A Dragon Idol's Reincarnation Tale-Chapter 538: The Trails of Frozen Corpses.

“… Recently evolved into a rank A. Journeyed to the north to … Father’s horns, Hannathala …” Rhekk grieved over the deceased, growling under his breath as he tried to keep himself together. “Now you’ve … died. All alone, with your parents and siblings none the wiser of it for … how long? Maybe it was just recently and I was too late to notice it with all the snow?”

Hannathala is a relative of Clan Austronodus and the youngest daughter of the brother of Clan Austronodus’s patriarch. A dragon-drake hybrid born with a carapace so thick it made it hard for her and her siblings to fly properly, making them more drakes than dragons. Well, that was what Rhekk told me when he described her on our way to her registered nest location for her training arc.

Yet, here she was. Dead, and alone. A sad fate, even if everybody who stepped onto these glaciers knew this could be the outcome of their daring, daredevil-like entry. Still, I couldn’t help but feel sad as a fellow adventurer. I could only imagine what her family would feel.

“A death in the wilds is nothing unusual for those seeking strength. I’ve seen others die in the Dungeon of Infinite Feasts,” Nong said, sounding nonchalant about it. “This isn’t your fault. Blaming yourself for prioritizing your own safety will only make you feel worse, so instead, let us make sure her death is known to her family.”

Rhekk let out a deep sigh, otherwise, he didn’t respond as his eyes remained on the deceased. Seeing this, Nong shook his head and slowly walked forward, before turning his eyes on Tasianna and Vifi.

“We should seek revenge if possible. That might help to soothe her parents. You two, mind helping me check for any clues on what monster managed to do this? She is a young rank A, so extraordinary rank Bs might have been able to slay her if they caught her off-guard.”

“I’ll help,” I volunteered. “She got killed here, and there are signs of fighting here, so your theory is probably correct. At least, we might be able to narrow down the species that killed her with her wounds. Rhekk? May we?”

He nodded before turning around. “I’ll scour the rest of the cavern. Pick up her belongings, or any treasure she left behind.”

When it came to a dragon’s hoard inside their nest, the rule was usually finder’s keepers and to “the victor goes the spoils,” if the dragon had died. Nothing dishonorable about that, although it was better to return it to their family if we knew them. Otherwise, if the dragonkin had no known relative, the treasure should go to the state if we didn’t want to keep anything.

Accompanying Rhekk to help him out, the twins flew off, leaving the rest of us to check the surroundings. Aside from the cracks, craters, and signs of ice attacks littered inside this room, what actually caught our attention was the dragon’s body.

Cracked scales, but sheets of ice crystals can be found on them. Could this have been hers, or her aggressor? Anyways, perforation holes led to excessive bleeding before she created ice chunks to staunch it. So, ice damage, large gaping hole probably from a physical attack … Wait, a physical attack strong enough to break through [Draconic Barrier] and a rank A dragonkin’s scales? Damn.

I shivered a bit at the thought of that, feeling like some beast was hiding out there, strong enough to kill a rank A dragon like this. If Nong wanted to get revenge, then I had to be fully concentrated on support. Writing a new song wouldn’t help, sadly, as I had the spell songs already, so I wasn’t exactly sure if there was anything to prepare for an unknown monster.

Vifi and I extensively prepared for the mandrill monsters, since our respective preferred elements were resistant to it. A new rank A would require a new strategy that I would have to figure out on the spot.

After some more forensics, we didn’t manage to conclude what the monster species was, even after we explained the situation to Rhekk. All we knew was that the monster had to be rank-A purely due to the sheer physical strength needed to break through all defensive skills Hannathala had to have, according to Rhekk.

In addition, they were swift and acrobatic, to the point they were able to avoid a stream of ice breath due to the uninterrupted lines of ice crystal attached to the ceiling, wall, and floor. However, they had ice abilities seeing how the dragon was half frozen, and the caster was actually pretty competent as it was not only sturdy but quite resistant to my flames until I raised the temperature. This certainly didn’t pinpoint any possible candidate.

In any case, Rhekk reported that the rest of the cavern was empty, with no signs of any belongings around. According to the two older dragons, it was unlikely that Hannathala didn’t at least keep some items she scavenged from her stay here, like some jewels or crystals; things that would captivate a dragon’s eye. Keep them sane and entertained while they train.

“So we got a little thief, as well,” he snarled, taking it as an insult. “Scuuma! We need to go and find that slayer!”

