From the moment I was chosen by the holy relic

"In the 420th year of the Third Age, the Alliance front was already facing food shortages, militia mutinies, the Elven races cutting off reinforcements, and the Dwarves beginning to doubt the cost of continuing the war. At that time, the Alliance was actually on the verge of collapse."

"Just then, a supply ship went the wrong way."

"It was carrying twenty wounded soldiers, two truckloads of medicine, a retired sailor, and a tattered old blueprint. It was intended to be transported westward along the old sea line to a sanatorium, but it got lost in the storm."

"They drifted beyond the map, drifted to the legendary land, Dragon Island."

Eileen looked up, gazing into the depths of the night.

"No one believed that dragons really existed. Myths said they were hunted to extinction in the early ages. But those twenty people saw them."

"They were a pair of enormous beasts, a male and a female, each twenty feet long, with scales that gleamed like iron rocks, wings like blades, and eyes that held no intelligence, only primal rage and wildness."

"They did not fly in the sky, but lay on the volcanic ridge, circling each other, biting each other's tails and sleeping together. With each breath, the entire volcano spewed out rolling rocks and fiery winds."

"The alliance initially only observed, sending messengers, priests, beast tamers, and terminologists, all of which failed."

"Some were burned, some were blown away, and some were crushed into stone."

"They realized that it wasn't a place where they could have a dialogue."

"Therefore, the decision was made to send troops."

"The Dragon Slayer Campaign began in the third era, year 432, codenamed Molten Spine Breaker."

Eileen lowered her eyes, her fingertip lightly tracing the edge of the "Twilight Tower Fragment," and slowly said:

"The first offensive was a baptism of blood and fire."

"The Alliance was not reckless; they sent out four thousand advance troops. It was a mixed legion known as the 'Frontline of Integration,' possessing the best archers, armorers, exorcist officers, and high-ranking mages among the five nations. The dwarves provided burrowing mines, the elves supported long-range reconnaissance, and four tactical commanders were responsible for coordinating all frontline nodes."

"They thought they were prepared enough."

"On the first night, the fire dragon moved."

"It didn't roar, it didn't swoop down, and it didn't attack intentionally; it just opened its eyes."

"Then breathe."

"That dragon's breath, as scorching as the molten soul energy deep within the mountains, surged out from the fiery ridge. It was not flames, but hot wind suppressing flames, like a giant wall of gale-force winds formed by the mixture of steam and burning soul."

"At the three forward camps, before the order to retreat could be given, the camp flags had melted, the armor had been burned through, the bowstrings had burst, and the spells had been broken."

"The dwarven shield bearers at the forefront held out for only three breaths. By the third breath, their iron shields had turned to molten gold, their boots had become one with the ground, and even their shouts were swept away by the shockwave."

"They didn't die in the battle; instead, they were burned into some kind of flowing metal statues."

"The commander in the rear tried to use wind magic to weaken the heat wave, but all the mages lost their voices the moment they started casting the spell. The sudden change in air density caused their vocal cords to explode and their spiritual cores to heat up, resulting in a one-time loss of their ability to cast spells."

"That night was the shortest major battle of the Third Age, and also the most devastating defeat."

"From dusk till midnight, in just six hours, the vanguard suffered 3,144 dead, and all three military tents were destroyed."

"Even the map was burned beyond repair."

She paused, her voice becoming hoarse:

"But the dragon did not pursue."

"It just glanced at the human, then lay down again and went back to sleep."

"In the second phase, the dwarves were replaced."

"They proposed a 'geological leyline' tactic, which involved burying fire mines at the base of the mountain to sever the volcano's root system and thus collapse the dragon's nest."

"The league is letting them try."

"Six mining warfare teams, totaling 137 people, went deep into the rocky ridge from the edge, avoiding the frontal fire zone, and spent five days setting up the formation."

"But the mother dragon woke up."

"Not because of the noise, but because of the smell, the iron in the dwarf's sweat."

"It didn't breathe fire, it didn't leap into the air, it just stood up and then swung its tail to strike."

