The Foreigner on the Periphery - Chapter 129

There was no bad quality dragon in the world. There was only the possibility that the quality would get better in the future. The quality of a dragon depended on time. Even a dragon born with a deformity could become a gem of admiration when nurtured for a long period of time. Of course, the process of raising them up to that point was very difficult, so it was common to kill them before hatching. 

– Remember. There are no bad dragons in the world. 

Looking at Dragon Lord’s corpse, Minjun recalled the aphorism his teacher had told him a long time ago. It was a complicated mindset. 

“…” Without realizing it, he licked his lips. He then felt thirsty.

‘Overwhelmingly.’ He looked at the dragon’s corpse, which had been kept intact with preservation magic, as if possessed. Such was a dragon that grew stronger with age, and its physical value was proportional to time. In addition to this, the dragon in front of him was the one who held the title of the oldest on earth until he died. 

‘It’s a shame that he’s too skinny, but his quality is top-notch. He can tell just by looking at his skeleton. Who is the craftsman in charge of breeding? That’s a skill that I want to applaud.’ 

The spectacle unfolding under the span of golden scales shimmered like a welcome. At that age, all parts were top-notch. could have guessed Another aphorism left by the master resounded like an auditory hallucination. 

– And again, remember. The dragon has nothing to throw away. A beast that gives generously. Imagine A muscle fiber that, if well groomed, will have the elasticity equivalent to magic metal. A bone that does not burn even if thrown into Hellfire. Blood, which is the best catalyst in itself, even without special processing, and meat, which is an indispensable staple for their race. And, the dragon’s heart that overwhelms all of them. 

Boom, boom!

His heart raced. ‘It’s hard to keep a dragon for that long.’ 

He felt his hands tingle. As a craftsman, the sense of mission and challenge burned. He wanted to contribute to the completion of that work.

‘I want to touch it once.’ 

The thought of excavating, dividing, and shaping the precious old dragon’s corpse came up. He did a simulation. Bleeding and peeling came first. The scales were well stacked, the intestines were processed, and the blood was washed away without a drop of water. 

All work was possible even with eyes closed. The head was then cut straight across the neck muscle between the cervical spine and the scapula. After removing the clavicle and the connected wing, cut the front leg between the carpal and metacarpal, and the hind leg between the small foot musculature. 

When the tail was removed from the coccygeal junction, only the body remained. Now we would move on to the most important step. The dragon’s diaphragm muscle connective tissue was harder than bone. It was separated and removed from the abdominal and thoracic walls as closely as possible. Only then would you see the splendor of it. 

Dragon Essence. It was a treasure that turned a dragon into a dragon. The dragon’s heart… 

‘No, wait. What else are you thinking?!’ 

He took a deep breath. Then, he got out of his immersed emotions. ‘I almost felt overwhelmed in the past again.’ 

It was a recurring phenomenon as the speed of recalling memories increased. Maybe it was a proper memory of the past, but now, this was a very distant self. 

‘It’s an impulse that doesn’t help much at the moment. You have to restrain it.’ 

The past kept overflowing, trying to swallow up the present. It was welcome to bring back memories, but one would have to suppress the desires that didn’t fit the current situation. As of right now, if one were to put their hands on the Dragon Lord’s corpse according to the old custom, they would be terrified. 

= Load!= 

Another dragon appeared in the sky. A dragon that appeared as a body because it was a teleport that consumed a lot of magical power. Jenkinson recognized her. 

“Inais. You’re Rod’s housemate.” 

She was still incubating, so she was not supposed to move at all. So there was also the expectation that she would delegate her rights as guardian to other dragons. However, contrary to everyone’s thoughts, he appeared here directly. 

‘A dragon with an egg throws it away? It is the instinct of mother dragons to be unable to move because of the anxiety of hatchlings.’ 

= Rod, Lord! 

It was a natural reaction. Inais was so sad that she couldn’t control her body, almost as if she couldn’t believe reality. The faces of the other dragons who saw it naturally became somber. Minjun reflected on the thought he had just had a moment ago. It was mainly associated with meat processing. Jenkinson cleared his throat and said: “Now, only one more person has to come.” 

However, that one did not appear even after a long time passed. “It’s too late for this.” 

More time had passed, but the last heir remained silent. In the end, a discussion continued between the ancient dragons. “Is Taschio still not responding?” 

“It’s not like you went to outer space, but strangely, you don’t respond to magic communications. However, it is not possible to attack Rare.”

