-Surya's POV-
Kael and I exchanged a glance. The air around this woman felt different, not threatening, but heavy, as though she carried a story carved into her very soul.
"Who… are you?" I asked carefully, stepping forward.
She didn't answer right away. Instead, she turned back to the old stove, stirring what looked like a pot of tea, the steam rising faintly into the cold air. Only after a long silence did she speak.
"This castle," she said quietly, "was once the heart of Fillo. Nobles dined in these halls, knights trained in the courtyards. And I… was among them."
Kael blinked. "You… lived here?"
The woman finally looked at us, her dark eyes shimmering in the pale light. "I am Serenya Cryellita. Once a daughter of this kingdom, now… nothing more than a shadow wandering her ruins."
The name struck me. Cryellita,the same as the kingdom.
"You're royalty?" I asked, my voice sharper than I meant.
She smiled faintly, though it carried no joy. "Royalty? No. Not anymore. What use is a title, when the dragon that devours your people cannot be slain?"
Her words hung in the air, bitter and resigned.
Kael fidgeted, clearly unsettled, but I felt my chest tighten with resolve. If she truly was connected to Cryellita's royal line, then perhaps she knew the truth behind the Moon Dragon—why it attacked, and why this city had fallen into despair.
"Then tell us," I said, taking a step closer. "What do you know about the dragon?"
Serenya's eyes narrowed, studying me as though weighing my soul itself. Then, slowly, she whispered:
"Enough to know that if you face it unprepared… your light will be extinguished before it even reaches its scales."
—Serenya's Voice—
Her gaze drifted to the cracked stone walls, as though she were staring through them into the past.
"Twenty years ago, Cryellita was drowning in war. The Great Kingdom War—they called it. Armies from the North pressed us hard, and this city… was nearly lost."
Kael and I listened in silence as her tone hardened.
"The people of Fillo, desperate and afraid, turned their anger toward one man. A wizard who lived just beyond the city walls. He was strange, reclusive, and the whispers grew that he must be the reason for our suffering. So the mob went to him. They burned his home to ashes, and when he crawled from the flames, they cast stones until his blood stained the earth."
Kael flinched. "They… killed him?"
Serenya's expression darkened. "No. Worse. They left him alive long enough to curse them all. That very night, under the full moon, he shed his human form and became the monster that haunts us still—the Moon Dragon. His hatred was so great, it reshaped his very being."
A cold shiver ran down my spine.
"Since then," Serenya continued, "the dragon descends once every week, only under moonlight. And each time, Fillo burns. No matter how many knights or mages are sent against it, none have prevailed. The city has learned to live in fear, patching wounds that never heal."
Her eyes locked onto mine then, sharp and unyielding.
"And now you, adventurer of the sun, claim you will fight it."
The room fell silent, save for the faint hiss of boiling water on the stove.
—Surya's POV—
My chest tightened. Her words had cut too close.
I swallowed hard. "And how… do you know about my ability?"
Serenya's lips curved into the faintest smile. Not warm—more like someone who had seen through me from the very beginning.
"The light within you leaks from every breath you take," she said. "I felt it the moment you stepped into these ruins. A rare gift… the kind this cursed kingdom hasn't seen in decades. Sunlight magic does not hide, child—it demands to be seen."
Kael glanced at me nervously, but I kept my eyes on her.
"Now that we know the dragon's story," I muttered, "should we still defeat it? It was once a man… a victim of cruelty. Wouldn't killing him make us no better than the mob that created him?"
The question hung in the cold air.
Serenya's gaze softened for just a moment, as though my words stirred something buried deep within her. But then, her eyes grew distant, bitter.
"That is the curse of vengeance," she whispered. "Once chosen, it spares no one. Not even the man who wields it. That wizard died twenty years ago. What walks the night now… is only hatred made flesh."
She leaned closer, her voice low and sharp.
"If you do not strike it down, it will never stop. And when it comes again… more blood will stain these stones."
I felt Kael's hand tremble slightly at his side, but when I looked at him, his jaw was set, his eyes hard.
And I knew,this choice would no longer wait.
So we planned.
The three of us sat in that cold, ruined kitchen as Serenya laid out everything she knew.
"The Moon Dragon," she said firmly, "has only one true weakness,flame."
Kael blinked. "Flame? But… it breathes fire itself. How can fire be its weakness?"
I frowned, echoing his confusion. "A dragon destroyed by the very element it commands? That makes no sense."
Serenya only shook her head. "Sense has nothing to do with curses. The wizard who became that beast was burned once by the people of this city. Fire is not its kin—it is its torment. That scar is carved into its soul."
Her words sank into me like heavy stones. Fire… the one element I did not wield.
I glanced at Kael. He shifted uneasily under my stare, then scratched the back of his neck. "Uh… Master… you did teach me some fire basics to boost speed and heat spells. I can try…"
A small smile tugged at my lips. Of course,Kael. My student.
