Power of Runes

"What should we do now? From the way things are going, it does not seem like he will speak no matter how much we torture him," one of the Elder Dragons beside Kristos said in their native draconic tongue.

Their voices lowered as they switched fully to draconic, trying to keep their words hidden from Ash.

"Hmph. Just give me some time alone with him," the Red Dragon said, his tone filled with pride and cold certainty.

"Once I am done, he will be begging to speak. I will make sure he explains everything. Why he came here, how he managed to evade our eyes until now, and what exactly he is hiding."

Kristos, who had been quietly listening, raised his voice slightly to bring them back to the main issue.

"Let us not forget what truly matters. We still need to confirm whether he is the one acknowledged by the throne. I already told you all, the throne reacted."

He paused as a heavy silence filled the room, then continued, "There is no missing egg from the sacred chamber, which means the only possible link to the throne's reaction is standing right in front of us."

"Kristos, I think you are starting to lose your mind," the Dark Dragon spoke with a sharp tone.

"Have you forgotten that only those born from our bloodline can resonate with the throne, with the Blood crystal, or with the ancient bone structure? Do you sense even a drop of our aura from this boy?"

The weight of his words caused a hush to fall over the gathered elders.

But it did not last long.

"Why are we wasting time?" another Dragon elder finally said, his voice annoyed.

"Did all of you forget that this boy dared to mock us by calling himself a Dragon Slayer? Instead of throwing around wild theories, I say we throw him in the deepest cell and torture him slowly until he breaks."

They went on, each voice adding to the rising tension as more and more opinions clashed.

Some were cold, others were angry. They argued and debated for what felt like a long time.

All the while, Ash remained completely still, his body hanging by the neck in Ariel's iron grip.

He said nothing, made no sound. But he listened.

Every word reached his ears clearly, because of the passive effect of the Rune of Knowledge.

Even their draconic language was no barrier to him.

His mind spun like a storm, bracing for what might come next.

Eventually, after what felt like half an hour, the elders began to settle down and reached a decision.

Their first move would be to recover the Blood Crystal and any trace of the True Draconic Essence from Ash.

They believed he must have hidden it away using some kind of storage artifact. They were confident that if he had absorbed even a sliver of the essence, they would have sensed it immediately.

But what they did not know was that even if his dormant bloodline had stirred, the passive power of the Rune of Concealment would keep them blind to it.

One of the dragons took his space ring. Inside, there were many things.

Stacks of gold, packets of preserved food, the precious necklace that Solareth had gifted him, and many more.

But among all the items, the Blood Crystal stood out the most, its shine unmistakable as they reached out and took it.

They also picked up the fragment and the Cursed Eye he had obtained during the trial, though their expressions shifted subtly when they saw the eye.

It was as if they recognized something, but chose to remain silent.

Ash watched it happen with a distant look in his eyes.

A small thought passed through his mind.

Maybe I should have created an inventory skill instead of relying so much on concealment.

It was just a quiet sigh within his heart, one that faded as quickly as it came.

Once they secured the crystal, their next goal was clear.

They had to find out who Ash really was, what his intentions were and where he had hidden the True Draconic essence.

Ariel, the Red Dragon and Kristos all stepped forward, volunteering for the task of making him talk.

They would use any method they found necessary.

Ash could feel that they were moving him somewhere else. It seemed like they were finally taking him out of the mana nullification formation.

Or at least, that was what he understood based on their final statements.

After his earlier words, Ash had not spoken again. He remained completely silent.

There were two reasons.

The first was that he did not want them to know he could understand their language.

He had mocked them because he just wanted them to remind them of thier Dark past, and to fasten the process of making him thier prisoner, in that way he might leave this formation.

And the second was far more personal.

His face had still not healed. The mask was no longer covering it, and Ariel still held it in his hand.

If he spoke now, it would be too much unnatural.

And Ash had not allowed the Rune of Life to activate. He had blocked it from restoring his torn skin and exposed muscle.

Even though his internal injuries had already recovered, his outer face remained bloodied and raw by his own choice.

Soon, he was taken to another room. Of course, before moving him, they tied a black cloth around his eyes.

It was not an ordinary cloth. It was a special tool designed to block sight completely, even from those who could see with magic or divine senses.

Once they reached the new room, the mana nullification formation was gone. But now, Ash's hands were tightly cuffed with the same mana-blocking handcuffs.

Nothing changed.

Once again, no mana was able to leave his core. His entire mana flow was sealed off, like a river frozen in place.

Ash was aware that with enough strength, he could break free from these restraints.