He couldn’t wait for him like this. The dragons made a decision. Not only did he voluntarily announce his absence from the meeting of the dragon clan a long time ago, but after the death of Lord, the funeral ceremony was held except for the young dragon, Tachio, who did not respond despite contacting him several times. 

The first thing to do was to reveal the cause of death. The division of Rod’s body into equal divisions will proceed after that. With everyone’s consent, the task was decided by the dragons who were the second oldest on Earth until yesterday. 

“Two minutes, please.” At the request of the heir, the one who came forward was an old man dressed right in front of him. Siamese twins with two heads on his shoulders. 

There were two people sharing one body. They unlocked the polymorph to properly cast the spell. Then, a prism dragon from the genus of yōryong appeared. It was an old dragon that was several thousand years old, but even when it returned to its main body, its body was

 the same size as that of a fire dragon’s hatchling. Like a prism dragon, its scale sparkle in all natural colors depending on the angle it received sunlight. Fluorescent colors that could not be found in common earth creatures shone in a broad spectrum from red to purple. 

Minjun looked at him distastefully. He didn’t like that kind of overly artificial scale color. It was an ornamental dragon. ‘If you touch your genes too much like that, side effects are bound to happen.’

Minjun’s eyes reached the dragon’s shoulder. In addition to the translucent membrane material, which was characteristic of the genus Yoryong, there were other things that stood out. As in human form, dragons still had two heads. Thus a kind of original malformation. ”

However, having two heads meant that they also had two brains that were responsible for magic. In that state, Siamese twins who shared their senses can compose much more sophisticated magic than other dragons. That brother was recognized as his strength, so he was able to enjoy a normal life as a dragon instead of being imprisoned in a rare for the rest of his life. 

Paah! As the other dragons withdrew their preservation magic, the Siamese twins began examining Lord’s body. It was magic to track down what caused him to die. The moment the power of that spell seeped under the golden scales. 

“Hey, this?!” The twin-headed dragon brothers let out a bewildered voice. That was then…

Paah! Now the dragons, who seemed not to be surprised no matter what happened, felt the blood in their heads cooling down all at once. Something inside the dead old dragon was responding to the spell.

An intense light then radiated from Rod’s body. What no one gathered here had been aware of until now was curled up in his body. “Another magic on the body?!” 

Only after it was activated, they noticed the magician’s fingerprints buried there. It was a self-designed magic that they knew well. “Before he died, he cast a spell on himself!” 

At that moment, a voice resounded in everyone’s mind. 

-If you’re hearing this, it means I’m already dead and someone has touched the body for a funeral ceremony. I would like to express my gratitude to those who stood by my side for the last time, and I would like to leave a few words for arranging work after my departure. 

Again, it was a familiar psychiatrist. Someone shouted, “This is a will!” 

As if nailing the speculation and confirming it, the obvious meaning continued to flow. -For your reference, this magic message is the only and final will in effect at the present time.

At that moment, the complexions of the heirs became noticeably pale. 

“Why not!” 

“Father! Why are you leaving a will in this way without even mentioning it in advance…!” 

The young dragons who groaned like that were the children of Lord’s blood. On the other hand, the faces of the ex-wives who were only the protectors of the heirs, who did not have direct succession rights, had brightened. Seeing this, the spectators gasped. “This makes things more complicated.” 

It was rare for an old dragon to leave such a will. This was because this self-centered race was seldom interested in the world after its death. Everything had meaning only when he existed, and the world without him was nothing but ruined in a subjective sense. Therefore, the body and property of dragons who died without a will are disposed of according to the Dragonic Code. 

Everyone in this position now expected that Rod would be the same. So, without any doubt, he waited for the heirs to gather. However, it wasn’t. Tiling! 

‘Um?’ Minjun took out his folder phone with a puzzled expression. Exquisitely, while Old Dragon’s will echoed through the psychic wave, someone contacted him. 

‘Who are you?

Meanwhile, the message left by the dead dragon echoed in everyone’s mind. It penetrated into the form of complex telepathy, neither spoken nor written language. 

-Testator ‘Ager-Pishko-Kois-Halekia-Lubrai-Azel-Azel-Seknat-Kois-Ager’ (Residence: Los Padres National Park, 6750 Santa Maria, California, United States of America) was the honor of a great ancestor 

Based on pure personal hopes and wishes that did not apply to this, they left the following meaning. The will then began with the real name of Dragon Lord. A name that was so long that no one called it. Typical old dragon nomenclature. No one made names like that these days.

