Strangely enough the arrogant drake decided that there was no point in fighting anymore thus promptly shared all the information about the surroundings. Due to being the dominant family in the area he knew where all the dens were, convenient for not interacting with any elders who rarely left their homes, yet his overall knowledge about the area was middling. Surprisingly to her however it should be obvious to  the less naive why an arrogant young lord would not know the living conditions of his servants.

<It is still hard to believe that he has only visited his vassals a few times - I wonder how he makes sure that everyone is satisfied? Perhaps he has used some kind of census like we do under the sea… Anyway I now know where to go and even learned that those plants are called “grass” as well as “trees” which is very useful information as I heard they are everywhere on land ohohoho~!>

After surrendering they both returned back to their fully humanoid forms yet those two servant drakes were already long gone. Alice watched them (with her energy based location method) run away without looking back as soon as she transformed. She wasn’t as surprised by that.

More due to having various options in explaining away the action rather than coming to terms that those retainers leave their master to die.

Plus she was far more interested in how large she could become; not knowing she could get that large and she was even holding back. The only times she was in her true form was when she was at home under the ocean. Weirdly that appeared to at least reduce her physiques might, making her far smaller than a newborn titan should have been, while she fought that other god in her hybrid form,

Hybrid forms tended to be more efficient when it came to battle.

“Certainly felt wonderful to be the one looking down on the world~.” <Alice>

Musing to herself as she walked in the direction that the Goldoak heir hastily pointed her towards - his fearful reaction being the last nail in the coffin for any feelings she may have had. She can hardly let a weakling drake be her first partner. Although it wasn’t as if strength was everything when it came to selecting a partner. She had been raised to take in the larger picture which meant there were other convenient reasons to be inseminated yet he did not fit a single one of her possible requirements.

Thankfully he had no desire to hang around so quickly followed along the same path that his servants had made in their hasty escape from the area. Confirming (in her shallow view of the world) that they had clearly just retreated in order to get some help from their clan. It was not like she was a person who enjoyed wanton murder, there were better solutions, but certainly a healer would be nice.

Considering they seemed very connected to nature there should be a lot of healers among the clan of drakes as well. So, feeling no guilt, she soon found herself meeting another group of drakes who were even weaker than the last. Stood spread apart a village of what looked like “hoomens”.

“How strange… They look like mermen yet have no ability to form a tail or grow scales. I suppose that kind of makes them look similar to me? Maybe just like me they do have scales but normal people just don’t give them a chance to show them off?” <Alice>

Tapping her chin with one hand all the while the other tapped the butt of the sheathed sword; her eyes closed yet her powerful energy letting her swiftly begin gathering information.

The scene was truly abnormal as lazy drakes & even soon hybrids watched over as a group of hoomens toiled over various different tasks. This was despite how much weaker they were than even the weakest of drakes; inefficient when it came to the task of mining of gold & gems especially. When one of the weak mortals looked like they were going to try to rest, the drakes (otherwise just lying down in their humanoid forms) would attack them lightly with whips.

Seemingly experienced with doing that as they always managed to hit the back/chest. An act that allowed for the mortal to work as maximum efficiency - as low as that was - unlike if they fumbled and hit their arms or legs, A move that would prevent them from lifting those heavy ores that they were carrying from underground. It was also likely hitting their head would impede their ability thus why chest was best.

Mining wasn’t the only task as they were having the hoomens play with some more of those strange alien plants that existed in the overworld. Using tools she didn’t recognise but could hardly see them very effective against drakes who boast the best defence. Instead they were attacking the earth itself?

<At least they keep their mortals well fed despite all these random tasks they’re doing, it would be rather dumb to starve them since it would only make things slower, not like they can rise up alone. It really is strange to make mere hoomens do all that. The same number of dragons used to watch over these mortals could easily do far more work than said hoomans…>

In other words… She really could not understand why the drakes even bothered.

She always found it more effective to do the work that mattered to you while letting those mortals play around with their inevitably pitiful life spans & strength. Sometimes they would even create wonderful works of arts that could certainly catch her greedy dragon soul excited. Yet it was clear with a glance that having such a tight leash not only stiffles their whimsical creativity but even makes them less effective at the task they’re being made to do!