“Wait!” I called out, jumping in front of him as he suddenly tried to charge out of the cavern. “What are you doing? The storm is dying, sure, but why are you trying to run out without even waiting for the damn thing to die out completely? You serious? Also, running out to try to find Hannathala’s murderer isn’t exactly the first action I would personally do here. We should be reporting this to your brother, Sieg!”

“No!” he exclaimed, trying to push me out of his way. Although he was larger than me since he was biologically an adult, I was stronger, and that allowed me to hold the ground and push him back. “Tsk! Princess Hestia, don’t you understand the implications of this? The long silence of the dragonkin training here, unwilling to respond to the summons of my father—No, are they unwilling to come down, or are they unable to do so?”

“Even more reason to report to your brother. Why are you having such a hard time understanding this? You know I have a damn subspace! It’s just a call—open it up and hand over the message. Even if he’s not inside, Svena and my maids are inside most of the time, so we can leave the message to them!” I chastised him. “Slow it. Let’s—”

“We don’t need to do it so soon!” Rhekk he shouted, slamming right into me, pushing me aside with his sheer weight alone, catching me off-guard.

He took flight, erratically flapping his wings as he cast a custom ice spell similar to [Wind Blast] to launch him towards the opening. What got to him?

“Stop him!” I shouted as Tasianna and the twins followed behind me, as I flew like a rocket with my scale-dust.

Despite his headstart, Rhekk couldn’t outfly me, nor could he outmaneuver me in the air. The slipstream of scale-dust and ice rained down onto the cavern’s floor as the two of us continued in this dog fight, clashing with our claws and tail, until I landed a direct bash with the blunt part of my tail, slinging him right into a stalactite.

The frozen piece of rock formation was unable to cushion him, cracking apart as glass- and rock-like sounds erupted from the accident. The echo bounced off all the ice inside the tunnel, creating a shrill explosion of tinnitus-inducing reverberations. A swift [Air Shield] stopped it from hurting me too much, but Rhekk was less fortunate as he took in the full brunt of the bouncing soundwaves.

He screamed, shooting an ice breath into the air from all the ringing he must be feeling right about now. Immediately, the twins swooped in, using their ice armor to block the attack from ever hitting me, causing Rhekk to shout again, this time in frustration, instead of pain.

“Dammit! By damn wyverns as well! Dammit!” he screamed, slamming the ground with his front legs. “Beaten by a young scale and her foreign lesser dragonkin servants! Wh-what is—”

“Rhekk, can you please—!” I tried to speak to him, thinking this was the right time, only for him to snap his head up.

“Shut up! Always taking the skink’s way out of things!” he cried. “I am Rhekkraxus, son of Dragon Ruler of Ice, Alextraxus! Younger brother of the future Dragon Ruler of Ice, Siegragxus! Loyal retainers of the Sixth Dragon Empress, Melloxtressa! A simple blizzard will not stop an ice dragon of my lineage, of Thalaxarus! I have a duty, and a duty I forsake for the sake of safety, is a duty unfulfilled like a broken oath! A dragon I was supposed to bring back to the south has died; I shall not allow the others to end up like Hannathala!”

What? What sort of thought process is this? Those who come to this part of the glaciers come here to train against the strong monsters and natural causes!

“My father must not know of this failure! Nor my brother! I shall not continue to sully their pride and reputation; our clan is to not look weak in front of all our retainers! If I was stronger and more trustworthy, I would have been allowed to go anywhere unimpeded. But … I had to wait for reinforcement. For you. Once again, Father’s horns, I remain at your mercy, and all you want is to side step the main issue here.”

“M-main issue?” I tilted my head as I landed before him. “Main issue? Seriously? You … I honestly thought what you told me when we met again that you got over that crap! I didn’t sidestep any ‘main issue’ here or whatever delusion you had of things. Do you really think me trying to fight for the crown of the empire is an actual good idea? Or are you still salty about the fact I didn’t want you and your friends to fight those fire dragons?”

“You taking our side, only to strike us in the back with that demonkin, what else can I call that but a betrayal of our trust? Here I thought you would be that powerful dragonkin my brother talked about; the child of Empress Melloxtressa and Emperor Eltharion would surely be a being worthy of service! Yet … Hark, I realized the folly of considering whether you are the real soul of that body or a divine intervention placed here for Kargryxmor to rule over us. To invade us like when he killed my ancestor. It would be … a fitting decision for him. The answer: it doesn’t matter, for you are our princess.”

“Okay, I’m soooooo sorry. I betrayed your expectations! There, sorry! You thought I was something different, but I still don’t see what your problem is, especially with how irrational you’re getting about all of this.”

