The Red Dragon Just Wants To Do As It Pleases

David and his party of dragons had previously visited at least four Green Dragon Nests. Perhaps because Nifadora, herself a young Green Dragon, was with them, their experiences along the way were largely similar.

When they set out to meet various Green Dragon Lords, they would often first encounter forest creatures. Wolves, bears, deer, eagles, and foxes seemed unafraid in the face of Dragon Might, leading the way. Alternatively, elves and even treants might approach to greet them directly.

According to Nifadora, these creatures were often under the control of Green Dragon magic, and perhaps a Dragon was watching from behind those animal eyes, lurking in the depths of the forest's Nest.

But for other races with unclear intentions, or those who had obviously wandered into Green Dragon Territory by mistake, these seemingly harmless creatures often turned into deadly threats. They might even encounter other dragonkin or Druids manipulated by Green Dragons.

However, the experience of meeting Nifadora's mother felt to David more like a vividly colorful dream.

A sapling of the World Tree reached for the sky, its canopy a labyrinth above. After David followed Shadila for several dozen steps, they reached a spiral staircase composed entirely of parallel branches. There, the previously restricted view suddenly opened up. Below the staircase, a 'green meadow' woven from vines even had herds of cattle and sheep running in groups.

The moisture accumulated in the canopy flowed down through its complex structure in slender waterfalls, merging into gentle streams and lakes, effectively creating a natural micro-ecosystem.

This was atop a canopy a thousand meters above the ground!

"Your mother's mastery of natural magic is truly amazing," David couldn't help but exclaim.

[Jealousy]

[Greed]

This was not a mere exchange of polite compliments, but a sincere exclamation. In David's view, such expertise likely meant that on the path to legend, Nifadora's mother had advanced further than his own still-young mother, Pafila.

What he found particularly strange was that such a powerful legendary Green Dragon was barely known in Skanis of the Old Continent. She was even less famous than Felicia, the Black Dragon Lord of the Doze Wetlands, whom David had visited first.

"Indeed, I have always admired her," Nifadora's voice came from beside him, yet it sounded elusive. "The reason I left the Nest to develop on my own was to one day transcend the shadow of my mother, which looms as large as this canopy, and become a great being just like her."

Lost in the dreamlike scene, he didn't notice anything amiss.

Soon, the sides of the staircase began to fill with the Green Dragons' kin who had come to 'witness' the event.

Among them were jackals, tigers, and leopards with the light of wisdom in their eyes; grassland elves with swords and bows at their waists; alluring dryads with coy smiles; and Half-Dragon Elves with horns, along with their dragonkin brethren beneath them.

But when several dozen young and even adult Green Dragons landed on the sides of the open-canopy staircase, resembling dragon-shaped stone statues as they stared unwaveringly at him with 'kind smiles,' David suddenly felt immense pressure.

It even gave him the déjà vu of stumbling into a Blue Dragon Nest by mistake.

Instinctively, David glanced towards Nifadora, only to find nothing but empty space beside him.

Not just Nifadora, even the dozen or so Dragon Whelps that had been following him for outdoor 'physical training' for nearly half a year had all disappeared without a trace.

Faced with such an unexpected situation, David was not tense at all. Instead, he let out a sigh of relief.

So, it's just a dream, that explains it. I was wondering how a group of adult Green Dragons could still be squatting in their Dragon Mother's Nest together.

[Arrogance]

After all, Green Dragons are different from Blue Dragons. Blue Dragons can maintain a communal society for better survival, but Green Dragons cannot.

Due to their wisdom and ambition, Green Dragons tend to seek opportunities to surpass their elders, just as Nifadora had done.

But just like when dreaming normally, once you realize you are dreaming, the dream begins to 'collapse' automatically.

David was by now aware that this was a ruse by the Dragon Mother to create a chance for a 'private conversation.' He quickly stabilized his rapidly clarifying thoughts and hurried up the distorted, transforming staircase.

After all, he had not felt any malice from beginning to end, nor any intention to lead his 'dream' to peek into his thoughts or memory.

The lack of malice shown among Evil Dragons is in itself a manifestation of kindness.

This seeming contradiction is common knowledge among the Chromatic Dragons.

After rushing all the way, David finally reached the top of the canopy and met the Green Dragon Mother—Serubelia Aleshandra—who had been waiting for him deep within the dream.

"Your perceptual powers are stronger than I had imagined. I almost thought I wouldn't get the chance to meet you, David Uthos, young Red Dragon with limitless potential," Serubelia said with a smile.

"You're really no longer in Elariya, are you?" David exclaimed, confirming his own guess.

"Yes. Shortly after my last brood, Nifadora, left the Nest, I embarked on exploring my Legendary Destiny, pursuing divinity and traveling through various planes. So, what you see now, as you've guessed, is our dream. It has briefly linked our consciousnesses together."