-I confess that the time I have spent on Earth so far has been only a fleeting moment compared to the life of a dragon, but the relationship I have built in the meantime has never been shallow or light. Therefore, I want to leave them a small reward. 

The heirs who were listening with their hearts pounding let out a faint scream. The meaning of those words was clear. Not blood, but kin. It meant that he would leave a legacy to those who did not inherit his blood.

– It is expected that there will be some who will be dissatisfied with this decision. It must be my children who expected to share all the inheritance among themselves. Please forgive me if this will did not live up to your expectations. Instead, my immediate descendants will have an equal share of all property except as otherwise stated in the will, so that alone will not be sufficient. 

– Therefore, I convey my intentions as follows. 

-As an elf, I leave a certificate of deposit of 6.5 million dollars and a certificate of immigration confirmation issued by the board to Allison (Residence: Los Padres National Park, 6750 Santa Maria, California, United States of America), who has supported me for a short period of time as an elf. Thanks for that, Allison. If you submit your immigration card to the committee, they will move you along with the companion you want, and you will be paid a separate settlement fund. Please, I wish you a comfortable and cozy retirement in your hometown.

-I transfer the right of 5% of my long-term purchase rights for magic crystals to Al-Sahidi, a bronze dragon of the genus Sauron (Residence: 11564 Riyadh, Israeli Saudi Arabia). Even after the end of the oil era, may peace come to his estate, which has not been freed from chaos for decades. 

-The sapphire dragon of the genus Sea Dragon, Calieter (Residence: North Sea, 54.00° N latitude 8.30° East longitude), leaves a private museum in Amsterdam. Hope her child is happy. 

-I leave a fund of 50 million dollars to the International Criminal Police Organization’s Idiosyncratic Organization Response Team. I hope that all this money will be used to eradicate the solidarity for human rights. On the other hand, I hope that my decision will serve as an opportunity to raise the alarm for some older dragons. See how much their power is growing every year as a result of neglecting to pose a threat in their territory. 

-I give the key to the private safe at West 34th Street in New York City and everything in it to Minjun, an unknown race (Residence: 9 Saecheonnyeon-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea). 

“··········!” 

After that, the list of legacy left to the artist network, scholarship foundation, international relief organization, dragon, and other races that they had built a relationship with were listed, but most of them were those whose monetary value was clearly calculated, and from the dragon’s point of view, it was a huge amount that would upset the eyes. 

However, there was only one exception. Someone broke the cold silence and said, “Yeah Minjun? Where did you hear this name?” 

It was a young dragon less than a hundred years old who mumbled that. “Why the father, to the author?” 

It must mean that he had left something that could not be guessed. And since they couldn’t identify their identity, they let their imagination run wild. How precious a keepsake it was, so it wasn’t written down properly in the will? 

The air froze coldly. In an instant, Minjun met the eyes of the heirs who were staring at him. He looked at him asking for an explanation. At the same time, he felt hostility, anger, and embarrassment as if he had been hit in the back of the head. The last one was the emotion towards the dead father, mixed with other things, and projected in the wrong direction. ensuing scramble. 

“By the way, the last place I saw Rod before he died was…” 

It seemed that some of the dragons witnessed their meeting yesterday. Then his gaze became sharper. Facing that reaction, Minjun felt a strange sense of déjà vu. he thought at the same time. ‘This is dangerous.’ 

He appeared dangerous in two ways. First, it was dangerous for the heirs who had gathered here to show animosity toward him. Therefore, he was in a position to be alert and nervous, but looking inside Minjun, the two selves were mixed, and he was still confused. 

In the aftermath, a part of Minjun did not feel any tension at all. In the past, he did not consider this situation very dangerous. This Bupyeongcho-like mind was more dangerous than unhelpful for the current situation. 

Sparks were evident in the clear eyes of the dragons. Minjun had received such gazes several times in the distant past. A gaze that was very angry and at the same time demanded something from him. Hostility, anger, betrayal, resentment, and embarrassment. 

“…” It was the fierce gaze that he experienced whenever he entered the barn late because he was sometimes busy. Contrary to his judgment as a prisoner, the ego, anchored in the past, was very calm even when he saw the sight in front of him. He, who ran the dragon ranch, was not at all agitated by the active expression of emotions of the dragons.

At this point, he was just muttering to himself indifferently. He would have said this, scratching his cheek if it had been in the past, completely letting go of his tension. 

‘Is it time for food?’