"With the sweep of the tail, the rock platform collapsed. The lightning did not detonate, the explosion point did not arrive, and the entire side of the volcano was cleaved diagonally. The five teams, along with the earth, collapsed into the core of the earth."

"The tactical officer on the rear watchtower witnessed the attack; the record entry contained only six words: 'The mountain's eye split open, the dragon's tail was whipped up.'"

"I later learned that the tail was not an attack, but an 'extension'."

"It's just getting up."

"The battle lasted for a full seventeen days."

"Every day is like a will written by time, forged in magma."

"On the fourth day, the elven forces attempted to manipulate the natural spiritual veins to tilt the mountain, but to no avail; the sorcerer set up a nine-ring spiritual pressure to seal the temperature of the fire ridge, but the dragon bone itself was the source of the fire vein's focus, and the sealing spell was instead countered by the shockwave."

"It wasn't until the thirteenth day that the league realized: they could no longer launch a direct attack."

"So they mobilized the remaining thirty-six strongest knights, the highest fighting force still in service across all the kingdoms of the alliance."

"To cooperate with this, fifty high-level mages formed a seven-layered induction array, a nine-cornered soul net, and a four-fold spirit-concealing spell, which were placed on the three ridges of the volcano."

"Use the entire frontline fighting force, just to do one thing: separate those two dragons."

"If they can't find weaknesses, they create opportunities."

"The mage forcibly activated the Thunder of the Mountain Heart, simulating the pressure of the ancient dragon race, in an attempt to trigger the territorial extinction of the male dragon."

"It's all like gambling."

"And it actually worked."

"At dawn on the seventeenth day, the male and female dragons roared at each other, and the two dragons took to the air, each soaring over the island ridge, trying to dominate their habitat."

That was the first and last time they were separated.

"The alliance has made its move."

"The dragon's breath has not yet ceased, the knights are not afraid. Thirty-six riders charged into the fiery rocks, the spell array ignited, the storm tore through the clouds, the electric blades pierced through the wing bones, and the final strike, 'Flaming Spine Piercing,' pierced the dragon's heart."

"The mother dragon roared as she plunged into the sea, her skeleton sinking into the lava."

"The wounded dragon tried to return, but was blocked in mid-air by the 'giant arrow' that had been lying in ambush between its four wings. It was then struck down by the storm chain and died with its skull shattered."

"The mountain is silent."

"At this moment, fewer than thirty soldiers remain."

"That was the last great earthquake of the Third Age."

"It wasn't natural, it was the dragon's death."

"After that war, the mountain collapsed, and the dragon's remains were buried in the rock core, but deep inside the rock core, they found five dragon eggs."

"Elliptical, pulsating, not yet formed."

"The death of the dragon is not the end, but the beginning."

"They brought back the five dragon eggs and distributed them to the five strongest tribes at the time for incubation."

Eileen looked at the flames and whispered:

"From that year onward, the world entered a new era."

"The Era of Dragonfire".

"People don't know what these five dragon eggs will eventually hatch, or whether they can truly become a force that changes the course of the war once again."

"But at the end of the Third Age, they learned one thing,"

"True light is not weapons, not magic, not blood marks, but their ability to trust one another."

Even if only once.

Flames licked at the firewood, crackling and popping like the pulse of some ancient life, slowly throbbing in the chest of the night.

Eileen gazed at it quietly, her eyes seemingly piercing through countless scorching flames and ancient ruins, landing on the moment when the five eggshells first cracked open.

"The five strongest nations, now known as the Five Great Nations: Nostria, Astra, Isel, Ferian, and Elersil, have formed the Oath of Fire, each raising one."

"They established incubators in their respective territories and sent out their most devout watchmen, gentlest mages, and bravest beast riders to nurture the five eggs day after day with fire, blood, and heart."

"Some eggs are quiet, some are restless, and some emit faint hums every night, like the sound of drums in a dream."

"They didn't know if these dragons could actually hatch; they didn't know whether what hatched would be a guardian or destruction itself."