“You still don’t understand? Ha, why am I speaking then?” He stomped forward, only for an ice spear to crash in front of him, piercing through the ground and blocking his way. He looked up and scowled as he saw Tasianna, before turning his attention back to me, even more furious than before. “You’ve been living with us for long enough, yet you can’t understand what I’m saying? They are fire dragons! You should be supporting us, as our Frozen Nest princess! Not those fire dragons! Those damn refugees—you even brought back that skink who came into our home, just to make you support a fire dragon claimant! If you can’t call that disrespectful, then what is?”

… He has a point with that last one. Fehrkatruk coming into Frozen Nest with Nong’s permission only to question me about the succession crisis is certainly not a good first impression.

“The populace and plenty of true dragonkin praise you because of what you did with Inferno Nest. Your defiance against Maustoovaka … but it’s clear they only do it because you showed them what they wanted to see. They only cheer and show respect, because all consider you as a mere hatchling. ‘The future of Frozen Nest is secured!’ Pah, I heard all of that before Father sent me north.” He scowled, lowering his head for a point as he squinted, only to turn back to me with that same anger-filled expression. “They don’t respect you as their princess because of your person and personality—No, they cheer only because they hate the fire dragons. That’s the reason why they cheered when you came back. Ha, for all I know, you must hate it, right?”

I remained silent as Rhekk snickered. Did my expression change? I didn’t feel any movements since dragons had less expressive faces, but maybe he saw something I couldn’t feel.

Regardless, he was right. When I came back home after my trip to Inferno Nest, only to see my followers grow, I felt genuine disgust. Earning fans by targeting people’s hatred for something was not something I wanted to pursue, especially when it concerned a racial animosity.

I wanted the humans to make peace with the demonkin, just so their war could finally stop. I didn’t want to harm the common people, which was why I wanted to target the people at the top. Now, I knew casualties were a foregone conclusion and all I could do was to minimize it on both sides by becoming stronger or more capable.

I hated having to compel others through negative emotions, even if it was effective. Raising people’s morale during the Elyonda siege … Yes, that was how I wanted to be remembered as an idol. Sure, it meant I made people want to kill the grimgarian invaders back then, but I intended to give people hope for survival and that we could win even if the situation was bleak.

Intentions and ideals; the reason for my actions was equally as important as what I did, in my opinion. Doing whatever I could to survive while on the “stage,” though, was different. A separation between my idol and dragon self was important.

“My lady,” Shay said in Draconic as he turned around. “I think what he is saying is that he blames you for being sent to the north. From what I presume, the emergence of people supporting you, outside of just due to loyalty to the Empress, compelled Lord Alextraxus to send Lord Rhekkraxus up north as a show of loyalty to you and to appease his retainers. If I may add my own opinion, if I were one of the true dragonkin, I would not forgive Lord Rhekkraxus for his blatant denunciation of your lineage.”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“I mean, you didn’t have to add that second part, Brother. Whether you are a true or a lesser, I think the both of us would not forget what Rhekkraxus said to Her Highness,” Beth stated which the both of them probably thought aloud. She then turned to Rhekk. “Yet, aren’t you old enough? You are no adult, but 47-years-old is still a good amount of time to reflect on how to act. Regardless of your misgivings with Lady Hestia, your inability to talk it out is more of an issue!”

Rhekk scoffed, clearly unwilling to listen to a “lesser” dragonkin like the wyvern twins. Whether their words remained in his mind or were thrown out of his ears, he continued speaking, “The main issue here is that you do not exude the reliability of a dragon imperial. I do not trust you as a person nor as my princess, and I bet most feel the same, even if they hide it well.”

“Huh? Then the only reason why we even shook hands is because my brother—”

“I trust you to have my back in this expedition because you are a strong dragon! That’s all. I expected that from you, but even now, you have that skink-like mindset. That there is a third way to solve things; to run away from what actually matters here and that is that … Arrrgh!”

End the sentence! I shouted in my head as Rhekk turned away, growling loudly as that rage in his eyes suddenly turned into focus. He was tunnel visioning at something as I noticed his wings flapping again. He was trying to fly away!

However, just as I had thought that, the ringing sound of ice vanished completely. Even Rhekk’s beating wings and the twins’ growls were silenced, replaced by another strong stimulus… in smell. My olfactory senses were tingling as I recognized the scent of… poppies?

