Crossover
Chapter 11: The Ancient Sword of War
Kuro stood stunned and astounded. Before them lay a large floating island with stone houses covered in massive vines and huge tree roots. It could be simply described as an ancient ruin of an old civilization. He instantly forgot that consciousness he felt earlier, or it was more appropriate to say that the consciousness slowly faded away.
Wisdom Dragons of various sizes flew around.
"Alios, look! It's the others! Quickly, let's catch them!" Rosalie giggled and urged Alios to fly faster as she saw several dragons of the same size. The fluffy white dragon roared cutely, filled his gaze with decisiveness, and flew faster.
Kuro gazed at Alios and Rosalie rushing toward other dragons to play. "Little Rosalie is lively. I hope she doesn't fall off Alios' back."
Proudly, Raphael stated, "She won't. They've been doing that ever since she first arrived here! Besides, my son, Alios, is known as the best dragon in flying among all the Wisdom Dragon children!"
Kuro raised an eyebrow. "Come to think of it, when and how did little Rosalie get here?"
"It was a year and a half ago, I believe. We didn't exactly open the door for her. It just suddenly opened, and it was strange. She told us that she secretly followed her father to the forest, hoping to see what he does but ended up getting lost instead.
Ever since then, she has bravely ventured into the forest secretly, ostensibly to play with her friend. But fear not. We have laid an enchanted barrier around little Rosalie. She wouldn't be hurt or approached by any strong vicious beast, and it is even dragon-resistant!"
Raphael landed on the ground, and Crescent came down first, creating stairs out of his Black Filament.
Kuro curiously looked at the butler clothes which Crescent wore and wondered. "Your skill is really handy. Were you the one who sewed your clothes?"
"No, master. I am indeed great at sewing clothes, but my attire is inherent the moment I transform into a human."
Kuro nodded. "Is that so?"
"Young men, Kuro and Crescent, follow me. I will lead you to the center of the island where you may find the key to your exit." Raphael, on all fours, walked forward.
Kuro and Crescent followed Raphael, and they saw the ancient ruins of stone houses. Looking at how big and thick the vines and roots were, it must have been there for quite a long time.
"Say, Raphael, what are you all doing inside the hidden realm all the time? It must be boring to be stuck inside for a long time. And what are these ruins? Have you explored the entire realm?"
"We, the wisdom dragons, are sharpening our powers by enhancing our knowledge. As for exploring the ruins, we have long concluded some truths about these ruins."
Kuro was piqued. "Am I allowed to know?"
"Yes. These ruins didn't belong to this world, that is our speculation. We saw textbooks from the nearby library far from these islands and analyzed them. It was too old; we surmise that it should be older than us, the wisdom dragons.
The language used was entirely different from ours. The contents were full of modernity. It took us years to finally understand those texts. These books contain knowledge that is new to us. If possible, we would want to share some of it with the humans outside, but with caution, of course."
Kuro became more interested. 'What could those books be? Too old, but the contents are full of modernity. I guess I'll take a look later, if possible.'
"Mr. Raphael, you mentioned earlier that you can create spells out of wisdom, correct?" Crescent suddenly asked.
Raphael hummed. "Indeed, we, the Wisdom Dragons, are very proficient with magic through the guidance of our wisdom, more skilled than any dragons."
"Mr. Raphael, this may be an odd question, but is it possible for Wisdom Dragons to detect what kind of magic a person can use with their spells or wisdom?"
Raphael stopped in his tracks. "Young man, Crescent, you ask such a strange inquiry, but yes, we, the Wisdom Dragons, can detect what kind of magic a person has through our wisdom alone. Is it for your master, I guess?"
Kuro was puzzled and pointed a finger at himself. "Eh? For me?"
"Indeed. Master, it would be nice to develop your magic as early as possible since we are dealing with people who have abilities, not to mention the dragons as well. Moreover, we are not entirely sure if the emperor is behind all of this. Having your own magic will be more useful if you want to help Bryer and the others."
The conversation caught Raphael's attention. "So, young men, Kuro and Crescent, you will really partake in this war even if there is a huge chance of your demise?"
Kuro became dejected just by thinking of the prophecy that Raphael shared with them.
"Hmn, that is true; strength alone is not enough. I am not actually sure if I will go try to mediate the situation in this continent. It sounds too presumptuous and arrogant. It is quite immature of me to decide this only because of my intuition.