"It wasn't until 55 years later that the dragon scales broke through its shell."

"The dragon has really been hatched."

A string of sparks gently popped, leaping over Eric's knees and flickering like stars in the dark forest. Eileen pulled her cloak tighter, looking down at the flames, her voice carrying a quiet solemnity:

"He was the first to hatch."

"Azdaran the Fire Dragon".

"It was a stormy night, the earth rumbled and groaned, and lightning illuminated the ruins of the ancient castle outside the tower. The magical fire in the incubation grounds flickered, as if even the elements were trembling. On the morning of the sixty-third day that followed, tiny cracks appeared on the eggshell, and blood-red veins flowed across its surface like magma."

"Then, he rose up on fire."

"There was no crying, no struggling."

"Only a crimson dragon, as if cast in stone, slowly rose from the pool of fire, its body covered in flowing flame armor, its scales like blazing iron. The moment it opened its eyes, the temperature of the entire tower chamber suddenly rose by fifty degrees, the three layers of stone walls cracked, the altar evaporated, and even the protective magic array shattered inch by inch under its heartbeat."

"He didn't go berserk."

"He's just alive."

"None of the three trainers in charge of him that day survived the first round of contact. One was burned through his chest by the scorching heat and burned to ashes; the other two managed to escape, but were also burned all over their bodies and never dared to mention the word 'dragon taming' again until their deaths."

"But just as everyone was retreating in terror, he stopped."

As Eileen spoke, a serene emotion flickered in her eyes.

He lowered his head.

"Amidst the rubble and ashes, the towering, chariot-like figure crouched down, gently touching the sorcerer's tattered glove with its charred nose, then licking the still-burning runic ashes from the finger bones with its tongue."

"No one knew what that move was, but everyone present fell silent."

"From that moment on, they understood that this dragon was not a mad beast."

"He is a warrior."

"They named him Azdaran, meaning 'burning away the shadow of blood'."

"He is the most primal of the five dragons. He doesn't understand strategy and doesn't obey orders. He never hides and never retreats."

"In every battle, he was always the first to charge into the horde, tearing apart the densest lines and shattering the most troublesome structures. And what was most terrifying was that he never looked back."

"He could sense whether the enemy soldiers were truly dead, you know?"

"It's not the eyes, nor the ears, but a deeper instinct. Any creature whose soul fire has not been extinguished and whose evil energy has not been eradicated, even if it is feigning death or pretending, he will crush that body and inject the scorching flames into it."

"His flames are different from ordinary dragon flames."

"It was a kind of marrow fire that flowed from his heart, ignited through his blood, and carried an extremely rare blood-breaking energy."

"Any life that has been burned by his flames will not only have its blood depleted, but its physical regeneration mechanism will also be completely torn apart."

"Even the regenerated constructs forged by the Blood Shaping Tower, even the supposedly immortal Shieldbone Man, can only be reduced to ashes in his fire."

"Later, in the Allied Forces' tactical map, there was an area that was forever stained red, called 'Valley of Embers'."

"That was when he stepped alone into the battlefield of the orcish main force of the construct army, flames covered the ground, and no enemy was left with bones."

"After the war, the surveying troops could not find any intact bodies in the valley, only charred rocks and black weathered bone powder."

Some people say he's too cruel and out of control.

"But many more say: He was the first real reason why the Allied Forces forced Blood Tower to retreat."

"He was not the killer."

"He is the Terminator."

"He is not a dragon."

"He was the only roar that charged forward amidst the flames of war."

At this point, Eileen quietly stroked the scabbard of the dagger at her waist beneath her cloak, her fingertips caressing the dragon-shaped fire pattern, and sighed softly:

"When you meet him, you'll understand that some fires in this world aren't meant to be used for illumination."

"It's for funerals."

Eileen gently stirred the campfire, pushing a smoldering pine branch into the heart of the flames. Sparks leaped up, illuminating her profile, as if some tender memory was rising from the depths of her heart.