Translator: AnubisTL
Bernardo was the name of the planet beneath Garos's feet.
On this world, magic culture had flourished, with all nations sparing no effort to develop magical technology.
The most advanced nations had even created interstellar spacecraft powered by magic engines, exploring the cosmos and other planets to acquire cosmic resources.
"Dragonkind are nearly the apex of creation, yet even here, they aren't invincible."
Garos blinked, gazing at the artificial moon in the sky.
The ancient texts mentioned Hurricane Wing, a primordial blue dragon who had destroyed several cities of the Nausir Elven Empire and was hunted for centuries.
Ultimately, Nausir used a city as bait to trap Hurricane Wing within a massive magical array.
The artificial moon then unleashed a beam of destructive light that killed the dragon.
"Moreover, other races on Bernardo harbor a deep-seated animosity toward chromatic and submetallic dragons. If discovered, they immediately prepare to hunt them down."
Dragonkind came in many varieties.
The most numerous were the chromatic dragons, followed by the metallic dragons and gem dragons, and then the submetallic dragons.
Chromatic dragons, driven by their inherently evil nature and love of causing chaos and destruction, are universally regarded as evil dragons. Submetallic dragons, in particular, are considered the "mad dogs" of dragonkind, frequently slaughtering their own kind, let alone other races.
"I'm a hybrid of a chromatic and a submetallic dragon, and even a red and an iron dragon. I'll probably be seen as the ultimate evil dragon, a naturally wicked dragon bastard. That's terrifying—I must survive."
He plopped down by the lake.
The young dragon's tail dipped into the water, swaying gently.
Moonlight bathed Garos as he felt the comfortable sway of his tail in the water, occasionally tickled by small fish cleaning away weeds and dust. His mind churned with thought.
I need to train more, to strengthen myself.
If I become powerful enough, I'll have the confidence to face any future dangers.
This dragon life had just begun. Garos hoped to live as long as possible, unlike his previous life where he'd been struck by misfortune at the peak of his youth, at eighteen.
First, I'll set a small goal: a hundred years.
No, wait. Dragons only reach adulthood at a hundred. I should aim for a thousand years.
Garos leaned back, letting his body fall backward.
The young dragon's body shattered the surface of the water, sending countless crystalline droplets scattering in the moonlight. He dove to the deepest part of the lake, enduring the crushing pressure without breathing.
Dragonkind can actually breathe underwater.
Garos simply wanted to strengthen his cardiovascular capacity and enhance his affinity with the water element.
Thanks to his relentless training day after day, his lung capacity far surpassed that of ordinary dragonkind. The intensity and duration of his dragon breath were also superior to those of typical young dragons.
Moreover, iron dragons and red dragons are both fire-type dragons and inherently dislike water.
As a hybrid dragon, Garos was also a pure fire-type dragon.
Attacks of water or ice-attribute would deal him double damage.
The best way to overcome fear is to face it.
To prepare for the day he might encounter an attack that countered his element, Garos had endured his aversion to water for years, intermittently submerging himself to desensitize and adapt.
By now, his instinctive aversion to water had completely vanished.
Although he had never truly faced a water-attribute attack and couldn't confirm his water affinity, Garos felt confident that he would at least no longer suffer double damage.
Suddenly.
A faint ripple disturbed the water behind him.
A dark shadow surged forward, launching an attack at Garos.
Garos, sensing the disturbance in the water, pivoted instantly. He raised his dragon claw and slammed it downward.
Boom!
The black claw collided with the fiery red one, sending ripples through the underwater current.
The red claw gripped Garos's, attempting to overpower him.
But Garos's strength was astonishing. The muscles beneath his scales bulged, causing his scales to stretch taut. Inch by inch, his claw forced the red one back.
The red claw's owner, Hatchling Samantha—Garos's pureblood red dragon sister—retracted her claw. Her crimson eyes fixed on Garos as she hissed, her voice crisp and displeased: "Garos, you detestable hybrid! I will defeat you one day!"
