Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 838 - 779: The Continuation of Merfolk

The Giant Dragon broke through the water’s surface. Its carefree breath turned the sea into a layer of ice. The White Dragon roared comfortably, scattering frost as it flew towards the land.

Behind the White Dragon, the frozen layer of ice suddenly burst apart. Princess, controlling the blizzard, her wings of ice and snow condensed, made her resemble a miniature White Dragon.

"Alicia!!!" The Dragon Priest’s eyes reddened, and with several bursts of magic, she caught up to the flying White Dragon. She had survived the breath of destruction, as the sole survivor. The Dragon Priest’s assimilation gave her excellent resistance to the homologous frost breath; on the other hand, the White Dragon deliberately avoided her.

The frosty Trident stabbed towards the dragon’s belly, with Princess rolling up a snowstorm to fiercely collide with the White Dragon.

"You took everything from me! You will pay the price!!!"

The same origin of their power greatly discounted her fury, the Ice Blades missing the target. The White Dragon parried the attack first. Alicia looked on with cold eyes, tearing apart her own Dragon Priest’s ice wings from behind. Her arrogant tone rose amidst the howling winds. She was controlled by the Giant Dragon, plummeting towards the ground. The blade of air friction sliced through her Ice Armor, but the voice of the White Dragon was even more piercing.

"Just as I promised you before, this is the price you pay for ’gaining legs’."

With a booming impact, the rich magic struck the ground, and the surging cold tide rolled up large ice floes. Alicia released her claws, and her Dragon Priest was embedded in the ice, the murderous look in her eyes only intensified the White Dragon’s smug smile.

"From the beginning, I couldn’t stand Merfolk, your disgusting species. Why do you think I would share my power with someone as filthy as you, ’Her Highness the Princess’? I made a pact with your father, the leader of the Merfolk Tribes. I would grant true freedom to the Merfolk, and they would assist me in my mission. I was born a destroyer of the deep sea, and your father, as filthy as he was, harbored absurd ideas, which I found amusing. I respected his desire to escape the deep sea, and you, his only request, my only mercy."

Hearing Alicia mention her father, flames of rage burned within Princess. She gripped the ice spike piercing her shoulder blade, uncaring of the blooming blood-red ice flowers beneath her feet.

"True freedom? You’ve turned them into pieces of ice!"

The White Dragon’s breath made Princess feel the cold, and more importantly, the ice block restraining her became even more solid.

"Death is a release, the only way he could attain freedom. He did everything a king should do, sheltering his offspring and preserving the spark of life. Isn’t it a perfect ending? Dying as a Merfolk rather than as a monster, to die under the dragon’s breath was his honor."

The Giant Dragon lowered its head, its sharp teeth getting closer to Princess. The White Dragon’s breath misted upon the Dragon Priest’s face, leaving a layer of frost.

"I don’t care about your hatred, but, my student, you’ve picked the wrong target. You are servants of the deep sea, destined to fall. The life of Merfolk is like the tide. When the Sleeper rests, you momentarily taste freedom; when the Sleeper awakens, you’re instantly overwhelmed. Why hate me, who grants liberation to the Merfolk, and not the god who assigned you such a tragic destiny?"

Princess remained silent, the resentment in her eyes unabated. Alicia, the White Dragon, continued whispering like a malevolent Witch.

"Our purposes are aligned, my Dragon Priest. Haven’t you realized how similar we are?"

"Our lives bear the burdens forcibly bestowed by our fathers, that is our fate, an inescapable destiny. The only difference is, you resist to the end, while I accept with pleasure. The Sleeper is about to surge onto the land, the divine war will begin, and I will not let your tribes be transformed into the enemy’s power. Next, I will fulfil the duty bestowed upon me by the great father of dragons. And you, my student, you should remember this coldness, pour out the pain you’ve received to your creator."

In Princess’s peculiar gaze, the White Dragon continued speaking.

"This is an undisguised, unhidden deal between you and me. Princess, help me accomplish my mission, drive back the Evil God, and I will allow your filth to be reborn in the ocean—yes, with my final act of mercy. Oh? Not satisfied? Then let’s add another condition: my life. White Dragon Priest, as long as you help me complete my mission, my life, this shell, I will give to you."

The noble Giant Dragon flapped its wings, disappearing into the sky, with its final words echoing in Princess’s ears.

"Go find my rebellious kin and their priests. Tell them the father of dragons’ tolerance is not eternal, and now it’s time for them to play their part. As foretold by prophecy, the Sleeper shall be sealed by the Dragon Priests. Join them, my priest, and let them experience the power of the frozen wings."

Princess was frozen within the ice layer for three days, and before her blood could solidify, thanks to the warmth of the sun’s rays, she escaped her cage. She did not continue her vengeance, understanding with her sense that on her own, she couldn’t kill the White Dragon who had destroyed her nation. The sorrow and rage filling her chest needed a release...