‘… Hestia, it’s the same smell when we fell asleep before our Job evolution,’ Hikari informed me, bringing me back to when Nong fluttered his wings. I was sure it was the scent of scented candles, but why was Hikari saying it smelled similar to a poppy?

… Hold on, it’s—

Flabbergasted at this weird twist in our perception of things, I wasn’t able to properly perceive what was happening around me until I felt something large push me back.

“Move, Your Highness!” Shay shouted as a barrier of wind formed around me.

“We’ve stopped the smell!” Tasianna said. “The barrier is up! Move away before Prince Nongramos blows us away!”

“B-but Lord Rhekkraxus!” Beth cried, but it was quickly drowned out by another voice.

“Leave that damn fool!” I snapped around, seeing Vifi had caught up to us, now standing on my back. “That damn bird brother of yours! Shit! He has more of a temper than you do! Back off, back away from the smell and the storm!”

A turbulent ball of green wind was forming next to us, right in front of the way outside the cavern. The stalactite and stalagmites were getting vacuumed into the ball as if it were a black hole, ripping anything around it through physics.

Miraculously, Rhekk wasn't drawn in, although we were—that was why the twins and Vifi were trying to get me to move back with the help of Tasianna’s [Air Shield]. Understanding them, I started pushing the shield back to escape the wind ball, where I also noticed that another sphere of chaotic air was created right next to Rhekk, drawing him towards it and nullifying the black hole effect of the first bundle of destruction.

The tunnel began to shake as the air started to dig right into the hardened ice rock of the cavern, terraforming even the ground we were standing on. Furthermore, I felt a presence exuding their aura in a threatening manner. A [Draconic Aura], specifically, as I felt my scales rattling similarly whenever I had to fight another of my kind.

A true dragonkin.

Nong! The smell is from Nong!

Eyes blazing red from flames surging from underneath the scales and feathers on his head, Nong slowly approached with the grace he always presented whenever he walked. Yet, that elegance was filled with the readiness to kill.

His claws ripped off the ground with every step, his tail cracked any mineral formation in its way with a whip-like strike, and the very air was colored green due to his aura. No, due to his mana. His wind-aligned mana dyed the air green.

He stopped when he reached Rhekk, casting a large shadow onto him as my solar core lit up the tunnel. The ice dragon looked up and shrunk in fear, before he suddenly fell unconscious. At the same time, Vifi started to cough and I noticed some discoloration on her nose, prompting me to cast [Santificed Blaze] on her. The white magic circle immediately burst aflame as it started to detoxify whatever was in her system.

“… Urgh, your [White Flames]’s poison removal is based on your [Corrosive Fire], right?” she suddenly asked, prompting me to nod. [Flames of Purification], that Job skill turned mutation skill for [White Flames], made it so my detoxification effects scaled to the level of [Corrosive Fire]. “Then, your toxin creation is stronger than your bird brother. Probably. If he was still able to suppress his scent creation when he got so furious.”

Vifi fell onto her knees, grimacing as she let out deep sighs, breathing in just as deeply. Sweat formed on her forehead as she wiped them away and pulled out a wool canteen to drink.

I scowled as I looked at Nong looking down at Rhekk with those murderous eyes. Did he hear everything that was just said? Come on, what Rhekk said wasn’t even that insulting, so why was he so angry?

[“Nong!”] I protested. [“Please, stop!”]

He turned to me and grunted before he flapped his left pair of wings, blasting the ball of air out of the tunnel like a rocket, pulverizing anything in its way as it blew away the blizzard in front of the entrance. The floor and ceiling were clean as if an industrial water cutter had sliced through a rock, revealing the glimmering mineral underneath it.

Seeing this, Tasianna dispelled the barrier, blowing the surrounding air away. The smell of poppies was gone, now replaced by roses. With a single swing of his wings, that scent vanished completely, replaced by the same cold wind from before.

“He’s alive. He’s still useful to us. Let him know once he wakes up that I will not tolerate him speaking ill of you, again. He has been warned, and it is final,” Nong declared, no sign of his more relaxed demeanor. He didn’t look at us as he coldly walked towards the entrance. “The brat has an issue with reporting to his family. Let us do what he wants for now, Hestia. If you have to speak with Siegragxus, just tell him that there have been complications and that we will handle it.”

“Nong?”

“I can understand the brat’s wish for revenge. Hannathala probably was more than just a family friend from how he reacted. Or, something else is fueling his desire to keep all of this a secret until we finish his objectives. Regardless, he seeks the murderer of his friend, right?” he said, emphasizing the “murderer” part with hissing. “As an arviosa dragon—a mutant cockatrice—I control the storm like any wind dragon. Yet, when it comes to scent, pheromones, and smell creation and control, I am without equal as an [Floriosa-Plum Dragon]. Master of aromas … Don’t let the lingering smell kill him, little sister.”

