Chapter 202: Dilemma

Another person had died, and another name was added to the pillar. This time it was a young man named Rolus. Rolus was a knight, meaning he could control the aura that surrounded his heart to a certain extent. He died, however, when I asked him to try and use his aura and allow the mana to interact with his heart.

That was a bad decision. The second his defenses went down, the water mana rushed toward his heart greedily. The sudden influx of power made his heart explode, causing him to die on the spot. And so another name was added to the pillar, and another cold corpse was taken away.

The number of volunteers was down to thirteen. Seven men, and six women. The objective was still nowhere near being completed. I glanced at the sun that was slowly setting down in the distance, and then back at the group of people in front of me before I sighed and spoke;

"Let's call it a day. You can go get some rest, we'll resume the experiment tomorrow."

No one argued, instead, they all simply bowed to me and said their goodbyes one after the other before they made their way back to the church. Lana was the only one that stayed behind. A complicated expression could be seen on her face.

"What is it, child?" I asked, to which she raised her head, looked at me, and then sighed before answering.

"I-I don't know, to be honest. I expected the experiment to be hard, and the danger level to be high, but I thought I could— I thought I could handle it." She explained in a low tone. I didn't speak, instead, I remained silent and simply waited for her to continue.

"I knew the risk it carried, and I was, still am prepared to lay my life down for it. But, it's not easy seeing others who are stronger and more competent than you fail and die, you know?" Another sigh escaped her lips before she added;

"I guess I was foolishly thinking I was special." She gave a self-deprecating smile before she shook her head.

"Everyone is different in certain ways. That's what makes you special. I am sure there are things only you can do, and there are also things only those people can do. Everyone has a role to play in the grand scheme of things, sometimes it's as simple as that."

Lana fell silent as she pondered over my words. I didn't add anything and instead watched as the last rays of sunlight disappeared behind a large mountain in the distance. Darkness soon covered the plane.

"I understand, thank you, my lord," Lana said before she stood up and excused herself back to her tent, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

My mind slowly drifted back to the past as I thought back to my previous adventures and my previous battles. I thought back to my fight against my cute little brothers, then against the werewolf. I thought back to when I first learned to fly, and then to my grandfather's trial.

I thought back to the Royal Road and the countless fallen Dragons over there. I thought back to Amanita, and his death. And then back to my rite of passage. I didn't feel bad for the deaths I caused, though I would admit that perhaps I was hasty. Maybe there was truly a better way to handle that entire situation, but I wouldn't know.

If I had to choose again between completing my rite of passage or destroying the Kingdom, I was sure I would make the same decision. Perhaps, though I would go about it in a different manner. If there was one thing that stuck with me, however, it was my fight in the capital against that old knight.

He was strong and brave. I didn't think too much of it at the time, but he was truly strong. A lot of the humans were, but he stood out to me. The reason I thought of him was due to the way I killed him. I broke his mind with my soul space and left him as nothing but a husk of the man he once was.

I didn't know why, but that bothered me a little. His name was already forgotten, but his actions were worthy of respect. Although weak, I still respected his skills and resolve.

My mood was strange as I lay down on the platform and gazed at the stars above. I wondered why I thought back to the past. Perhaps the death of the two humans today stirred my memories.

I have forgotten what It meant to be human. Though I doubted I was as strong-willed as some of the ones I met here. Were all the other races the same? I wondered.

The humans stubbornly clung to life, the Dragons proudly threw theirs away to fight off the shades. 'What a mess.' I inwardly lamented.

I did not think I was as selfless as most of the other dragons. I didn't want to die, and I certainly did not feel any sense of moral justice to fight for the planet. If the sky was to fall, let the giants shoulder it. That's what I thought, what difference would I make in the grand scheme of things? The war had been raging on for years before me, and will continue for years to come.

But for some reason, the more I thought of that human knight and his unyielding face as he fought against me, and of the two volunteers that had died today, the more uncomfortable I became with the idea of running away. A part of me felt that it was shameful, while another part argued that I owe the world nothing.

"Truly, what a mess," I mumbled to myself before I stood up and shot to the sky. I needed to clear my hand, and what better way to do it, than with a night flight?

I tried to push back the intrusive thoughts and instead focused on the task at hand. How to fix the problem of the core. It seemed like the mana is unable to interact with the humans' hearts. Then what about the brain? I doubted the result was going to be any different, but I had no choice but to try.

Perhaps it would work with someone else? Maybe the problem was that Rolus was simply not suitable for that, and so he died. Maybe it would work with someone else.

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow."