Chapter 234: First signs

I stretch my wings, feeling the muscles and tendons loosen up after a good rest. As I prepare to take off into the sky, I take one last look around at the peaceful scenery that surrounded me. The stars were still shining brightly, but the faint light of dawn was slowly creeping up over the horizon.

With a powerful thrust of my wings, I launch myself into the air, soaring higher and higher until the ground below me becomes a blur. The air is cold and crisp up here, but I am used to it.

As the sun slowly rises, a content smile makes its way across my face as I feel the warmth of light. Soon, I flapped my wings harder, picking up speed as I headed toward the border of Tinada and Lumia.

I could see the vast forests below, their leaves changing colors as the seasons shifted. The sight was breathtaking, and I couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of the world around me. Ever since I gained the earth element as well, my appreciation of the plane only grew stronger. The sights were fascinating, and I found myself enjoying simply gazing at them.

After half a day of flight, I slowly approached the border when I noticed a group of travelers making their way through the forest below. I slowed down, curious about their destination. From my vantage point, I could see that they were heading toward a small village on the outskirts of Lumia.

For some reason, my instincts told me that there was something important about this village, so I followed the travelers from above, keeping a close eye on their movements.

Not long after, the travelers arrived at their destination. I spotted an empty clearing a distance away where I could still watch over everything that was happening, but they couldn't see me. I descended towards the ground, my claws digging into the soft earth as I landed.

The small settlement was filled with the bodies of cursed and mutilated villagers. The obsidian color of the corpses was an eerie sight, and I could sense the darkness and despair that had taken hold of this place.

"It can't be-" my heart picked up as I sensed the familiar presence.

"A Shade?! What is a Shade doing here? And how did it get past all the dragons?" I questioned, quickly raised my head to glance at the sky. The eternal battle of Dragons against the Shades was still ever ongoing, but the monsters shouldn't be able to get through the plane. Any cursed creatures should exist in the forbidden continent, not here.

I quickly took a deep breath to calm myself down. My frown deepened as I scanned the village. There was no sign of the Shade, only its remnant aura.

I watched as the travelers, accompanied by a small group of knights, approached the center of the village, where the bodies were gathered. The travelers seemed aware of what happened as they pointed at the dead villagers. The knights on the other hand seemed cautious, yet determined to find out what had happened to these people.

"This won't do," shaking my head, I quickly jumped to the sky and made my way to the ruined village.

My wings stirred the air as I descended onto the village, the thunderous sound of my landing caused the remaining villagers to quiver in fear. They quickly fell to the ground, prostrating themselves before me as if I was a deity. The travelers and their small contingent of knights quickly followed suit, showing their reverence for my presence.

I was unfazed by their worship, and instead turned to gaze upon the cursed corpses that littered the village center. The once vibrant bodies had been twisted and contorted, turning black as obsidian. I studied the bodies, searching for any clues that I might have missed.

My eyes then shifted from one survivor to the next, before I asked, "What happened here?"

My booming voice surprised everyone, yet none of them dared to stand up. I was starting to get annoyed when someone stepped forward, a villager who had not been present during the attack. He was young, barely out of his teens, but his voice was firm as he spoke.

"Great Dragon, I was out in the fields when it happened," he said. "But I saw him. The dark knight, with his obsidian armor and his scarlet eyes. He was like a demon, and he had a cloud of darkness around him that followed him wherever he went."

I regarded the young man with a nod, and then turned my attention back to the other survivors.

One of the survivors raises his head and shuddered before responding. "When the cloud touched them, their bodies twisted and deformed until they turned into obsidian..."

"I see, and when did this happen?"

The same young man replied, his eyes blazing with a fierce light, "A week ago, great dragon. The rest of us that survived sent for the baron who in turn sent us his men to investigate what happened," the young man paused for a second and turned to glance at the corpses before he continued, "We didn't know what to do with them. We didn't know if we could bury them, or if we would all be cursed."

I shook my head in dismissal and answered, "Those of you who survived are safe. You have not been cursed, nor will you be, unless you meet the so-called knight again."

All of the villagers heaved sighs of relief at my words. Some directly collapsed to the ground weeping.

"You will not be infected if you bury your dead. These people died because they could not handle the corrupted powers of that monster. Nothing remains inside."

I shook my head as I gazed at the dead villagers. The ground trembled as I called forth a massive surge of power, shaping the earth into a deep pit. I then used my mana to carefully collect the mutilated corpses of the villagers and lay them to rest in the newly created grave, offering them their final resting place.

The villagers looked on in awe as they watch my work. I could see that they found a sense of comfort in my presence, which brought them a sense of calm and hope. The survivors offered me their thanks, but I remained silent, my eyes fixated on the grave before him. The situation was worse than I expected, a Shade had infiltrated the mortal plane.