"Then it's settled," I said, clenching my fist. "Your fire, my light. Together, we'll bring the Moon Dragon down."
Serenya's eyes lingered on me for a long while, unreadable. Then, with a weary sigh, she rose from her seat.
"Tomorrow night, the moon will be full," she said. "And with it, the dragon will return. If you mean to face it… you will have your chance."
The kitchen went quiet again, save for the whisper of the night wind through broken windows.
The next morning, Kael and I made our way to the Adventurers' Guild in Fillo. The building was scarred like the rest of the city,shattered windows patched with boards, scorch marks still fresh on the stone walls. Inside, the mood was no better. Adventurers sat in silence, some with wounds still bandaged, others staring blankly into mugs of ale.
We walked up to the quest board, and there it was:
"Eliminate the Moon Dragon. Reward: 6,000 gold."
The parchment looked almost too clean, as if it had been replaced often. Too many hands had already torn down that notice, never to return.
I tore it free, brought it to the counter, and slammed it down.
The guildmaster, an older man with a scar over his left eye, raised a brow. "Hmph. Another pair of fools. You won't last the night."
"Maybe," I said, my voice steady. "But we'll try."
He studied me for a moment, then stamped the parchment. "So be it."
That night, silence spread over Fillo like a suffocating blanket. No laughter. No music. Just the creak of shutters being locked tight and the distant barking of frightened dogs.
Kael and I stood outside the ruined castle with Serenya, our eyes fixed on the night sky.
Then it came.
From beyond the clouds, a shadow descended,massive wings blotting out the stars, scales as black as midnight itself. Its eyes glowed a deep, violent purple, radiating pure hatred. The Moon Dragon.
The air trembled as it let out a roar that shook the city to its core, the sound carrying despair with it.
Kael swallowed hard beside me. "M-Master… that thing's huge."
I tightened my grip on my light blade. My heart thundered in my chest, but I forced a smile.
"Good. That just means it won't be able to ignore us."
The battle for Fillo had begun.
The Moon Dragon's roar split the sky, and then—
FWOOOSH!
A torrent of purple fire engulfed the streets below, swallowing the broken homes of Fillo. The stone itself glowed red from the heat, the air shimmering with raw destructive mana. People screamed inside their houses, hiding, praying.
"Kael, now!" I shouted.
We leapt onto our vessels—my Light Wing Vessel flashing with radiant feathers, his Wind Vessel spiraling upward with currents of air. We cut through the burning skies, chasing the monster that loomed above the city.
The dragon's massive wings stretched wide, scattering shadows across the ground. Its scales shimmered like polished obsidian, nearly impossible to pierce. Serenya stood at the castle ruins below, her hands clasped tight, her lips moving in silent prayer.
Kael circled to the right, his vessel twisting through the heat. "Master, it's preparing another breath!"
"I'll blind it!"
I raised my hand, mana gathering at my fingertips.
"Light Ray: Multiply!"
Dozens of beams shot forth, dazzling the night sky like falling stars. They burst against the dragon's eyes, making it snarl and thrash. The purple fire sputtered, scattered, but still burned dangerously close to the outer walls.
"Kael, strike its wings!"
"I'm on it!"
He dashed forward, his Wind Vessel accelerating in a violent gust. His blade gleamed as he cut across the dragon's wing membrane, sparks of blood flying into the air. The beast let out a guttural roar, swinging its tail like a whip—
"Kael, watch out!"
He ducked, his vessel spinning just in time to avoid being crushed.
I summoned my Light Blade, its radiance humming in my grip, and dove straight at the dragon's chest. The impact shook me to my core as the blade met its scales—sparks of light scattering, but the scales held strong.
"Tch… so that's the strength of a cursed dragon…" I gritted my teeth, forcing the blade deeper.
The dragon's purple eyes locked onto me. I felt the mana in its throat building again—another breath, point-blank this time.
"Master, MOVE!" Kael screamed.
But there was no time.
When my eyes opened, sunlight was already spilling through the cracks of the ruined castle wall. My whole body ached as if I'd been crushed. I shifted slightly—and realized Kael was sitting beside me, dozing with his head tilted forward, exhaustion written all over his face.
"Kael…?" I murmured.
His eyes snapped open at my voice. Relief immediately softened his features. "Master! You're awake."
I frowned, confused. My memories of last night blurred together—the dragon's roar, its purple flames, the way its tail came swinging down—then nothing.
"What… happened?" I asked.
Kael let out a heavy breath. "The dragon… it didn't finish you. After its tail slammed you into the ground, it just… stopped. Like something forced it to retreat. It flew back toward the mountains before dawn."
I tried to sit up, clutching my side. "So… we failed?"
"No." Kael shook his head firmly, gripping my shoulder. "We survived. And now we know its power. Next time, we'll be ready."
His words carried a determination I hadn't heard before. Somewhere between yesterday and now, Kael had changed.