Hybrid dragons were rare in the dragon clan. Dragon bloodlines were notoriously dominant, making it difficult for them to merge. For instance, a red dragon and an iron dragon would most likely produce a pureblood red or iron dragon, inheriting one parent's lineage. Hybrids like Garos, who could blend both red and iron blood, were exceedingly rare.
Smack!
Garos swatted the red hatchling's head with his claw.
"When dealing with dragonkind stronger than you, watch your tone and your words."
The claw strike sent the red hatchling's head reeling, nearly throwing its entire body off balance. The force was considerable.
Among dragons, especially evil dragons, power is the ultimate currency. Only through strength can one earn the respect of others of their kind, and Garos had long since adapted to this brutal form of communication.
The red dragon sister had hatched a year after Garos.
At the time, Garos had found the sister, plump and round, to be endearingly naive and pitiable. He tore a piece of meat from his own meal and offered it to her.
The result was...
She interpreted his kindness as weakness, grew emboldened, and, her evil dragon nature surfacing, demanded all of Garos's food. The iron dragon brother who had hatched at the same time, also seeing Garos's perceived weakness, sided with the red dragon sister and joined the extortion.
When Garos refused, the two immediately attacked, trying to steal all of his food.
Garos pinned them to the ground and beat them soundly, knocking out several teeth before they finally submitted.
As a hybrid dragon, Garos was naturally stronger than ordinary red or iron dragons, not to mention a year older.
Meanwhile, the red dragon sister, nursing her clawed wound, bared her teeth, ready to retaliate. But when she saw the fierce glint in Garos's eyes, she wisely restrained herself.
Red dragons revere violence and prefer to solve problems with brute force.
However, when their strength falls short, they will temporarily endure, waiting for the opportunity to surpass their opponent before unleashing their vengeance.
Having been beaten by Garos countless times over the years, she knew her elder brother held no mercy.
"My beloved brother," the red dragon sister said, backing down. "Mother has summoned you to the dragon nest."
After delivering her message, she muttered under her breath, "You spend all day soaking in the water. You're so strange, and now I have to get wet too."
The red dragon sister looked utterly uncomfortable in the water, her draconic face contorted with disgust.
She twisted her tail and body, rapidly ascending to the surface and leaving the lake before Garos.
Unhurried, Garos flapped his wings underwater, then burst from the water in a spectacular display. He soared into the air, overtaking the red dragon sister as he flew toward the dragon nest.
The dragon nest—it was carved into the eastern cliff face of the Heavenly Pit.
From the outside, it appeared as a crude and rugged cave entrance.
Moonlight couldn't reach the depths of the dragon nest, but the metallic walls within glowed with an unusual luminescence, dispelling the darkness.
Garos folded his wings and strode forward, his limbs crossing as he moved across the metallic floor, venturing deeper into the nest.
The further he went, the more the metallic walls surrounded him.
Clusters of metal blossomed like flowers across the stone, and angular pillars of metal jutted from the ground.
Finally, when Garos reached the deepest part of the cavern, his vision suddenly opened into a vast, hollow chamber.
This core of the dragon nest was no ordinary rough-hewn cave.
The ground and walls were covered in a layer of soft yet resilient metal, its texture resembling mercury but shimmering with rust-colored ripples.
To the north stood a thirty-meter-tall tiered metal platform, crowned with the iron dragon maid's exclusive throne.
It was forged from countless melted swords and halberds, the weapons of fallen warriors now solidified into steps, each one etched with draconic runes.
Garos looked up.
On the throne sat a colossal creature twenty meters long, its very breath creating gusts like raging winds—a true dragon.
(End of the Chapter)
Translator's Corner
🔴 [Conquering the World After Getting Reborn as a Dragon] is NOW LIVE! For More Details go to the site or visit 🅿🅰🆃🆁🅴🅾🅽.🅲🅾🅼/🅰🅽🆄🅱🅸🆂🆃🅻
💸 Read More FREE CHAPTERS on the SITE!
🔓 𝐰𝐰𝐰.𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐥.𝐜𝐨𝐦 — 14 Series (7 Ongoing) | 14+ New Chapters Daily| 7,200+ FREE