He was not that weak anymore.

But,

Because of that cursed dragon Ariel, now there are more than five of these cuffs locked on different parts of my body.

The thought passed through his mind like a slow burn.

Now alone inside a pitch-dark room, a space without a single flicker of light, Ash sat quietly.

The silence was thick and heavy.

His breathing echoed softly against the cold stone walls.

And then a new thought formed in his mind.

If I use that method, I might still be able to break free from these cuffs. But it'll create too much noise. The sound will definitely alert someone nearby.

So, he stayed still in the dark, letting silence wrap around him like a second skin, while his mind kept moving, planning and preparing for whatever came next.

He didn't have to wait long before he was shifted to another place.

As soon as he entered, someone removed the blindfold wrapped around his eyes. It was Kristos.

"How are you feeling?" Kristos asked, his voice calm, as though this was a casual meeting.

Ash replied with a low voice, the words laced with quiet rage, "I feel like killing everyone."

Hearing that, Taylor—the red dragon—narrowed his eyes slightly and commented, "I never realized you were just a child. That mask really did its job well. It even changed your voice."

Ariel, standing nearby, scoffed and folded his arms. "Killing everyone? Hah. What a joke. Keep dreaming."

Taylor didn't waste any more time. "Let's not drag this out. We should begin."

And with that, they started the torture session.

Kristos, however, didn't join them.

He stood quietly to the side. It wasn't because he pitied Ash, but because of something more complicated.

If Ash truly was the one acknowledged by the throne, then Kristos feared committing a grave mistake.

Harming someone chosen by the throne would go against the oath he took. So he chose to watch, hoping for any kind of sign.

He had come here for this very reason—to see, to be sure.

And if he saw even the slightest hint that Ash was the chosen one, he was prepared to step in and stop the torture immediately.

If only the throne reacted every time the Chosen one touched it, he thought with regret.

But that wasn't how it worked.

The truth was simple. The throne only glowed once for the person it acknowledged. It won't show any other reaction now.

And without that, Kristos couldn't confirm anything. Otherwise, he would have just dragged Ash to the throne himself.

While, there was another method to confirm that, but no one among the Elder's would agree for that method, and he alone can't make the others comply.

Time passed slowly. More than two days went by.

Ash's body was suspended in the air, arms stretched, hung like a cross—like a modern-day Jesus Christ.

His entire body was bloodied and bruised, his face was barely recognizable beneath the dried blood and torn skin.

The scene was too horrific to put into words.

You might wonder how dragons—proud, ancient beings—could bring themselves to torture a child.

The truth is, they didn't want to. At first, they were hesitant. But Ash made it worse for himself.

Every time they questioned him, he would either mock them, curse at them, or simply remain quiet with a smug look that made their blood boil.

And so, in their wounded pride and anger, they lashed out harder.

For Ash, this was no less than a hellish trial.

He had to bear unimaginable pain.

Every strike, every wound tore into his body, and on top of that, he had to focus every bit of his willpower to stop the Rune of Life from healing him.

He knew that if they ever discovered his ability to regenerate at such a high rate, things would take an even darker turn.

They would change their methods into something far worse.

His eyes burned with exhaustion. His mental energy was almost gone. He felt like he had been awake for years, his body torn and nerves on fire. His eyelids grew heavier with every passing second.

I can't sleep, he thought, If I fall asleep… the Rune will heal my wounds… and then…

He didn't even want to think about what would happen if that was discovered.

I need… to stay awake… just a little longer…

And just then, a voice echoed in the chamber.

"Let's stop for now. We can return after a break," Kristos said, stepping forward.

The two dragons beside him didn't look pleased.

Their expressions twisted with frustration, their pride clearly wounded. Not once had Ash screamed.

Not once had he begged for mercy.

They stared at Ash one last time, their eyes filled with something between disbelief and irritation.

Then, without saying a word, they dropped their bloodied tools and walked out of the room.

The truth was, this wasn't a job meant for dragons of their status.

Torturing someone—especially a child—was beneath them.

But because lesser dragons were prohibited to enter in the floating palace, they had no choice but to do it themselves.

Before leaving, Kristos gave Ash a final glance. His eyes lingered for a moment longer.

Then, without saying a word, he turned and shut the door behind him.

Thud.

The sound of the heavy door closing echoed through the room.

Are they… gone?

Ash, hanging there in silence, slowly lifted his head with great effort. His neck screamed in protest, but he forced himself to look around.

There was no one in sight.

I need to wait a little longer… after that, I'll…

The thought trailed off, unfinished.

***