Evil Red Dragon

Alecto spit out bear bones with a blank expression.

The orcs' cooking skills are really nothing to write home about.

They put the bear paws on the fire to roast without even plucking the hairs, and when they thought they were cooked, they sprinkled some salt on them and brought them over.

They're familiar with each other, but there's a simmering, unsettling vibe about them...

He chewed on the bear paw, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

This is nothing like the delicious food I remember.

The bear paw's outer skin is charred and bitter, while the inside is hard and dry. The lingering fishy and pungent smell mixed with the burnt odor is simply torture for the taste buds.

At this moment, Alecto put finding a human chef on his agenda.

He put down the bear paw that was still mostly intact and glanced at his family members who were enjoying their meal in the square.

The orcs and trolls paid no attention to these details; they tore at the roasted meat, grease dripping from their mouths, their faces beaming with satisfied smiles.

For them, being able to eat their fill is the greatest happiness; as for the taste... that's a luxury that only humans care about.

Alecto's gaze suddenly stopped; he saw a strange human being.

Humanity?

Beside the campfire, a slender girl was squatting on the ground, wearing a red skirt, holding a large piece of golden-brown roasted argali meat in her hands, gnawing on it with her mouth full of oil.

She had unusually long, dark red hair, which was casually tied behind her head with a straw rope, with a few strands falling beside her face, which was covered in charcoal ash.

In the firelight, her profile was soft, her nose was straight and upturned, and her peach-shaped eyes were narrowed as she focused intently on the piece of meat in her hand.

The orcs around her were still used to her.

Alector's pupils contracted slightly.

How come there's a strange human girl here?

Did Gru and the others find it?

But the next second, he sensed the aura of blood connection and contract from this girl.

"Olivera, come here."

His voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the noise.

The girl, who was engrossed in eating, froze, and the meat in her hand fell to the ground with a thud.

She jerked her head up as if startled, meeting Alecto's gaze.

The surroundings fell silent instantly. The orcs looked at the suddenly frozen atmosphere, puzzled, then at their master, and then at the girl.

A flicker of panic crossed Oliveira's face. She instinctively wanted to shrink back, but dared not.

Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just lowered her head, twisting the hem of her skirt in her hands as she walked toward Alecto.

Wherever she went, orcs and trolls retreated.

Olivera stopped in front of Alecto, who looked down at her new appearance.

When did this guy learn Transfiguration?

Moreover, it must be said that her transformation was very successful; at least from the outside, she looked like a real human girl.

His facial features are also very delicate, and beneath his youthful appearance lies a hint of the arrogance unique to Honglong.

"When did you become like this, hanging around here?"

Alecto asked curiously.

Oliveira whispered, "Just now... I was just hungry, and I came over because of the smell..."

Her voice trailed off, and she glanced furtively at Alecto before quickly lowering her head again.

Alecto ignored the nonsensical explanation and suddenly realized that he had been somewhat lax in his treatment of Oliveira.

Aside from idly wandering around her territory, Oliveira seemed to have nothing else to do.

Given the dragon race's inherent laziness, coupled with her own self-abandonment, she may very well continue down this path.

waste.

The word flashed through Alecto's mind.

No matter what, Oliveira is a red dragon, possessing the heritage of the dragon race.

Despite his disappointment with her previous performance, her potential remains enormous; she has even secretly learned shapeshifting.

Instead of letting her waste time doing nothing, we should find something for her to do.

"Come with me."

Alecto turned and walked toward his stone house, a place he had casually prepared for himself, more private than the hall.

No one is allowed to approach except him.

Oliveira followed silently behind him, the hem of her skirt swaying slightly in the night breeze.

Upon entering the stone house, the torch in the corner instantly ignited.

The room was large enough to accommodate his entire dragon body, and it was clean and dry.

The stone chair rose from the ground, and Alector sat down, gesturing for Oliveira to stand at the table.

"Remove the deformation."

Oliveira hesitated for a moment, and amidst the distorted light and shadow, the girl's figure rapidly grew taller and expanded, her dark red hair faded, and scales covered her skin... In the blink of an eye, she reverted to her true form as a red dragon.

It was much smaller than Alecto, and many of its scales still had cracks from being thrown around, making it look quite disheveled.

She lowered her head and tucked her wings in.

Alector scrutinized her and slowly spoke:

"Olivera, your punishment is not over. The slave contract will stay with you until I believe you have atoned your sins, but that does not mean you can idle all day long and do nothing but eat and sleep."

Oliveira looked up, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.

"I want you to go and study..."

"study?"

Oliveira was stunned; this was not a common term for the red dragon.

Although the dragon race's inherited memories are vast, most of them are about battles, survival, treasures, and the glorious deeds of their ancestors. Learning knowledge and mastering skills systematically like humans is not a dragon race tradition.

