This winter was not long for Galos.
He intentionally reduced the proportion of time spent exercising, always making time to entertain the Fairy Dragon.
Painting on the butts of Giant Bears, sticking flowers into the nostrils of Golden Dragons—
Due to the Red Emperor's tacit approval, the Fairy Dragon had practically become the little matriarch of Crimson Flame Royal City. However, her pranks were harmless, and her joyful demeanor was highly infectious, so people were very tolerant of her.
And in this process, Galos's spirit was greatly soothed.
In the blink of an eye, the severity of winter quietly receded with countless sunrises and sunsets.
A biting chill still lingered in the air, but the awakening vitality deep within the earth was already irrepressibly showing signs of emergence.
On the sunny slopes, the melting snow revealed damp soil, and scattered tips of tender green sprouts poked through. New emerald hues were added to the dark green of the evergreen trees, and the taste of the wind softened, mixed with the fresh scent of thawing earth.
An afternoon in early spring.
The Red Iron Dragon had just finished a round of high-intensity exercise, and hot white steam rose from his body, causing the surrounding cold air to hiss faintly and constantly distort.
He exhaled a burst of scorching air, and then, as was his habit, called out in a deep voice.
"Vera."
The sound echoed among the cliffs, penetrating the sparse woods.
However, there was no crisp "Here!" in response.
Only silence remained in the air.
The thick scales on Galos's forehead wrinkled slightly.
His eyes suddenly lit up with the profound Light of True Sight, and he scanned the surroundings, but did not find the Fairy Dragon. She wasn't visible in any crevice or behind any rock where her usual sneaky shadow might hide.
A strange feeling of unease appeared in Galos's heart.
"That fellow..."
Whoosh!
He spread his wings and flew back to the Royal Palace, then used Transformation to shrink his size.
He passed through the familiar corridors and halls inside the palace, heading purposefully toward a secluded corner on the palace's side wing.
There was a small spiral staircase leading to a small attic room on the top floor.
This was the Fairy Dragon's room. Though small, it was fully equipped (a complete mess), filled with various trinkets haphazardly placed.
Shiny stones, colored feathers, half-drunk mead jars, and countless small objects "borrowed" from various parts of the Royal Palace.
There were even a few of Galos's scales.
The room was filled with the Fairy Dragon's strong scent, but it was quiet now; not even the faintest snore or murmur could be heard.
Galos's heart sank slightly.
His gaze swept over every corner of the room, finally settling on the small bed covered with velvet in the center of the room.
There was no Dragon shadow on it.
But in the center of the pile of soft fabrics, a brightly colored, variegated Dragon scale lay quietly, emitting a stable and soft glow.
Galos reached out with his shrunken, transformed claw and touched the Dragon scale.
Buzz.
The light suddenly flickered, projecting the Fairy Dragon's small figure into the air.
She was sitting on a corner of the Red Emperor's Throne, one of her favorite spots, swinging her tail and wearing a sly smile.
"Hehe! Fooled you, my dear His Majesty Ignis!"
Vera in the projection spoke, her voice clear and lively.
"You must have thought I'd wait obediently until you had time, and then be personally escorted by you to the Feywild like a little baby needing careful protection, right?"
She shook her head and flapped her wings happily twice.
"That would be so boring! It doesn't suit the style of me, Lady Vera, at all!"
She paused, and the image of her seemed to be making eye contact with Galos, who was standing in the attic.
Her expression became slightly more serious.
"Besides, I thought about it carefully later. If a big fellow like you really followed me back to the Feywild... who knows what kind of terrible trouble you might stir up."
"The little Fairies, Tree Spirits, Flower Fairies, and the old grandpas living under the glowing big mushrooms in the Feywild are very timid and simple-minded."
"One careless sneeze from you could probably make them cry for days."
"Although imagining that scene sounds quite funny," she stuck out her tongue, "if the commotion gets too big and attracts the attention of the Old Fossils, then it won't be fun anymore."
Vera in the projection stood up from the armrest of the throne and lightly jumped onto the center of the throne's wide seat.
To her, it was like a plaza.
She puffed out her chest, put her hands on her hips, and struck a pose full of heroic, fearless spirit.
"So, after careful consideration by this Dragon, I decided to go back by myself!"
she announced, her voice filled with pride.
"Don't worry, don't worry."
"I, Vera, have been adventuring in the Material Plane for over a hundred years. What kind of storms haven't I seen? The dangers of the Feywild are just a piece of cake for me."
"Once I return to the Feywild, I will surely gain the favor of the ancestral spiritss and accept the baptism of the origin breath..."
"Haha! I, Lady Vera, will definitely live a brilliant second life! If my luck is good, maybe I'll jump straight to becoming a Legendary Fairy Dragon! At that time," she winked at Galos outside the projection, "I'll find a way to return to the Material Plane and see how magnificent your kingdom has become."
"You must work hard, lest I surpass you when I return."