… Able to control a blizzard if necessary and with the ability to create scents through his feathers, Nong was chosen by my siblings to accompany me ‘cause in the event of an ambush—whether from bad weather or a monster—Nong could control it and create a momentary refuge for us to survive.

The poppy, rose, and scent candle smell was just there to hide the fact he could create toxic fumes, as well. The two of us were the only poison dragons in the family, and while I could create toxic flames and change its form, Nong was purely focused on its gaseous form and, as such, was a master of it.

When he called himself a “master of aromas,” you could think of him as an aromatherapist with the ability to manipulate wind with such finesse he could probably extract the air inside your lungs to suffocate you, or stuff your lungs with his “scents.” Not exactly a dragon you would want as an enemy … and this was even mentioning how he was the fastest flyer amongst us siblings.

“You okay, Vifi?” I asked, looking at her as the twins and Tasianna placed Rhekk on a floating ice platform for us to transport him.

She nodded, showing no signs of her former fatigue. Instead, she was deep in thought. “Yeah, yeah … Hey, Donut, you think your brother might have experienced something? That talk just now felt personal. He was already seething when he overheard everything, but it got worse when he walked up to Rhekkraxus.”

“Do you presume he felt something similar, Lady Hestia?” Tasianna asked. “Because, if it’s a desire for revenge, then I think I can understand that. He certainly had the same eyes I had when I confronted Reajaen. Or, I think it was more like the repressed hatred I had for the human race.”

“If we were to consider your stay in Altrust an Adulthood Pilgrimage, then I think even you may understand it, Lady Hestia,” Shay stated in agreement with Tasianna.

I nodded as I remembered Eshe and Akasht. That fury I felt when I killed Eshe’s murderer and how I lashed at the vicar for siding with the demonkin. I understood that at this very moment, I had slightly forgotten about that pain I felt in the past, and I was being blind about sympathizing with Rhekk.

Still, that idiot really was able to press my buttons. Saying everything he could to anger me … Hraaaa! 47-years-old was like a young adult to us dragons, but to my human side, he was a bloody middle-aged geezer. Then again … I didn’t know he was that old until Beth said it, so, well, it didn’t really matter how I viewed him now. At that moment when we argued—actually, every time we met—it felt like I was just speaking to somebody in their college years.

Maybe that was why I didn’t take the time to pause and calm myself down. I should have at least considered that Hannathala might be somebody Rhekk had a good relationship.

Huh … now I felt like the insensitive one. Verdammt.

“You lot! Hurry!” Nong called.

Although, I had to do something else before then. “Sorry, give us a moment, please!”

I told Tasianna and the twins that I wanted to preserve Hannathala’s corpse, so we could send it back to her parents without it decomposing too much. If we followed Nong’s and Rhekk’s wish on how to handle it, this was the right thing to do. Encased in ice, Hannathala had to wait until we returned.

I’m sorry. We’ll come back and tell your parents. I promise. I said as I prayed for her soul before exiting the caverns.

To my surprise, Nong was partially stopping the blizzard by using two black hole-like balls of wind similar to before, sucking in all the snow and hail, creating a small area of safety around him. Like an umbrella, Nong created a sanctuary for us to walk inside this massive blizzard. If I added a red star with it, the area expanded and we even stayed cozy.

“We’re following the killer. The lingering scent of theirs is gone, but there was some foreign soil; a strong smell actually. Probably its excrement stuck on the beast’s body, mixed in with dust or some of that blue dirt. I’ve contained it within an air capsule, but I wish we had a good nose to follow it better,” Nong said, making me wish Saori was here. “Regardless, I can identify it when we find it. Let’s make some headway while I keep this storm at bay.”

“Draining mana, I guess?”

He nodded. “Very. I took inspiration from some books I read in Aleistunum during my pilgrimage about space-time magic, and how the mages there talked about gravity and all. Same principle as a vacuum, but using my innate aerokinesis control. I’m not too good when it comes to making custom spells, and mages there said something like this would only be possible by using some magic theory I can’t remember.”

“Multi-magic circles. That’s the name of the technique, I presume?” I replied, causing him to nod vigorously. His entire demeanor had shifted back to his usual personality.

This guy can switch his personas on the fly.

