Inside Stormveil Castle, an extraordinarily rare and fierce battle was unfolding.
A tiny human and a massive dragon were locked together, grappling in a brutal struggle.
If that were all, it would not have been especially unusual. After all, it was not as though no one had ever accomplished the feat of dragon-slaying before.
Judging by their size difference, this should have been a hopelessly one-sided fight.
The strange part was that the human had pinned the dragon beneath him and was punching it in the face again and again, making the dragon howl in pain.
"Will Sethlin be all right?"
Florissax could not help worrying for the dragon. She truly could not bear to watch such a cruel scene.
If it had ended in an instant kill, perhaps it would not have been so deeply unsettling. But those heavy blows, one after another, looked painful even from a distance.
Was His Majesty Nolan becoming more and more brutal?
Lansseax thought back to the past, her mind drifting to the time when the Ancient Dragons went to war with Leyndell.
Those scenes played over and over in her mind like a film, and she could not help laughing.
She had to admit, that fellow Godwyn really had some skill. He had taken down the Great Ancient Dragon Gransax, then pinned her younger brother to the ground and beat him into submission.
That foolish brother of hers had relied on his strength and refused to listen to his sister. He deserved to get beaten up outside.
A faint smile touched Lansseax's lips as she reassured her.
"Don't worry. Nolan knows where to draw the line. Otherwise, with his current strength, his first punch would have killed Sethlin and completed the feat of dragon-slaying."
Florissax gave her a skeptical look. With that expression on Lansseax's face, her words did not seem very convincing.
Still, she could not deny that Lansseax had a point. Sethlin was far too young among the Ancient Dragons, and her strength was nowhere near that of the crippled Bayle.
If Nolan could kill Bayle, killing Sethlin now would be even easier.
If Nolan truly meant to kill her, even she and Lansseax together would not be able to stop him.
She probably would not die. Nolan really did not seem to want to kill anyone... or rather, to slay a dragon. But she was definitely not getting away without a vicious beating.
With that thought, Florissax relaxed a little. At least Sethlin's life was not in danger.
Then the sound of blows from the distance made Florissax turn her head despite herself.
The sound was muffled, but she could faintly make out a conversation between a man and a dragon.
"Do you yield?" Nolan asked with a smile, straddling the crimson Ancient Dragon.
"No!" Sethlinsax's voice was full of anger and defiance.
"Do you yield?" Nolan threw another punch, smashing it into Sethlin's eye socket as he pressed her again.
"No." Sethlinsax's eyes were already swollen, but she was still being stubborn.
"Good. You've got backbone. I like dragons with backbone."
This time, Nolan punched her in the mouth. He did feel a little guilty, as if he were bullying a child, but he was still enjoying himself quite a bit.
After taking several more punches in a row, Sethlinsax finally could not hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground, unable to get back up.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nolan's fist still coming for her and hurriedly shouted, "I yield! I yield! Big Brother, stop hitting me!"
"At least you know what's good for you."
The corners of Nolan's mouth lifted into a smile, and his fists, which had been swinging like windmills, finally stopped in midair.
"I'm not actually a bad person. You should've just said that earlier."
Nolan lightly jumped down from the Ancient Dragon and landed steadily on his feet, still looking somewhat unsatisfied.
Sethlinsax stared at Nolan's smile, and her heart trembled.
She finally understood why Fortissax had followed Godwyn.
Who could endure punches that heavy?
If Nolan had punched her a few more times, she might have spilled every last bedroom secret between that old fellow Placidusax and Lord Dragon.
Put that way, Placidusax ought to thank her. Fortunately, she surrendered quickly. Otherwise, that old fellow's reputation in his later years would have been ruined.
"Stop playing dead. I held back when I hit you. Are you still lying there because you don't accept it?" Nolan looked at Sethlinsax lying on the ground, the smile on his lips growing even more obvious.
Hearing Nolan's words, Sethlinsax felt as though she had received a pardon and hurriedly crawled up from the ground.
She clutched her body tightly with one claw, as if she could still feel the lingering pain from the blows, while her two pairs of dragon wings drooped listlessly.
Sethlinsax limped along behind Nolan, her steps a little unsteady.
Seeing her "harmless" appearance, Nolan could not help feeling amused.
As he walked leisurely, he asked with great interest, "Little one, how old are you this year?"
"Two thousand years old," Sethlinsax replied in a crisp voice.
The corners of Nolan's mouth lifted into a faint smile as he teased her.
"Oh? Then you really are still a little kid. But you're far too naughty. Don't Ancient Dragons know how to teach their children?"
With Lansseax having stayed by his side for so many years, he did know a little about the Ancient Dragons as a race.
The oldest of the Ancient Dragons was Placidusax, whose age had reached five thousand years, making him almost as ancient as the entire history of the Lands Between.
The next generation consisted of Great Ancient Dragons like Gransax, who had already been over four thousand years old when he died in Leyndell during the Ancient Dragon War.
As for juniors like Lansseax and Florissax, they were now over three thousand years old as well.
By comparison, Sethlinsax was only two thousand years old. She was indeed still young, and rather small.
"I'm not a child!" Sethlinsax was clearly displeased by Nolan's words and pouted as she argued back.
"What did you say?" Nolan asked.
"...Nothing." Frightened by Nolan, Sethlinsax shuddered despite herself and answered softly.
A brat who did not know better? A beating would fix that.
"Come to think of it, you came all the way here from Farum Azula, and I still haven't properly hosted you."
Nolan smiled warmly and said, "Transform into human form first. Later, I'll take you all to enjoy a proper feast."
Sethlinsax looked troubled. After hesitating for a moment, she answered uncertainly, "That won't be necessary, will it?"
For a mighty Ancient Dragon to turn into a frail human was simply an insult to the dignity of the Ancient Dragons.
Of course, Florissax's case was not an insult. She had done it for a great mission.
"Hmm. Looks to me like you're still not convinced. How about we spar again?"
"Actually, I don't know how."
"Do you really not know, or are you just pretending?" Nolan interrupted her and pressed on. "Forget it. I'll go ask Lansseax."
"No need. Actually, I do know. I just suddenly forgot for a moment. I'll transform right now." Sethlinsax shook her head.
If she ended up in Lansseax's hands, what good could possibly come of it?
She did not think she had abandoned the pride of the Ancient Dragons. She was merely enduring for now.
As the old saying went, it was never too late for an Ancient Dragon to take revenge, even after a thousand years.
For three thousand years, the river flows east. For three thousand years, it flows west. Never look down on a young dragon just because she is poor.
In one or two thousand years, she would be a Great Ancient Dragon. After three thousand years, she might even become the Lord of the Ancient Dragons. Taking revenge then would not be too late!
Under Nolan's gaze, Sethlinsax's body rapidly shrank and transformed into a little girl.
The girl had a delicate, pretty face like a porcelain doll, and a head of red hair as bright as fire. But she did not even reach Nolan's waist, and her build was about the same as Trina's.
Now, not only did her voice sound like a child's, even her appearance looked like one.
"Sethlin, are you all right? Does it hurt?" Florissax hurried forward and asked with concern.
"I'm fine. I'm Sethlinsax of the Ancient Dragons. How could anything be wrong with me?"
Sethlin's face was bruised and swollen, and several of her teeth had fallen out, but she still smiled brightly, planted both hands on her hips, and looked very proud of herself.
"It doesn't hurt. It really doesn't hurt at all!"