The image began to flicker, and Vera's figure became somewhat transparent.
"Alright, alright, the Magic Letter is running out of power."
She showed one last brilliant smile and waved her claw.
"Goodbye, my dear His Majesty Ignis."
"Spring has arrived. For me, take a few extra looks at the little flowers just emerging from the soil, and listen more to the new songs the birds are composing. Don't always bury yourself in exercise."
"Occasionally, you should also bask in the sun and enjoy the warm spring breeze, like a lazy and normal Dragon."
Only silence remained in the attic.
Outside the window, the early spring wind blew into the room, carrying the scent of soil and tender sprouts.
A faint clamor came from the distant Royal City—the citizens of Aura beginning a new day of life. Sunlight streamed through the window lattice, casting warm patches of light on the floor and illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air.
"Cunning little thing."
Galos picked up the colored Dragon scale and murmured.
A moment later, he carefully put it away and turned to leave the attic.
When he reached the door, Galos paused, glanced back at the messy but lively little room, and then gently closed the door, leaving the silence of the room behind him.
The Fairy Dragon had returned to the Feywild, and his Dragon life in the Material Plane had to continue.
However, there was no sadness in Galos's heart.
He had a strong premonition that they would meet again.
Feywild, deep within the Gloom Forest.
Towering ancient trees obscured the sky. Only scattered patches of light leaked through the gaps in the branches and leaves, illuminating the slowly drifting Fairy Dust and glowing spores in the air. The air was filled with the sweet, cloying smell of humus and the fragrance of exotic flowers.
Buzz!
The air in a certain spot suddenly rippled unnaturally.
Immediately afterward, a gap seemed to be torn open in the center of the ripple by an invisible hand, and a small, colorful figure stumbled out, falling onto the thick, soft ground covered with fallen leaves and moss.
"Cough, cough... Ptooey! Ptooey, ptooey!"
Fairy Dragon Vera lay on all fours for a while before groggily scrambling up. She shook her head vigorously to spit out the few leaves and moss fragments she had accidentally choked on.
"My head is so dizzy... like being stuffed into a wine barrel and rolled down a hill..."
"This Plane Teleportation is truly not a suffering a Dragon should endure... it's not fun at all..."
She muttered, rubbing her throbbing temples with her small claw.
After becoming slightly more sober, she lifted her head and began cautiously looking around.
A dark, damp environment, filled with rich Life Qi and magical Aura, met her eyes.
Giant mushrooms stood like towers. Tiny doors and windows were vaguely visible on the trunks of ancient trees wrapped in glowing vines. The ethereal calls of unknown creatures and the babbling sound of a stream came from afar.
Familiar, yet completely foreign.
It had been over a hundred and thirty years... she had finally returned to the land of her birth.
Vera took a deep breath. The air rich with Fairy Qi rushed into her lungs, smoothing out the tiny wrinkles caused by aging on her wing membranes, and temporarily lessening the dullness of the grayish-white marks on her scales.
"This seems to be... the outer region of the Gloom Forest?"
Vera identified the typical terrain and vegetation around her. "I remember this forest hides many unfriendly bad guys."
She subconsciously retracted her neck, but immediately, a surge of pride welled up in her heart.
"However, hmph! Times have changed."
"I, Lady Vera, am now..."
She puffed out her chest, ready to deliver a declaration of glorious return.
Just at this moment.
Hiss... crackle... moan... a series of extremely faint yet unusually clear strange sounds came from not far behind her, without warning.
The sound was like dry branches being slowly stepped on, or some viscous liquid squirming, interspersed with muffled whimpering sounds like an infant's suppressed cry. It was particularly jarring against the silent backdrop of the forest, sending chills down Vera's spine.
Vera's scales instantly stood on end.
She turned around, trembling.
Less than ten meters behind her, beneath a twisted, pitch-black ancient tree, a mass of shadow was squirming and expanding.
A humanoid silhouette gradually emerged from the shadow.
Long, twisted limbs, skin withered like tree bark, and a face without features, only a constantly opening and closing slit that emitted whimpering sounds.
Sorrowful Fury Fairy!
A hateful, fallen Fey species in the Feywild, a twisted monster born from long-term contamination by intense negative emotions like sorrow, resentment, and jealousy.
They despise all things lively, happy, and beautiful, feeding on the life force and positive emotions of other Fey creatures, and are the nightmare of many weaker Fey.
What's more troublesome is that the Sorrowful Fury Fairy has a natural dominance over Fey life.
Their attacks often ignore the resistance of many Fey, allowing them to frequently hunt high-Rank Fey across several levels.
Vera was somewhat frightened, and her body stiffened.
Back then, it was a Sorrowful Fury Fairy that attacked her while she was collecting honey at the edge of the Gloom Forest. Extreme fear triggered her Planar Talent, causing her to desperately flee into a rift leading to the Material Plane at the critical moment, stumbling and falling in, barely saving her life.