“Exactly! Thank you. They said creating the spell using multiple magic circles is too complicated and expensive in mana to use normally, buuuut it’s far easier when you’re a dragon. Mana manipulation, [Aerokinesis], and scale control are things so much easier for a true-blooded wind dragonkin.”

… Why is it freezing so much, brrr! I took a step back from Nong.

In any case, we kept walking until Nong felt drained and we sought refuge in a nearby cave where we waited until Rhekk woke up. When he did, he apologized to Nong and me, including how he derided the twins. However, after he was done, he began keeping to himself, even eating all alone.

Seeing this, I told him I wouldn’t report to Sieg yet, although to no response. Unable to bring up the energy to speak to him, I decided to just turn in for the night. Once morning came, we continued with our search for the other dragonkin, only to come to a realization when the second one was once again dead.

Another corpse with similar wounds and also some hints of that smell Nong had stored in that wind capsule. The same monster killed two dragons. At this point, this wasn’t just a death. The monster who attacked both dragons hunted them.

This was the realization, and it made us only more agitated about the rest. We still had to visit four more dragons. Was the lack of response due to this?

… Well, searching through all these places took us two more weeks as we got caught by a week-long blizzard that forced us to stay inside a cave for the entire duration as it was too strong for Nong to comfortably suppress. Even if he could, traversing through all the snow was a bit too hard, and flying was just out of the question.

At that time, we had to report to Sieg but we told him we hadn’t been able to talk to any of the targets just yet. Not exactly a lie, but also not the truth … In any case, he believed us so we could continue with this falsehood for a few more days, although it did feel bad giving him a white lie. Well, it certainly felt even worse when we found another dead dragonkin—a drake this time.

Something was hunting true dragonkin. There was no way to ignore the correlation here. Three were dead and two remained. Should we expect the worst situation at this point? It sure looked like that, and it made me want to speak to Sieg about it even more. Sadly, we wouldn’t have the time for that as, after that one week-long blizzard, the entire glacier felt extremely peaceful the last few days. Without a massive storm, the strong, pungent scent of iron pierced through the icy coldness.

Our party’s elevated alertness made all of us dragonkin feel like bloodhounds.

“Found it!” Nong stated as we took to the skies and flew, only for Rhekk to notice that the location was one of the last few nests we had to visit.

It’s fresh! Fresh like rancid bloody puke! My nose tingled in disgust and fear.

Charging into the cavern, the scent of torn-apart viscera was nausea-inducing, prompting us to rush forward, only to find the dragon already dead. We were too late! The monster—

“Ambush!” Vifi called as she threw a [Voltaic Red: Thundespeed Roar] towards the ceiling, causing the our ambusher to yelp in pain as it crash-landed on the ground, quickly recovering as it gnashed its large fangs, slamming its bloodied icicle spear in the ground.

“You—!” Vifi glared at the monster before us.

I stomped forward, also recognizing this ape standing before us, still wounded as blood could be seen under his blue flame mane. Of all the places we could meet again, it had to be here. Of all the dragonslayers we could have met, it had to be this guy.

“You fucking bastard!” I roared, following Rhekk and Nong as they did the same.

It was the [Surge-Feeder Mandoganga] … In addition, there was something else.

Divine Quest: Trial of the Silver Dragon Matriarch

Quest Giver: God of Dragons and Oaths, Kargryxmor

Description: The time has come, Hestia. The second artifact left behind by your grandparents. As you have obtained my wife’s crown, we will now start with those belonging to your mother’s parents. The second item to obtain is the true ice spear your maternal grandmother, Anaxalanx, had created during the demon war and left behind when it broke apart.

A shame for the silver dragon, as her true ice was not “true.” It was merely stronger ice than other ice dragons, despite how unmeltable it was. Your grandmother Anaxalanx was a master of your clan’s silver dust, even more adept than your grandfather, Nordoramsul, when she chose to evolve into a mineral dragon to prove it to him.

In addition, she was a dragon like your eldest brother—someone willing to train wyverns and dragoons for the sake of the land’s safety. Which was why this broken spear was such a shame to your spear-wielding dragon grandmother, and why she hid the item’s existence from even your mother.

Yet, despite her broken pride, the spear is as true as it could be. That ice is colder than even the glaciers, and while it pales in comparison to your mother’s and how it was during its peak, it still is a lingering memento of your grandmother. A “true” ice that isn’t cold enough to kill you, if you were to ever absorb it with an item like Inferatsa’s crown.

Reward: an enchantment for Anaxalanx’s true ice spear

What a coincidence.