22. The Green Dragon's Decade-Long Dream

"Aaah!"

Amidst agonizing, hellish screams, the two chieftains were engulfed by the sickly green poison gas. Their flesh dissolved and their eyes rotted away, exposing ghastly white bone until, in an instant, they were reduced to mere skeletons.

The Blood Wolf chieftain gulped, staring in silence as these formidable orc warriors—whose strength was hardly inferior to his own—perished instantly under the dragon's breath.

The orcs behind him also shivered, witnessing their mighty chieftains die in such a wretched state right before their eyes.

"Heh."

The cunning green dragon shut its mouth, wearing a devious smirk as corrosive chlorine gas seeped from between its teeth.

"You didn't think you could just walk out of my territory, did you?"

"Has no one ever taught you? A dragon within its own domain is invincible!"

"Once you stepped into my Forest Labyrinth, you had no choice left!"

Simultaneously, the surrounding forest maze began to writhe once more. Trees shifted, blocking the orcs' path of retreat, lifting their branches and leaves like grasping claws.

Thousands of black crows circled overhead, emitting shrill, mocking laughter that was not their own, as if the entire flock were sneering at them.

Several wyverns, drakes, and other sub-draconic species that were not true dragons glided through the sky or emerged from the woods. Goblins, kobolds, and even a few humans appeared from every direction, closing in on the orcs of the three great clans with weapons drawn.

Many of these soldiers serving the dragon lord possessed the distinct features of green dragons—they were clearly half-dragon hybrids born of crossbreeding!

The Blood Wolf chieftain clenched his fists, his sharp upper teeth biting into his lower jaw. His body trembled uncontrollably, as if he were engaged in some fierce internal struggle. Finally, this battle-hardened, valiant chieftain fell to his knees before the massive dragon with a heavy thud.

"Great Green Dragon Lord, Ancient Dragon who rules over forests and mountains, I, on behalf of the Blood Wolf Clan, pledge my allegiance to you!"

The green dragon smiled.

"Very good."

"From this day forward, you are the King of the Orcs of the Emerald Mountains. The other two orc clans shall cease to exist forever; they are to be fully absorbed into the Blood Wolf Clan!"

...

The brutal blood sacrifice continued for two months.

Thousands of disabled, sick, or elderly orcs—those over forty or simply those deemed too weak—were cast into the forest's center, into a pool of corrosive blood, where they dissolved amidst their own cries.

The wails of the orcs echoed through the woods of the Emerald Mountains day after day.

Feeling the ritual magic reach its peak as the life force of the final orc sacrifice flowed into the blood pool, the Green Dragon Lord, Emerald, spread its wings.

"What immense vitality."

"Ten years. I need ten years to fully digest this life force and merge it with my own."

"By then, my lifespan will increase by over a thousand years, and I will be able to leave this forest freely."

"My magic and physical constitution will also become far more powerful, nearly approaching the Red Dragon, the strongest of the chromatic dragons."

"When that time comes, I shall launch a war, march north, invade the human Kingdom of Eldoron, and reclaim the land that rightfully belongs to me!"

The Blood Wolf chieftain prostrated himself by the foul-smelling blood pool, looking up at the green dragon—which sat as massive as a small mountain—with a shadow cast over his face.

"Ten years? That is a very long time..." the Blood Wolf chieftain said cautiously.

By then, he would be far more aged than he was now.

"A mere ten years, in the blink of an eye," Emerald replied.

As a dragon with an incredibly long life, a mere decade was equivalent only to a few months of brief respite for humans or orcs.

"Those humans are cunning... Perhaps in ten years, there will be unforeseen variables..." the Blood Wolf chieftain hesitated, leaving his sentence unfinished.

After suffering so many setbacks, he was no longer the high-spirited, reckless, and overconfident Great Chieftain he once was.

"Hmph."

The green dragon sneered with disdain.

"Do not think I am unaware of the wars between you and the humans."

"Faced with primitive orc tribes like yours, those humans managed to entangle you for centuries, only finally driving you out recently—and they did so through strategy, not by crushing you with brute force."

"When I and my half-dragon legion descend upon Eldoron with the force of a raging storm, how could they possibly resist?"

"Do you think my Dragon-Blood Legion is as weak and useless as the trash under your command?"

The Blood Wolf chieftain bowed his head. He listened as the dragon lord belittled him and his orc clans as worthless, yet he dared not retort.

For a fleeting moment, a strange and blasphemous thought surfaced in the Blood Wolf chieftain's mind.

He found himself wishing, just a little, to see this arrogant dragon... suffer a setback at the hands of those humans.

Just as he, in his own conceit, had suffered once before?

"Enough. I am going to sleep to digest the vitality within me."

"When I awaken from my ten-year slumber, the world shall be plunged into war!"

The green dragon, Emerald, flicked its tail and spread its wings, preparing to fly back to its lair.

"Do not disturb me. And do not think of doing anything while I sleep; I will continue to monitor the entire forest in my dreams and will perceive anyone with ill intent. I can awaken at any moment."

The Blood Wolf chieftain prostrated himself on the ground, saying in a respectful tone:

"As you command, Great Dragon King of the Forest."

"However, I have one request before you sleep..."

"What is it?" the green dragon asked, folding its wings with impatience.

"My people have already suffered heavy losses. I hope that when you awaken in ten years, we might be spared from participating in that war against the humans," the Blood Wolf chieftain said, still pressed against the ground.

The green dragon, Emerald, was quite surprised by the orc chieftain's words:

"What? Do you not wish for revenge? Have you changed your mind?"

The Blood Wolf chieftain kept his head low, offering no answer.

When the migration of his people first began, he had indeed been fueled by thoughts of vengeance.

But after witnessing the green dragon's atrocities and arrogance, after having to kneel and submit for the sake of his people's future, and after watching the horrific sight of his kin sacrificed in the blood ritual...

The Blood Wolf chieftain's resolve had begun to waver.

He even felt that his hatred for this Green Dragon Lord might now surpass his hatred for the humans.

At the very least, the humans had only struck back after they had been invaded and had lost countless lives; at least the humans had fought them as legitimate opponents in war, even if their methods were cunning.

They were not like the ancient dragon Emerald, who used trickery and force to compel submission, stripped the orcs of their dignity, and forced them to slaughter their own kind as sacrifices...

To insult the orc race was a more detestable crime than merely killing them.

"Fine. I grant your request. Your people need not participate. I wasn't counting on your remnants to be of any use anyway," the green dragon, Emerald, said dismissively.

The massive, mountain-like dragon flew back to its lair, curled up amidst its pile of treasures, and fell into a deep slumber.

The boulder at the cave entrance slowly shifted, automatically sealing the lair.

A great dream that would last for ten years had begun.