It was that very accident that led her to drift to the Serre Wilderness, where she later met the young Red Iron Dragon.
She hadn't expected to encounter a Sorrowful Fury Fairy again, right after returning.
"Ah, my luck is terrible."
Vera said with a slumped, mournful face.
The featureless face stared at Vera, and the whimpering slit opened wider.
Suddenly, the Sorrowful Fury Fairy let out a sharper wail. Its long, thin limbs violently pushed off the ground, and its withered body shot forward like an arrow, carrying a sickening scent of decay, rushing straight toward the Fairy Dragon, who was frozen in place.
The Fairy Dragon's vibrant life and joyful emotions... those were the delicacies it most craved.
"I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die! Am I really going to die here? Am I done for right after coming back?!"
Vera screamed and tightly shut her eyes, seemingly having given up resistance.
The Aura of shadow and death enveloped her, and the foul wind stirred up by the withered claw had already touched her scales.
Right at this moment.
Vera's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open.
"Hey... I fooled you."
She softly spoke a name: "Galos."
The next moment, BOOM!!!
An indescribably magnificent pressure burst forth violently, centered around Vera's tiny body.
The air seemed to solidify for an instant, then erupted in an overwhelming sonic boom.
The dust and spores floating in the Gloom Forest were swept away by the violent airflow. The surrounding giant mushrooms and ancient trees groaned and creaked, and leaves and ferns swayed wildly.
The pouncing Sorrowful Fury Fairy was blown backward by the gale.
The slit-like mouth on its featureless face stopped whimpering. A certain terror, replacing the predator's greed, seized its twisted consciousness.
Light.
Hot, violent light erupted from Vera's petite body.
Her form rapidly expanded in the light, then stretched and reshaped.
Rainbow-like scales were replaced by thick, hard, dark Red Dragon scales with a metallic sheen; small wings transformed into colossal wing skeletons that blocked out the sky, their membranes flashing with a lava-like glow; the slender neck and torso became immensely strong, the muscle lines filled with explosive power; the head became angular, jagged Dragon horns stabbed toward the sky, and the muzzle split open, revealing terrifying, blade-like teeth.
A Red Iron Dragon, nearly forty meters long, suddenly replaced the Fairy Dragon, standing majestically in the Gloom Forest.
Its form was extremely similar to that of the Red Emperor far away in the Material Plane! Especially the pair of deep black vertical pupils, which burned with the same fierce, majestic, and inviolable will.
Red Emperor Descent Technique!
This was precisely Vera's ultimate move.
Years of observation and imitation allowed her to know the Red Emperor's various states like the back of her hand. By using this skill, she could briefly transform herself into the Red Emperor, even adopting similar personality traits.
The Sorrowful Fury Fairy let out a shriek so sharp it was ear-splitting.
That was no longer the whimper of a predator, but the instinctive scream of prey facing a natural enemy.
Its twisted body wanted to retreat, to merge back into the shadow.
But it was too late.
"Insects, perish."
Vera, in her Incarnation of the Red Emperor form, didn't even bother to take a close look at the trembling monster.
She simply raised her massive foreclaw casually, and then brought it down.
Before the giant claw arrived, the wind pressure had already cracked the ground around the Sorrowful Fury Fairy inch by inch, pinning its withered body firmly in place, unable to move.
Then, the claw descended.
Bang!
The earth sank and collapsed.
The twisted body of the Sorrowful Fury Fairy instantly turned into a smear of filth, mixed with shadow fragments and putrid fluid, deeply embedded in the crater on the ground.
The monster that had once caused Vera to flee for her life and regarded as a nightmare was now utterly erased without even being able to struggle.
The Dragon claw lifted, lightly shaking off the grime.
The Red Iron Dragon lowered its head, glancing at the mark on the ground that was rapidly being absorbed by the forest soil.
"Roar..."
A low, satisfied Dragon roar rumbled from deep within its throat, shaking the surrounding leaves until they rustled down.
Light began to surge again.
The enormous Dragon body quickly shrank like a receding tide.
After a few breaths, Fairy Dragon Vera reappeared.
She looked down at her small, intact claws, and then looked at the giant crater on the ground.
"Hmph, you want to kill me? Ugly monster, go tell my Red Emperor Descent Technique about it."
The Fairy Dragon lifted her chin, her face full of pride.
She patted her small claws, as if brushing off non-existent dust, and then looked around spiritedly.
The Gloom Forest remained silent, but the unsettling sense of danger had retreated with the disappearance of the Sorrowful Fury Fairy and her recent outburst.
The confusion and fear on Vera's face vanished, replaced by the confidence and flamboyance of a "homecoming."
Whoosh!
The Fairy Dragon did a somersault and then shot straight into the sky.
"Feywild!!"
"Haha! You most clever, most powerful, most adorable Lady Vera, is back!!"
Accompanied by the arrogant declaration, the Fairy Dragon quickly flew toward the location of her home in her memory.