Chapter 1479: Chapter 1479

"What do you want in return? You helped me, and I will reward you."

The silver dragon lord waited until the princess had finished speaking before turning to business. Even lying down, her eyes were still much higher than Jenkins, which made him uncomfortable—speaking with his head craned back was quite strenuous.

Perhaps sensing Jenkins's discomfort, a soft white light emanated from the massive silver dragon's body. Within that glow, the dragon's form rapidly shrank. The princess smiled and took a step back, reaching out to take the right hand of a barefoot, silver-haired maiden who emerged from the light.

Her hair flowed down to her waist, and both of her eyes were a beautiful gold. She wore a simple white robe, but it didn't look plain; rather, it made one feel that this was exactly how the maiden before them should be dressed.

"I don't recall the silver dragon race having the innate ability to transform into a human."

Jenkins asked doubtfully.

"But sometimes, all you need to take human form is a small little item."

The silver dragon maiden showed Jenkins the amber pendant hanging from her neck, which seemed to contain something like a centipede, and then asked once more:

"Now you can tell me. What do you require as a reward?"

"I thought you already knew." ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI★Fire.net

The silver dragon smiled, caressing the princess's hand as she spoke:

"Beneath the ground is a subspace sealed by the ancient gods, the birthplace of a primordial calamity. As for what was born here in antiquity... oh, I don't think I can answer that question. It still exists, and it is immensely powerful. To speak its name is to have it sense you. I cannot take that risk."

"Then how do you dare to be tainted by the remnant of its power here?"

Jenkins, too, saw a black spiritual aura on the silver dragon.

"In my experience, no matter their race, those who do such things never come to a good end..."

He tried to soften his tone.

"This is merely an aftershock of that Beast of Calamity's power; it won't notice. Besides, I need strength to protect what is mine. If you were in my position, you would undoubtedly make the same choice. Go and select some treasures from my hoard, half-elf. Not even the cathedrals of the Orthodox Churches are wealthier than I."

Unfortunately, Jenkins couldn't take anything back to his own time. This era was far too distant from the eighteenth epoch; even if he wanted the dragon to leave something for him, the ages would be enough to destroy any physical object or promise.

"That won't be necessary. I think I'll be leaving soon. Before I go, I'd like to ask you one question. If I were unfortunate enough to encounter the terrible creature born from this ancient land, is there any way for me to defeat it?"

Jenkins asked humbly.

"What madness are you speaking? A mortal cannot defeat it. Unless you can summon the aid of a god, you have no hope of survival. However, it's unlikely you'll encounter it. From what I know, it is sleeping outside the material world in accordance with its pact with the gods, awaiting the appointed day. As long as you remain in the material world, you will never meet it."

the silver dragon said nonchalantly, leaning against the princess, her mind already far from the conversation.

Jenkins muttered under his breath. He stopped looking at the silver dragon and the princess snuggled affectionately together and instead scanned his surroundings, hoping to see the pages of the 'Black Town Secret Records'.

"If you insist on refusing Anathasia's gift, then please accept a small token from me."

"No, I don't want it."

He remembered what the princess had wanted to give him earlier. With the silver dragon right beside her, he had no desire to find out how powerful dragon's breath was at close range.

The princess unclasped her necklace and offered it to Jenkins:

"This is a family heirloom. No matter what trouble you find yourself in, just show this, and the Aridman family will help you with all their might."

Jenkins paused for a moment, then realized it was the original surname of the legendary Dragon Knight family. Miss Knight, the Dragon Knight maiden of Nolan, was a descendant of this very family.

"Wait a minute, does that mean the Dragon Knight family likely originated from these two right here...? But isn't she a female dragon? How could she have descendants? Were they adopted later? Or... is the princess actually a man?"

The thought immediately crossed his mind, and he gave the princess a strange look. This action was promptly rebuked by the beautiful silver dragon maiden, who deemed his gaze highly impolite and reminded him that the beauty's husband was standing right there.

"I don't need this either. In fact, I don't plan on taking anything with me."

Jenkins returned the necklace and then spotted a small black dot behind the silver dragon maiden and the princess—it was a page carried by the wind.

"We must give you a reward. It's what you deserve."

the silver dragon insisted. She reached out to place a hand on Jenkins's shoulder, but just as her hand, adorned with a diamond bracelet, was about to touch his clothes, the man vanished as if he had never been there at all.

The princess took a surprised step back.

The silver dragon was equally astonished. Even though Jenkins had disappeared right before her eyes, she couldn't discern how he had done it.

After scanning her surroundings and pondering for a moment, the silver dragon finally had an epiphany:

"So that's how it is... The pact between the gods and that fearsome cat was real! The Devouring Moon Spirit Cat has been waiting all this time for..."

She smiled in relief and once again took her new wife's hand, looking up with her at the glittering river of stars overhead:

"Destiny truly is a curious thing."

At the end of the eighteenth epoch, Jenkins sat up in bed in the Black Town church, sighing as he thought about the final story he had to face. It was already past four in the morning. The sun rose early this season; in about half an hour, the completely dark night sky would be banished.

"The twelfth story already featured a legion of dragons. It's hard to imagine what will happen in the next one."

He didn't start reading the final story immediately. Instead, he returned to Nolan, had the unicorn fly him to the Evergreen Forest outside the city, and then very impolitely woke the slumbering dragon, Níðhöggr, in its mountain cave.

In a fairy tale, doing such a thing would be extremely dangerous, of course. But this was reality, and Jenkins wasn't worried that the dragon would fly into a rage because of it.