Even when lost in the silliness of such a plan, seemingly built upon an innate laziness of dragon kind, she continued to approach the settlement. Although there were no walls other than the one made from the languid drakes who were meant to watch out for outsiders. Despite her not hiding it still took the drake in front of her a moment to realise what was going on - promptly lifting himself from the floor in an attempt to intimidate her - being far more gangly than the prior powerful drakes.

“Scaless bitch wh-” <Drake>

Her patience was strong if not as immutable as her impregnable as her ever evolving body; not wishing to be treated like this by people clearly inferior to her in every way. Slightly opening her eye allowed her to unleashed a concentrated version of her suppression that-

*SHBLAT*

-resulted in the drake becoming one with the soil below.

It was as if time froze due to everyone in the surroundings stopping with the cold dew of the forest dribbling down their bodies. Nearly nobody was aware of what just happened to the ‘guard’ yet even the hoomens (as inferior as their sense of self preservation often is) were able to instinctively feel the depths of danger they were in. Alice wasn’t letting her aura flow out, preventing them from moving, but rather their fear alone made it so they were unwilling to move.

For once dragon & mortals were one.

“*sigh* You drakes really are haughty despite being so very weak; I suppose it makes sense you keep these mortals around to do your work. Momma did say that bullies like to keep the weak around them in order to feel like they’re remotely only the level of the truly strong. Still I can’t help feeling disgusted at how big you got… Maybe I should take you all down to your actual level?” <Alice>

A chill travelled down the spine of each drake-kin in the area but the dragoness did not care about the feelings of these earthen dragons. To her these creatures weren’t her kin. They were lowly monsters who could only be happy on the backs of a suffering mortal population which she had been told to protect.

Both her eyes opened only a smidgen as she promptly raised both her hands in front of herself, her mind wandering to that almighty uncle of hers, as her thumbs moved to rest upon her pinkie fingers. Those lizards quickly regained their urgency - not willing to let her do what she wanted - charging towards her in a group of at least a dozen. Not wasting any time as they began to grow in size with various hardened materials forming scale-made armour around them.

Their hopes were quickly dashed as she just kicked off the floor; sending herself flying into the sky as her thumbs passed across her awaiting 6 fingers. Reality itself seemed to obey her whim to punish the disruptive drakes as holy rifts opened all over the hamlet where transparent green chains, made from pure energy, flowed out. Each having various engravings etched into their links as they quickly shot forward.

The chains showed no hesitation as they quickly took advantage of their omnipresence to quickly tangle around the necks of some of the lizards. Their entire body dragged backwards (those thick hybrid form necks cracking due to the force) as the chains grew taught. This leaving an obvious opening that allowed more chains to bind their limbs while sounds of them desperately trying to get air into their bodies made those uncaught quickly realise the situation they were in.

Some of those drakes were quick enough to use their limbs to knock those chains aside, nevertheless this was a technique she developed with the help of the snake. As such, like serpents, those chains simply coiled around the limbs that hit them aside. Briskly growing taught as they retreated back into their portals.

In a matter of seconds the seemingly floating Alice found herself looking down on the scene of a dozen dragon-kin being hung while held in the shape of a cross.

Although she was actually stepping atop small barriers made with her energy.

“I learned sealing techniques from the god of covenants so let me make use of this; from now on you will be unable to refuse the commands of the very mortal lineages that you have abused.” <Alice>

Stretching her own arms out as if to mockingly mimic those lizards yet (unlike with their useless struggle of force) she actually had an effect on those chains. Glowing far brighter as the engravings upon the chains glew gold before floating off the surface. Rearranging themselves midair in front of everyone as those drakes could only look on with fear reaching the deepest depths of their being.

Meanwhile she seemed like a true god to those lost models; basking in the flashing lights that made up her very unstealthy moveset. Each of the hoomen slowly finds themselves drifting towards her divine glory before falling to their knees in order to pray. However her hand soon waved towards them.

“Kneel not for me as I just do what should be done and rule over no one but myself.” <Alice>

Moments later those golden scriptures snapped back into the chains causing them to seemingly sink into the already cracked hides of the drakes.

Leaving them to fall to the floor.

“W-who are you?” <Hoomen>

A brave woman stepped forward.

“I’m Al-” <Alice>

She hesitated for a moment as she closed her eyes, taking a lot of the pressure from these squishy hoomans, as her mind went back to the title she should have inherited from her momma…

“I am Mother.” <Mother>