"Learn magic, learn alchemy, learn all useful knowledge."

Alecto took out a magic book that had been stored away for a long time from his dimensional bag:

"Here is a magic book containing magical knowledge and alchemy notes, as well as scrolls compiled by Kula on herbal identification. Your task is to learn them."

Oliveira said reluctantly:

"Brother, I have no interest in these things... I am a red dragon, my power comes from my bloodline and heritage, why should I learn from those weak humans..."

"Because I need it."

Alector interrupted her, his voice turning cold:

"So you have to learn it."

"I...I'll give it a try."

Oliveira finally said in a muffled voice.

"It's not about trying, it's about learning."

Alector's power was slightly released, causing Oliveira to involuntarily tense up.

"I will check your progress, and if I find you slacking off, being perfunctory, or trying to get by..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the coldness in his eyes said it all.

Oliveira shuddered and nodded quickly:

"I will definitely learn!"

"Very good, go ahead."

Alector withdrew his dragon's might, tossed her the spellbook, and casually offered encouragement:

"You can also look for relevant records in the tradition... If you perform well, I can grant you one wish."

Oliveira's eyes lit up. A wish?!

Her tail, which had been drooping, couldn't help but curl up at the tip.

The dragon's greedy nature instantly made her compile a long list of wishes in her mind.

Glittering gold coins, dazzling gems, an entire cave filled with treasure...

No, wait a minute, my brother is so poor that he even destroyed the dragon's nest. That seems a bit unrealistic.

But that was, after all, a wish that my brother had personally promised!

As a slave... no, as a red dragon atonement, this is an immense motivation.

She stole a glance at Alecto and saw that although his expression remained indifferent, there was no mockery in his eyes.

She immediately straightened her back, her scales rustling.

"I will study hard!"

Oliveira's voice was a few decibels louder than before:

"Magic, alchemy, herbs... I'll learn them all! Brother, you mean it?"

"I never break my word."

Alecto said calmly:

"But the prerequisite is that you really learn it and demonstrate its value; you can't just do it half-heartedly."

"I see!"

Oliveira nodded vigorously, two small flames igniting in her vertical pupils.

I'll give it my all for that dream!

Although reading and studying sounds daunting, it's still better than living in constant fear.

And what if... what if she really does have some talent in this area?

According to the inherited memories, some of the Red Dragon ancestors did indeed dabble in these unorthodox methods, although mostly for the purpose of better identification...

"Go out."

Alecto waved to indicate that she could leave.

Oliveira felt as if she had been granted a pardon and quickly left the stone house.

Once outside, the night wind made her feel the scales on her back getting a little cold.

If dragons could sweat.

She looked back at the stone gate, then looked down at the magic book in her arms.

It seems to be some basic element... and its application in alchemy.

"A textbook for monks?"

Olivera carefully opened it; inside were densely packed texts and many complex patterns and symbols.

Some of the patterns even glow slightly, as if imbued with some kind of protective magic.

She felt dizzy after looking at it.

The dragon clan's inherited memories are knowledge directly instilled into her mind, and this learning method, which requires reading, understanding, and memorizing word by word, is both novel and troublesome for her.

"...Magic exists in all things and is one of the basic energies that constitute the world."

Intelligent beings use meditation, runes, spells... and specific materials... to guide and shape magical power to achieve various effects; this is magic...

Oliveira silently recited the opening sentence, her pupils slowly focusing.

It seems... it's not like I can't understand it at all?

Inside the room, Alecto's gaze was deep and thoughtful.

Polishing a stubborn stone requires time and patience, but what he lacks most right now is time.

Sending Oliveira to study is both a way to make use of waste and a strategic move.

Success would be great, as it would provide an additional source of support. Failure, however, would simply mean maintaining the status quo.

His thoughts quickly drifted away from Oliveira and onto more pressing matters.

Kula's injuries require rare materials, the construction of his territory requires even more resources and technology, and more importantly, he knows too little about the current state of the world, especially the development of humanity.

The time gap in the dragon race's inherited memories was a fatal flaw; the two-hundred-year gap had always unsettled him.

We cannot rely solely on the information that Goron hastily brought back.

Why not go there yourself?

Once this thought took hold, it was like it had taken root.

Alecto's eyes flashed.

That Greystone Town, this border town, has become the most suitable window at this stage.

After a full day of testing, he realized that with his total magic power, he could cast twenty level six spells, which was five times that of an ordinary level six mage, and he could even barely cast two level seven spells.

In terms of defense, ordinary level 5 magic can only leave scratches on his dragon scales; level 6 magic has no effect on him at all.

Alecto was confident that with his current strength, he could escape unscathed even if he encountered a level seven mage in Graystone Town.

There shouldn't be any level 7 mages in this kind of border town, right? It would be a joke to encounter a level 8 mage.

There's no danger, you can go!

Alecto had made up his mind.