The Dragoon and The Dragon (Chapter 11.5)

(??? POV)

"She won again!"

No matter what I did, I couldn't escape the shadow that my elder sister cast over me.

"She's good, but compared to her sister…"

"Her sister is the youngest Court Mage in history, though."

I was always compared to her, despite knowing that I was just a dragon, and she was… special. My elder sister was always focused on improving herself and creating a better life for us. After our mother was captured by Dragon Hunters, struggling children such as ourselves had no place to go.

She took me to a human city that she called the Royal Capital, and she enrolled in the Royal Academy at just six years old. I was only four years old at the time and I had no way of fighting, so she hid me inside of her dorm room and brought me back meals she would steal from the cafeteria.

After graduating from the Royal Academy at twelve years old, she was appointed as an apprentice Court Mage…the youngest in history. How could I ever compete with such a genius? All I ever wanted was to be able to stand by my elder sister's side without embarrassing myself.

But no matter how hard I tried, I could only ever be seen as her younger sister.

"If you were to drink the blood of your elder sister, you could become as powerful as her." As I rested my drowsy eyes on the window outside of my room, I heard an ominous voice softly whisper in the darkness.

"Who's there?" My palm burned with flames as I illuminated the surrounding darkness with fire.

"My name is Milim, I am… a princess from Altervia."

(Sylis POV)

"Have you seen my sister?" the pale-skinned girl asked me with a wide smile.

As my eyes wandered, I saw the district I had come to call home ablaze. People were screaming as they combusted into ashes and buildings were toppling over as the fire left nothing untouched.

'How can she smile like that? What kind of monster is this!?'

"Hello~ I'm speaking to you~." The girl continued to talk to me, but I couldn't even bring myself to breathe. The smoldering smell of burned concrete was all that was on my mind as I stared helplessly into the girl's crimson-red eyes.

"This is no fun. You already lost the will to live." As she took a step forward, I caught the sight of a familiar jewel. A pink crystal hung on a chain that was attached to her ear. That earring was one I quickly recognized, which brought a panic-filled scream out of my mouth. The girl that stood in front of me was none other than my best friend who had disappeared one year ago. "Fervene…"

"…Sy…lis?"

The moment she said my name in that rosy voice, I was aware that this was my one and only best friend…Fervene.

"Fervene… why would you do this?" Tears filled my eyes and my legs lost their strength as I fell to the ground. Fervene reached her tiny and slender hand out and dusted some charcoal off of my cheek.

"They tried so many experiments to try to replicate the effects that my sister's blood had on me, but they all failed. There is no one as splendid as her, after all. Just sit tight until my sister arrives… this will all be over soon." Fervene placed her tiny palm on my cheek and as the temperature rose, I closed my eyes, finally expecting death to come, but it didn't.

The burns from the fire that had only grazed me were being healed, and the fire that was engulfing the street gently breezed past me. The eyes of the girl had changed… just momentarily, and the crimson monster-like slits turned into bright orbs that glowed faintly with the color red.

The girl in front of me was the sister of the most well-known prodigy in the capital. A Demi-human with power that was unrivaled by her peers… Fervis. Fervene was always at the top of her class, was great at sports, and was a model student.

No matter how well she performed, all that people talked about was her sister. No one ever gave her the praise that she deserved. She worked harder than anyone I had ever known, and I always admired the strength that she had.

"Sylis… stay away from me." Fervene's pupils returned to the monster like crimson slits, and dark blue flames began to ooze from her white hair.

As the surrounding flames engulfed me, I realized that Fervene wouldn't be able to save me this time. The once confident and smiling girl that I came to love was erased and out of it rose a monster who was burning alive everything in its path.

I closed my eyes once more and clasped my hands together tightly, with tears filling my eyes. 'Please, someone… anyone… save Fervene.'

But in moments, the howling flames had vanished and my eyes caught sight of a beautiful blue-haired girl with a blue sword. Her pink eyes and shiny white skin seemed to capture the appearance of a goddess.

With just one wave of her sword, she sent Fervene flying into the air and a gracious shower of water graced my head. The girl was not finished as she cut off an arm of the airborne Fervene and kicked her back down to the ground, creating a massive shockwave that threatened to blow me away.

"Just who is she… that girl?"

Next chapter