Chapter 24: The Battle of Dragons
"Six dragons together?" Muria looked down at the hatchling dragon Auston, a playful smile on his face. "Aren't red dragons supposed to be the proudest among the chromatic dragons? And here you are, not choosing to face me one-on-one but all six of you challenging me together."
Auston was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to respond. At that moment, Cynthia stepped forward from behind him.
"Muria, your veins carry the blood of the Gold Dragon, stronger than our red dragon blood, and the almost divine Titan blood. At your age, none of us can defeat you in a one-on-one duel, especially since you were born eight years before us. It's not unreasonable for us to challenge you together."
"Indeed, it's not unreasonable." Muria nodded, surprised by the little dragon's eloquent speech, which was unexpected from a red dragon.
"I accept your challenge," Muria declared.
No sooner had he spoken than Auston, unable to wait any longer, launched an attack on Muria. A cone of fiery breath shot towards Muria.
"Shut it." Muria extended his hand, slicing through the fiery breath and grabbed Auston by the mouth, forcing his jaws shut. His arm remained unscathed, inheriting immunity to red dragon breath from his Gold Dragon lineage.
"Let's take this outside; it's too cramped in here to fight properly," Muria suggested to the other five hatchlings.
Muria's room was quite spacious, having accommodated the true dragon form of the Gold Dragon Mother. However, for combat involving flying dragons, it felt a bit restrictive.
"Outside?" The hatchlings exchanged looks before nodding in agreement, eager to venture outside for the first time in their five years of life.
However, Muria had overlooked one thing: dragons are notoriously greedy creatures, and red dragons' lust for treasure is among the strongest. Upon leaving Muria's room, the hatchlings froze, mesmerized by the collection of artifacts displayed along the corridor, gifts from the Gold Dragon Mother.
"Stop dreaming. These are the collections of my mother, the legendary Gold Dragon Atreus, and belong to her. Unless you defeat her, you can only look. But that's virtually impossible."
Muria watched the six hatchlings, their eyes dazzled by the sparkling, mesmerizing treasures, mouths agape, drooling uncontrollably.
His words went unheard as the hatchlings were overwhelmed by the allure of the treasures. Except for Renata, whom Muria had to drag away by the tail, the other five hatchlings rushed forward, each claiming a piece for themselves and admiring it greedily as saliva dripped down.
Complex and profound magical formations then appeared on the treasures held by the hatchlings, repelling their drool and securely anchoring the items to their crystal displays.
The hatchlings' attempts to remove the treasures from the displays were in vain; the artifacts stood firm, as if rooted to the spot.
"It's futile unless you can break the legendary enchantments protecting this castle. You won't be able to move Lady Atreus's treasures even a bit."
Sophia, the head maid following Muria, watched the hatchlings' foolish attempts with a blank expression, her words of mockery falling on deaf ears as the hatchlings were captivated by the treasures.
"This armor, interwoven with plenty of electrum and mithril, is worth at least 1.2 million gold coins."
"This staff, forged entirely from void star metal, is worth at least 800,000 gold coins."
"This battle axe, crafted from a blend of godsbane iron and meteoric steel, is a priceless treasure."
...
Muria watched the hatchlings, speechless as they appraised the treasures they clung to, utilizing the inherent draconic ability to evaluate the value of objects, an ability he rarely used.
Sophia motioned for the dragon maids to bring food for the hatchlings, who hadn't left. Working in groups of six, they managed to pry the hatchlings away from the treasures amid their pitiful howls and carried them off.
To the treasure-obsessed dragons, the maids' actions were the ultimate insult. The hatchlings struggled in vain against the dragon maids, who carried the five away, following Muria, who held Renata, out of the castle. Once outside, the maids, working in groups, tossed the hatchlings one by one outside.
"Bang!" The castle doors closed firmly behind Muria, snapping the howling dragons out of their lament over the "lost" treasures, only to be amazed again by the grandeur of the vast and majestic crystal castle built entirely of magical crystals.
"Is there really such architecture in the world, constructed entirely of magical crystals?"
"How much is it worth in gold coins?"
"I can't even estimate its value!"
...
"Enough!" Muria couldn't stand the hatchlings' greedy behavior anymore. "This castle, including the treasures inside, belongs to my mother, the legendary Gold Dragon Atreus, and has nothing to do with you."
Muria's words cut deep into the hearts of the six hatchlings, chilling them to the core.
"We were born and grew up here," Cynthia weakly argued.
"Yes, as my pets," Muria flashed his white teeth.
"This castle belongs to your mother, right?" Auston looked up at Muria as if seeing a gold mine, his eyes sparkling. "Cynthia, Andrei, let's defeat Muria together and then kidnap him to extort a ransom from his mother."
Calling his siblings to action, Auston's plan was met with disdain from Cynthia, who found it absurd to even consider kidnapping the offspring of a legendary Gold Dragon on her own territory.
To her disbelief, aside from Renata, the other three hatchlings eagerly agreed, leaving her feeling intellectually superior while dismayed by their foolishness.
"Kidnap me for ransom?" Muria laughed at the hatchlings' scheme but understood their youthful naivety. "First, you'll have to defeat me.
If you lose, just continue to be my pets, okay?"
"We must defeat Muria!" The four hatchlings pumped each other up, full of fighting spirit, while Cynthia and Renata pondered other matters, their minds far from the impending battle.
In the grand arena, as Muria faced the six hatchlings, he spread his arms wide, declaring to them and the watching giants, "This battle has no limits to the battlefield: sky, land, or sea, anything goes until one side concedes defeat."
Then, turning to the surrounding giants, he added, "No creature is to intervene in our fight until a victor between us is decided."
"Well done, little Muria," mused the Gold Dragon Mother, transformed into a stunningly beautiful girl, lounging on her throne made of legendary metals within the Crystal Castle, watching the scene unfold on a crystal wall.
The image showed Muria and the hatchlings, with the Gold Dragon Mother lying back on her throne, murmuring, "It seems the group giant immobilization spell I researched in advance won't be needed. Ah, truly my child!"
In the arena, as a purple-haired Storm Giant in armor announced the start of the battle, Auston led the charge against Muria, followed by Andrei, Jessica, and Albert, with Cynthia and Renata bringing up the rear.
The six hatchlings launched their signature dragon breath attacks at Muria, which proved ineffective against him. Feeling like mere warm showers, Muria was amused rather than harmed.
Realizing their breath attacks were futile, the hatchlings ceased and prepared for close combat, led by Auston.
"Roar!" Auston roared, lunging at Muria with jaws wide open. The other hatchlings followed suit, aiming their bites at Muria.
"Hmph!" Muria, unfazed by the six gaping maws, had prepared for such attacks. Titan heritage provided comprehensive combat techniques against various creatures, including dragons and even deities.
"Swish!" With a swift move, Muria grabbed Auston by the neck, avoiding the others' bites with nimble footwork.
Lifting the struggling Auston, who scratched him with dragon claws leaving red marks, Muria threw him down onto the granite floor with force.
"Boom!" The impact sent a shiver through the spectators as a dragon-shaped crater formed in the ground, with Auston embedded in it.
Muria, with a chilling smile, surveyed the remaining five hatchlings before spreading his golden wings and taking to the sky, ready for aerial combat.