Chapter 9: The Last Lineage: Whispers of the Dragons
After dinner, Aislin drifted off to sleep. Despite her intelligence, it was incredibly difficult to force a ten-year-old girl to train.
As usual, I went to Mother, asking her to tell me stories from her life.
Mother had lived for over ninety thousand years, witnessing countless events during that time. I tried to memorize the locations of the rare plants she spoke of, even though she might not know their exact properties.
After all, who could believe that there were only three dragons in this world?
Mother told me that all the dragons in this world had been exterminated by humans, for fear that one day a dragon might dominate the world. In short, they were destroyed for possessing immense power. Any strong dragon that appeared would drive humans to assemble entire armies to annihilate it completely.
Even she—humans knew nothing about her. Any human who saw her would be destroyed before they could even escape. Yet, rumors of our existence still circulated among humans.
She repeatedly warned me that if humans ever discovered our family, they would destroy us. Mother forbade me from wandering near human-controlled areas to avoid being discovered.
When Mother finished speaking, I felt the weight of her words. The three of us were all that remained of the great dragon lineage—myself, little Aislin, and Mother, who had lived for over ninety thousand years.
The thought that we were the only ones left in this world filled me with a mixture of pride and fear—pride because we carried the legacy of the ancient dragons, and fear because our end could come swiftly if humans discovered us.
Mother always emphasized the importance of remaining hidden in this icy cave, where human eyes could not reach us. We were in the far North because the cold protected us, especially with no large cities nearby. Even if any creature approached, it would die before discovering our location, thanks to the relentless ice storms.
Yet I had always wondered: could we truly live in isolation forever?
Aislin, despite her young age, was full of energy and curiosity. She constantly asked me about the world beyond the Extreme North. She longed to soar freely under the blue sky, while I leaned more toward caution and contemplation, just as Mother had taught me.
"Mother, are we really the last dragons?" I asked in a low voice.
Mother looked at me and said, "Yes, my son. No one remains but us. Humans have exterminated all who came before us, fearing our power. We are now the last hope of the dragon lineage, and even the smallest mistake could lead to our extinction."
I glanced at Aislin, sleeping curled near the cave walls, and said to Mother:
"But how long must we remain hidden? Aislin is growing up, and soon she will start asking questions we cannot answer. We are dragons—we were born to fly and to rule, not to hide in caves."
Mother closed her eyes for a moment, as if recalling memories from a distant past, then replied, "I know, my son, but this is the only way to survive. One day, you may have the power to change this fate. Until then, we must protect what remains of us."
At that moment, I felt an immense weight of responsibility. We were not just a family; we were the last remnants of the dragon lineage. Protecting Aislin and Mother was not merely a duty—it was my battle against this world.
This made me wonder… is this my legendary mission? Is this the reason I was reborn into this world?
Does it mean that I am the hero?
I am the hero of this world…
I am the one who carries the responsibility of the dragon lineage in this world.
I am the chosen one, the boy of fortune.
I am the one who rises from the ashes.
But curiosity had always been stronger than fear for me. I wanted to understand the world that made humans hate us so fiercely. How could such fragile creatures wipe out the dragon lineage—a lineage that once ruled the skies and the earth, reigning at the top of the food chain?
I needed to know more.
Countless thoughts swirled in my mind, yet there was something else. I felt that a part of the story had been left untold.
Lost in my thoughts, I lay down on the cold ground, savoring the silence that enveloped the cave. The wind howled outside, carrying whispers of the past. Perhaps one day, I would uncover the full truth about this world…
And the real reason behind humanity's drive to exterminate the dragons.
Yet what puzzled me the most was how humans could annihilate an entire dragon lineage.
For now, though, it was not the time to dwell on this matter.
At this moment, I had to focus only on becoming stronger.
I was not yet powerful enough to reveal what had happened between dragons and humans in the past. So, I would forget it… at least for now, while I remained weak.
I would not remain trapped in this cave forever.
Because I realized that the fate of my family—and the entire dragon lineage—and the revenge for my father in this life all depended on what I would do in the days to come.
I no longer saw this place as merely a refuge; it had become a prison, keeping me away from the world I had always longed to understand.
How could we remain here while the world changed around us?
How could I protect my family if I did not even know what we were facing?
In my past life, I had been human. I knew what humans were capable of.
I would become stronger, and I would uncover the truth, no matter how shocking it might be.
I needed to blend with them, control them, and turn their strength against one another—just as if they were spiritual weapons. If I truly wanted to win, to carve out a place for myself and my family in this world, I could not live as a wild beast.
Both my human mind and my dragon instincts rejected the life of a bird trapped in a cage.
And so time passed, and I remained powerless to do anything.
As the days went by, little Aislin began to show signs of curiosity. Though she possessed the body of a mature dragon, she still lacked a fully developed awareness. Most of the time, she continued to behave like a ten-year-old child.
Yet something had changed—her way of thinking no longer felt childlike. She now acted as if she were fifteen or sixteen. She had grown more rebellious and aware, thinking with the perspective of an observer.
Her questions were no longer innocent like before.
She asked me, "Why do we fear humans? Why didn't we just flee and live freely? Were we really the strongest, as Mother claimed?"
Had she begun to mature and entered adolescence?
She had asked many questions, but what struck me most was when she said she wanted to marry.
It was then that I realized she was no longer a child—she was on the verge of becoming a mature dragon.
It is known that when dragons reach adulthood, they experience a period of intense mating desires. However, if a female dragon does not find a suitable mate, she must suppress these instincts. This applies only to female dragons.
A female dragon does not choose anyone easily. There are many conditions that must be met before selecting a partner.
The first condition is that he must be stronger than her—and he must defeat her in battle.
Even then, she might still refuse him.
Yet, if a female dragon finds someone she truly wishes to be with, she enters a state of deep longing for him.
Once a female dragon chooses a mate, she remains devoted to him for life and will never accept another partner.
There are only a few exceptions to this rule.
If her mate cannot satisfy her, or if he dies, or abandons her, then—and only then—will she seek another partner.
For Aislin to ask such a question… it meant that there was already someone she was considering as a mate.
Yet, throughout all these past years, I had never seen her interact with any male, nor had she formed friendships with other females from different clans.
She had always been attached to me… and to Mother.
So, for her to ask this question now made me wonder: when did she find a mate?
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