But if fate would direct me towards that decision, then I will have to ready myself and comply. It is not that fate controls my life, but if fate thinks that I can, maybe, just maybe, I may be useful enough to actually help Bryer and the others achieve a peaceful life."
The winds, as if applauding Kuro, gave a gentle breeze that made his hair flutter. Kuro showed a warm smile as he stated those words.
Kuro stretched his arms and placed his hands on the back of his head. "Although that sounds too arrogant. I am just a mere sapling trying to meddle with grown trees. I don't know. Perhaps, I'll have fate decide my path first, then decide later.
Also, based on my observation of how the empire treated its citizens, if not for the Emperor, then who would be the antagonist? Maybe the emperor was deceived into doing this or not. Investigation is kind of one of my forte. Perhaps, I can help regarding this."
Kuro was thinking that the generals and soldiers would not act like that if they were not commanded to do so. Perhaps, the new emperor was really to blame for. He also thought of the place where the prophecy, which Raphael foresaw, happened. It was the castle.
'In one way or another, the emperor is really suspicious.'
Raphael gave a nod of agreement. "Indeed, based on how Rosalie described the events with us, Wisdom Dragons, it wasn't hard for us to know that there's a conspiracy along with his so-called act of heroism.
I must say, he's quite the opportunist. He made use of the citizens' gratitude to ensure his plan would work. If he was really that sincere, he would have appeared a long time ago, even if the times were still peaceful. Unless he had conflicts with the Royal Family, which I believe is quite impossible.
For decades, the Dragonar family never had conflicts with others. They were the most benevolent beings on this continent. The dragon chiefs of different races of dragons would vouch for this."
After Raphael spoke, the trio continued to tread their path silently until Crescent spoke again. "Mr. Raphael, it is difficult to assess the general situation of the empire through words only. Perhaps, we would try to see it for ourselves the moment we get out of this realm. But first, about the question I had earlier. Is it possible if Mr. Raphael would assist my master with his magical attributes?"
"Certainly, this is an easy task. Young man, Kuro, kindly close your eyes."
They stopped walking, and Kuro did what Raphael asked. Despite his eyes closed, he could still feel the intense stare that he received from Raphael's golden eyes. After a while of silence, Raphael finally spoke.
"Young man, Kuro, it is quite a shocking discovery!"
Kuro chuckled. "I hope it isn't bad news."
Raphael coughed and recomposed himself. "It is, at some point. Your body is composed of a huge amount of highly concentrated magical energy. Quite an excessive amount, which is dangerous for your body. I advise you to regulate this energy as soon as possible to mitigate your situation.
As for the other, I must say that it is indeed a rare attribute of magic that you have. You have three distinct strands of magical energy in your body. Black, white, and gray-colored energies, to be precise. This signifies that you have the dark, light, and space attributes!"
Crescent had a delighted and admiring expression which made Kuro feel a bit flustered. "As expected of Master! All that absorbed magical energy would be for naught if it didn't enhance Master's magical capabilities to such an extent!
In due time, Master will be able to regulate the energy inside your body and quickly become strong!"
"E-even so, I am just a mere beginner. I am not exactly aware of how I will be able to improve my condition and if I would be able to really do it at all." Kuro sighed; he knew this flaw. Even if he survived the ongoing war of this continent, he didn't know if he would be able to survive the disease he had.
"Don't worry about that, young man, Kuro. In due time, you will know how to use your powers efficiently. Let fate carve the path to your destiny!"
Raphael stopped. "Furthermore, I welcome you to the place where we, the Wisdom Dragons, converge and live—the center of the realm."
Kuro looked forward and saw a majestic view of an old plaza. The vines were all around, some had flowers and plants on their bodies. There were not that many trees on the plaza, yet the few ones added freshness to the scenery in front of him.
There are dragons doing all kinds of things. Dragon cubs flying and running, playing. Kuro even saw Alios and Rosalie laughing as they were being chased by other dragon cubs in the sky.
He shook his head and admired Rosalie's courage to fly above the land at a speed comparable to that of a car. But what attracted him most was when he looked at the center of the plaza. But aside from the general view of the plaza, Kuro focused his attention somewhere else. At the center of the plaza, he saw a huge rock.
Raphael noticed Kuro's behavior and started to explain the huge rock's origin. "This is a magical stone. We don't know its purpose, and we don't have enough power to break it at all. But we do know that this was inside the hidden realm all along."
Crescent was somewhat silent as he gazed at the huge rock. He seemed to be thinking of something. A few seconds later, he smirked.
'Fate. A very funny yet powerful concept.'
