Chapter 11: The Awakening of Bloodline Powers

For Muria, who is still in the hatchling, or rather, infant stage, life has become quite monotonous. Every day upon waking, he routinely checks on the hatching status of the red dragon eggs.

As beings with lifespans measured in millennia, hatchlings stay in their eggshells for an exceedingly long time, so Muria shouldn't expect to hatch the red dragon eggs anytime soon.

The six red dragon eggs leisurely absorb the fire elements provided by the formation every day. Muria's job is to check if the magic crystals supplying the fire elements are depleted and replace them if necessary.

His daily life consists of eating, sleeping, reading, and occasionally changing the fire element crystals in the hatching formation. This is Muria's current routine.

The sun rises and sets, and time relentlessly marches on. The golden dragon mother has been asleep with no signs of waking, and that poor pair of red dragons remain bound in the hall. Fortunately, they're provided with food by the dragonkin maids, so they're not starving. Starvation is, in fact, impossible for them.

Muria's body continues to grow; he can feel himself becoming stronger. With time, his body undergoes special changes.

Muria discovers that when he breathes out heavily or sighs, tiny wind blades are expelled from his nose or mouth if he exerts a bit more effort. A few days later, after choking on his food, golden thunderbolts and flames burst from his mouth, turning his food into charred remains.

"Thunderbolts, hurricanes, and flames," Muria says with a proud smile on his face, "The power of the Titan and the golden dragon within me has finally awakened."

"Master Muria, congratulations. The power of Lord Ansol and your mother is perfectly manifested in you," Sophia, who has always taken care of Muria's daily needs, shows a genuinely joyful smile.

Unfortunately, Muria's pride doesn't last long. He can't perfectly control his newfound powers yet, often unintentionally turning his food into charred waste or a pile of mush. Consequently, he has to spend more time eating.

When reading, though he occasionally leaks power unintentionally, it generally doesn't cause issues because the books Muria reads are made of metal or special leather, and they're protected by enchantments set by the golden dragon mother.

As time flows like a surging river, the power within Muria grows stronger, both in physique and his mastery of thunder, wind, and fire.

According to Sophia, his power has reached the Silver Tier by Erathia's standards, a level most adventurers aspire to for a lifetime. And Muria has achieved this simply by living his daily life.

Unfortunately, Muria isn't too concerned. For him, the Silver Tier is just the beginning. Even the legendary level might not be his end. Muria is clear about this.

One day, as Muria reads a book, nearly seven years have passed since he emerged from his egg. His height, like his age, has reached seven meters, still looking like a chubby, winged giant infant, just not as plump as before.

The book he's currently reading is from the pile Sophia brought him about dragon eggs two years ago. Muria didn't ask Sophia to put them away because reading them was just a way to pass the time.

Unfortunately, Muria fails to notice the strange looks Sophia gives him while he reads because he doesn't realize how odd it is for a youngling to read about dragon eggs daily for two years.

A loud gurgle from Muria's stomach interrupts his reading. He looks at his belly then nonchalantly turns to Sophia.

The head maid frowns. Muria's schedule is quite regular, but today, his mealtime has to be moved up. She can't make him wait for his regular mealtime because he's hungry now.

She gestures to two maids behind her to bring Muria's food for the day.

When an eight-meter-long, deliciously cooked sea fish is brought in, Muria, at his limit, drops his book and disregards the etiquette Sophia has taught him over two years. He grabs the fish and starts gnawing on it directly.

Under the astonished gaze of Sophia, Muria devours half of the fish in just a few breaths, displaying a terrifying speed of consumption.

Sophia doesn't correct Muria's manners. As the golden dragon's steward, she understands what's happening. She turns to the maids at the door and orders loudly, "Inform all the cooks in the castle that Master Muria is about to enter his sleeping phase. Have them all report to the kitchen to cook without stopping until I say otherwise. Also, have a squad of maids stand by outside the kitchen ready to serve dishes."

"Yes, Lady Sophia," the maids at the door, momentarily stunned, then delightedly relay Sophia's orders. They're happy about Muria's upcoming sleeping phase because they see him as a gentle master worth serving.

The dragon maids show incredible efficiency. Before Muria finishes his fish, teams of two dragon maids each, carrying trays full of delicious food, appear before him.

After a moment of stunned silence, driven by hunger, Muria focuses on eating.

Eat! Eat! Eat! Muria doesn't know how much he's consumed; he only knows he can gnaw a sea fish the size of his body into a pile of bones in three minutes. The dragon maids keep coming and going, replacing the trays of food with piles of bones.

This unprecedented feast lasts six hours, leaving enough discarded bones to build a mountain. When he's no longer hungry, Muria collapses and doesn't get up. Then, a sound of thunder follows.

It's not Muria snoring, but actual tiny golden thunderbolts flashing from his nostrils and mouth, spreading over his entire body.

Sophia approaches Muria's seven-meter-long body, then lifts him by his waist with her supernatural strength, placing him on the bed as if walking on solid ground.

The room's maids, accustomed to the sight, show no surprise. The head maid's powerful abilities are well-known within the legendary golden dragon's castle, though Muria has never witnessed them.

He should've known, especially since Sophia had confidently accompanied him to an adult red dragon two years ago. Without her formidable strength, she would've likely tried to stop him.

The castle falls into a quiet atmosphere as both its major inhabitants sleep, with only the occasional sounds from the dragon maids.

...

A year passes quickly, and Muria wakes from his year-long slumber, opening his golden eyes and sitting up.

The thunderbolts that had shimmered over him for a year disappear. Throughout his sleep, they've been refining his body, strengthening his physique, and enhancing his power.

"Crack! Crack!" Muria stretches his neck, looking at Sophia who just received the notice from the dragon maids guarding his door and came to his room: "How long did I sleep this time?"

Knowing his situation through the inherited memories of his race, Muria stands and approaches the full-length mirror in his room, observing the reflection of his eight-meter-tall, child-like giant figure.

"You've only slept for a year," Sophia remarks, surprised by his early awakening.

"A year?" Muria muses, "For a true dragon, sleeping for over a year is

 a bit short, but I only have half golden dragon bloodline, so true dragon sleeping times are just a reference for me."

"Master Muria, did you gain anything from this sleep?"

"Gain?" Muria smiles, "Further acceptance of Titan and golden dragon heritage knowledge, of course. But most importantly, this."

Turning around, Muria spreads his palm, and a one-meter-diameter ball of golden thunderbolts appears, then dissolves into his body as countless golden lightning bolts. Then, a terrifyingly hot golden fireball appears in his hand, demonstrating the power of exclusive golden dragon flame, which could dazzle any mage fond of fireballs.

Finally, Muria compresses the fireball into a small orb and swallows it, while a ring of transparent wind blades forms around him, howling with wind.

"My bloodline has further awakened, my strength has increased, and I can now control these powers very easily," Muria boasts to Sophia.

Sophia smiles, just as she's about to praise Muria's power.

"Crack!" A sound of something breaking interrupts them, and their gazes simultaneously turn to the red dragon egg in the room.