp and coughing, seemed mature and well-behaved but gave the impression it would end up being quite the troublemaker.
That was when it happened.
“……ughh, cough.”
The serpent, barely regaining consciousness, blinked and let out a small cough.
“Baby, really……. What is going on?”
Seeing the expressions of the spirit and Christina, the serpent timidly averted its gaze.
While she was at a loss for words, her heart tightened at the thought the serpent nearly died.
‘I should have been more vigilant to prevent reckless actions.’
The realization that her negligence nearly killed the child made her throat feel dry and scratchy.
Yet, she didn’t lose her tenderness, making sure the child was comfortable in her arms.
Though the serpent’s body was a mess, seeing her pale and terrified face, it realized it had made a mistake.
‘I guess…I really did something to be sorry for.’
Maybe that was why.
The serpent, feeling awkward from her care, couldn’t bring itself to meet her eyes.
“Nyuu…Nyu.”
‘I’m sorry for acting on my own.’
Originally, it intended to bow its head and apologize.
But due to being close to Christina, its head was resting against her chest.
‘……?’
Feeling embarrassed, it wiggled its hand.
He looked exactly like a child who instinctively realized he had done something wrong.
As it tried to lift its head, Christina held the serpent in her arms.
“Let’s go back for now. Your body took quite a toll.”
The heartbeat of Christina, so close to its ears, sounded unusually loud to the serpent.
‘……Christina was quite startled too.’
Firmly, Christina held him tighter as if not wanting to let go.
Usually, he would have pushed away out of embarrassment, but this time, he stayed quietly in her embrace until they returned to the original room.
‘Internal injuries, and his energy is all messed up.’
As the serpent lay in the crib examining his body, he clicked his tongue inwardly.
The strong energy of the herb had momentarily caused havoc.
They say too much of a good thing is harmful.
Since his desire to grow stronger had caused the situation, there was no one else to blame.
‘Well… as long as I survived.’
He decided to think of ways to properly conclude this situation later and concluded the mandrake incident with appropriate reflection and a bit of embarrassment.
‘I should be more cautious in the future.’
Thinking about how meaningless it would have been to die from eating a root just after getting a new life, he couldn’t even laugh.
‘At least all the training so far paid off.’
As he lay quietly, Christina left the room leaving Lai, saying she would find something that might help.
In a corner of the room, the serpent discreetly circulated his internal energy to heal his internal wounds while Lai, glowing faintly, crept in.
Thanks to the medicine given by the green-haired boy, he could fully control the energy from the mandrake that had entered his body.
‘Almost dying is almost dying, but now that the herb’s energy is inside, I should absorb it all.’
He immediately began to consume the energy of the mandrake through internal energy circulation.
Before he knew it, a small white bird with tear stains settled near his head and rubbed its cheek against him.
He felt the tears roll down his smooth scales, sinking into a strange sensation.
‘This feels weird.’
He was not the one injured, yet seeing someone else in pain, crying like they had lost the world, made him feel emotional.
Extending his hand, he petted the white chick’s head.
‘Don’t cry. It’s just a stomachache, at worst.’
“Peep. Peep. Peeeep!”
The small white wings brushed against his cheek as the chick cried even harder.
That’s when it happened.
Pop.
The tears gathering at the corners of the baby bird’s eyes shone with a clear light.
‘What is this.’
Tears, pure and without any impurities, sparkled like jewels as they ran down the smooth cheek of the serpent.
Drip.
The purifying energy burning away harmful things penetrated his cheek.
Sensitive to magic, the serpent instinctively realized something and marveled inwardly.
‘Could it be?’
He immediately wiped the baby bird’s tears with his index finger.
Episode 12 Transmission
Licking the transparent drop like a jewel, a subtle salty taste filled his mouth.
‘It’s pure.’
The small amount of tears he swallowed started to heal his internal injuries.
‘As I thought! These tears have the power to cure poison.’
The tears of the Phoenix.
Although not a full-grown adult, the tears of a divine bird that burn away impurities perfectly healed wounds and recovered severe internal injuries.
‘On top of that, a warm energy penetrated his danjeon.’
Smiling broadly at the unforeseen luck, he revealed his teeth.
‘This chick. It’s more useful than I thought?’
“Nyuu. Nyu-Kyuk.”
“Peep?”
Despite looking happy, there was a peculiar sinister feeling in the hatchling’s smile.
That’s when he felt a presence.
“You’re awake. Did you rest well?”
Christina entered the room with some simple food.
‘So you’re back.’
“Nyu.”
The serpent answered simply and nodded.
Seeing him appear much healthier than expected, Christina continued with a relieved heart.
“You must have been shocked. You’re okay now. It’s just that you’re too young for a hatchling and that’s why it was too much for you. When you get a bit older, mandrake won’t be a big deal at all.”
Her gentle hands stroked the serpent’s smooth head.
The serpent, indicating it was fine, raised his upper body and looked at her.
“Nyu. Nyuu!”
‘This much, I’ll be fine in no time.’
Christina felt astonished again.
He had been wheezing when she brought him in, but now, aside from looking a little tired, there were no signs of injury.
‘Even though she had the help of Reije, a Green Dragon, this level of recovery is astonishing.’
With healing magic from a powerful Green Dragon, his recovery was still exceptional.
‘This child, with so much talent, is too extraordinary to grow as an ordinary hatchling. Perhaps he’ll become greater than anyone else.’
Noticing an unusual atmosphere, the serpent looked at Christina.
‘I hope she doesn’t suspect I’m some suspicious character. Worse comes to worst, I can use this bird as a hint.’
Sitting quietly with the chick in mind, her hand gently held the tiny paw of the beast.
“Baby.”
“Nyu?”
“I’m thinking of casting a ‘transmission spell’ on you.”
“……Nyu?”
‘What’s that?’
Seemingly answering his thoughts, Christina continued.
“Through the transmission spell, you’ll gain or awaken our culture, magic, ancient language knowledge, and abilities. There’ll be no more incidents of mistakenly eating dangerous herbs like today.”
‘Does that mean I’ll receive the knowledge of this world?’
The serpent’s eyes sparkled.
The idea of stepping out of the confines of being a baby filled him with expectation.
“Originally, it’s something we discuss once the body is a bit more developed, but I believe you have enough potential to undergo the ritual now.”
‘Of course. I’ll definitely do it.’
The serpent nodded eagerly, but Christina, with a worried expression, shook her head and smiled.
“Even thinking about it again, it’s absurd, but still.”
No dragon receives the transmission within a month of hatching.
Besides needing a mature body, the transmission spell implanted the roots of a dragon’s knowledge into the recipient.
The information and abilities infused into the subconscious absorbed and awakened as the spirit matured.
However, as a characteristic of the spell, it was burdensome for a freshly hatched hatchling to accept.
‘It’s a grand concept magic, and if mishandled, it could cause problems. But still.’
Despite the need for utmost caution, she judged it safer to give the child the knowledge and concepts to handle its power after the mandrake incident.
‘It’s not just the mandrake. Since the Dragon Lord knows of this child’s existence, it’s better to help him create a foundation for living on his own.’
She wanted to help as much as she could, but simply protecting him was not the only way.
‘Especially since the child already managed to figure out teleportation magic on his own, it’s impossible to keep him completely within my protection.’
Though harsh, it was a method she believed suited the child’s character.
“This magic will awaken your abilities but it’s painful and dangerous. Also, it requires complete trust and surrender to me.”
The transmission spell.
An ancient incantation rumored to have been used by a god to bestow knowledge upon intelligent beings in the world.
It allowed the transmission of culture, knowledge, and abilities irrespective of species. It was a magic so rare that there were few in the entire continent who could use it properly.
Few could properly execute it and its conditions were stringent.
The terrifying aspect of this magic was the potential for the transmitter to inadvertently impart incorrect knowledge or ideology to the recipient.
For this reason, dragons never cast it on very young hatchlings.
The mere possibility of impacting the young, impressionable mind of a hatchling made it a threatening factor.
Thus, a restriction was placed on the transmitters of the transmission spell.
The transmission spell could be cast only once in a lifetime.
Generally, this meant it was like a coming-of-age ritual that dragons would bestow upon a cherished hatchling or significant entity.
It was a heavy topic, ordinarily too much for a young hatchling, as she spoke calmly.
“Baby, can you trust me?”
The serpent’s eyes reflected Christina.
Lai circled around them anxiously, worried about Christina.
As if to say not to worry, she smiled at him, lightly touching the sprite of light with her finger, but then her face grew sombre.
“Actually, I wanted you to have a more ordinary childhood. Children who grow up too quickly know things they shouldn’t too early.”
Such as the fact that black dragons are solitary beings.
Or about those who obliterated their species.
She couldn’t be sure it was good for him to learn such things while he was still supposed to be innocent.
The serpent pondered while looking at Christina.
‘Unnecessary worry. I have already lived 999 years. Well…though I appreciate the concern.’
Just from listening to her, he knew it wasn’t a power to be taken lightly. He guessed this spell would have certain restrictions or stringent conditions.
‘It must have been a tough decision. I should repay this kindness someday.’
Receiving appropriate consideration because he was a child wasn’t something that happened often.
Teaching warmth instead of learning how to scavenge alone, and learning to consider others before conquering others was rare in the world he had seen.
Many were taught to create groups matching their level rather than making companions, in a harsh world.
To him, the things Christina taught were rare and invaluable.
‘She said it would be painful. I can endure that.’
