Chapter 18 | They Called Me the Dumbest Dragon, So I Paused Time and Built an Empire

"Who's your brother? And what's this about scars?"

Gris felt it was all very strange.

Jonavili patted his shoulder with an air of deep earnestness.

"It is fine. I will protect you from now on. As long as you follow me, I will make sure you are well-fed and taken care of."

Gris looked wary; he had not expected this dragon's true goal to be this.

"A true dragon will never submit to another!"

Jonavili narrowed her crystal blue dragon eyes slightly. She clenched her claws, her dragon bones popping and cracking with a series of sharp sounds.

"I know you are sad right now, and I sympathize, but that is no reason for you to defy me."

"What are you talking about? I'm a—"

Whack!

Before he could finish, Jonavili slammed a fist onto Gris's head. The sheer force made him see stars.

"Say that again."

"The great true dragon will never submit to—"

Whack!

"Again."

"The great..."

Whack!

"Again."

"I think you are a wonderful dragon for taking in a homeless dragon like me. I am so touched, wahhh."

Gris spoke with total submission. Jonavili pulled back her claw, satisfied, and nodded.

"Good. A wise choice."

A true dragon never submits to another, but the one opposite me is also a true dragon, and a powerful one at that. She does not count as "another," so I have not violated my principles.

Yes, that is it. Between true dragons, how can it be called submission? It is called cooperation.

Gris quickly convinced himself. Jonavili did not know what he was thinking; if she did, she would definitely give him another whack.

"Follow me. But let me warn you: when you see the other one later, show your submission. Remember, do not reveal my uniqueness. Just treat me like a normal white dragon.

You can try to expose me, but be prepared for the consequence of being hunted by me constantly once you reach adulthood."

After speaking, Jonavili walked over to a hunted rockclaw magic crocodile, grabbed it with one claw, and took to the sky.

Gris shuddered at her words. He did not think she was joking. Given the vengeful nature of chromatic dragons, they really might hunt someone forever over a small matter.

However, he was also shocked by Jonavili's terrifying strength.

Among chromatic dragons, the red dragon was number one because their strength and wisdom were the greatest, though they were also the most arrogant and looked down on other dragons.

The blue dragon was second because their strength was second only to the red dragon, though they were also very conceited.

But the power displayed by this white wyrmling before him could likely challenge the red dragon's top spot, or at least be on par with a normal red dragon.

Under Jonavili's lead, Gris flew with her to the dragon lair halfway up the mountain.

The moment he stepped inside, he saw a sleeping, fiery-red figure.

He immediately felt as if facing a great enemy—this was actually a red wyrmling!

The most violent of tempers, a tyrant that even other chromatic dragons disliked dealing with.

Moreover, looking at her size, she was definitely not a normal red dragon. A typical red dragon might reach five meters at most during the juvenile stage, but the creature before him was six meters long, looking very close to seven.

One look and it was clear this red dragon had awakened a physical talent, and her overall talent was definitely not low!

He had not expected this white dragon to bring him to see a red dragon. If he had known, he would not have come for anything.

Strange, though—white dragons loved ice and snow, while red dragons loved fire. How did these two end up together?

While he was wondering, Furiel, sensing a strange presence in the cave, slowly opened her eyes.

"Roar!"

She just wanted to clear her throat upon waking. Huh? What's with this little black dragon? Why does he look like he's facing a mortal foe?

Furiel's roar startled Gris. Every cell in his body trembled, every muscle tensed—it was pure instinct.

In contrast, Jonavili dragged the rockclaw magic crocodile and skipped over to Furiel.

"Awoo, awoo, awoo-woo!"

Looking at the little fool running toward her, Furiel raised a claw to stop the white dragon head from rubbing against her.

Furiel did not care about the extra black wyrmling; she prioritized filling her stomach.

After eating the entire rockclaw magic crocodile, Furiel felt about sixty percent full. Only then did she turn her attention to Gris.

Gris felt extremely uncomfortable under those fiery-red vertical pupils, his dragon heart beating even faster.

Furiel walked up to Gris, looking down at him from above without any guard. From the start, Furiel had not even considered him a threat.

Gris, on the other hand, was on high alert but did not dare show any sign of attacking.

"Explain. You know what I am asking."

Gris swallowed some dragon saliva and explained what had happened, though he omitted the fact that Jonavili could speak draconic.

After hearing Gris's story, Furiel looked at Jonavili, who was sitting quietly to the side, blinking her big, shimmering eyes.

"You want to keep him?"

Jonavili nodded her round dragon head. Seeing this, Furiel said no more.

"As you wish."

With that, Furiel held her dragon head high and left the cave.

Once she was far away, Gris finally deflated. Relaxing, he realized his whole body had gone limp.

There was no helping it; the pressure from that red dragon was too strong. Even though she was not angry and had not said much, she still made him nervous.