Later, Princess became the queen who wielded the cold, her countenance ever colder than the coldest temperatures. Even within the Dragon Priests Council, her blatant hostility was like a wild blizzard.

The Fire Dragon Priest glared at this madwoman, their inherently incompatible natures made him the first to raise objections in the council.

"Her Giant Dragon is not like us! The White Dragon is the claw of the brutal dragon king; she’s not one of us. They know not compassion, not respect. I will not entrust my back to such a cold-hearted being."

The Blue Dragon Priest Morocoy took control of the meeting with his reasoned and calm demeanor, "Princess brought us definitive news; the survey of the Merfolk... relics has proven their authenticity. Our enemy is the gods of this planet; we should unite all forces, not just Princess, if necessary, White Dragon Alicia will also become our ally."

Other Dragon Priests wanted to object, but a beautiful figure stood up.

The overwhelming fragrance stunned Princess as she remembered those afternoons, lying on the grass with him, basking in the sun. A beautiful elf with a gentle smile and dignified demeanor approached. Lifting her skirt, she greeted Princess with a closeness that did not compromise her grace.

"I am Irason, leader of the Dream Elf tribes, the Green Dragon Priest. It’s not easy to find a sister among this group of Dragon Priests. Princess, on behalf of all Dream Elves, I welcome you and the Merfolk Tribes to join us."

The cold was bone-chilling, and at this moment, Princess didn’t care about anything else.

"I don’t need it, nor do the Merfolk. I’m not going to join your foolish make-believe alliance, what I want to do is to kill the Sleeper. No matter what you do, I am going to carry out my action."

In the end, Black Dragon Priest Ohmhead settled the matter.

"Let’s do it. The dark tide of the Sleeper threatens to engulf the land indefinitely; we must defeat the restless Evil God. The Sleeper came ashore to absorb the Devourer, to call back the isolated rebels to its body. Dragon Devourer Yemotar will certainly not appear on the front lines; our troops, as well as our Giant Dragons, will become the main force... for the future of our tribes! Warriors gathered here by creed, prepare to slay the gods."

...

"The war against the Evil God is more difficult than we imagined. The troops of all races were held back by the Sleeper’s servants, we fought valiantly before the gods with our Giant Dragons; Alicia brought more Giant Dragons. The Sleeper’s body was piled high with mountains of Giant Dragon corpses and seas of blood; we paid a tragic price and finally ripped Him apart."

"The fragments of the god were divided and isolated, and His core had to be kept in the deep sea. Alicia did not honor her promise, and I forever lost my chance for vengeance. She was killed by the gods, her body forming the temple that sealed the core; I eventually... continued my bloodline. The temple guardians need soldiers, they need my kin who will not be influenced by whispers."

"I built a tomb for the Egg of Despair, the place I had originally planned to rest in eternal sleep with him..." Princess whispered softly, sitting on a rock, pointing to a hidden tomb atop a cliff.

The Merfolk trembled as they looked at their queen, their mother.

[Why... why tell me all this, Your Highness... Princess...]

With an apologetic look, the White Dragon Priest watched Vina.

"The gods are about to awaken again, our tribes are about to enter a new cycle. Vina, you will be the new continuation; the Egg of Despair is there, my bloodline can activate that device. If the gods awaken again, I will be at the forefront of the resistance. The Tidal Pearl in your hand is Alicia’s Dragon Jade, containing the power to instantly destroy the Coral Reef. To prevent the Merfolk from becoming the gods’ playthings, you must kill all your sisters."

Vina covered her mouth, tears falling with fear.

[Why me? Why not someone else? There’s Bolderis, please, don’t make me do this, Princess. I can’t bear it, I can’t do it.]

Princess embraced the frightened child, her whispers soft yet heartlessly clear.

"With the unclear intentions of the newborn father of dragons Giant Dragon towards Lyle, the White Dragon Bolderis, once an enforcer of the deep sea, has become a gentle and good child. He’s somewhat saintly and will certainly not accept my request. But you, Vina, all Merfolk are personalities carved from fragments of my memory. You can do what I know myself capable of in adversity, abandon naivety, and make the same choice as I did."

[Because I have been to the land, because I met Lyle, that’s why you chose me among the Merfolk to impose these truths and decisions on me.] Vina lamented.

"Yes, you have traveled further than those innocent children, my dear. Because you have experienced the vicissitudes of right and wrong, therefore, I cannot bear it. The tainted bloodline, the painful truth, it is best kept by the queen of the Merfolk. My people, those innocent children, I hope they can always remain pure and innocent, even if in the last moment, to vanish in a beautiful dream."

"This suffering, even though bitter, is the only legacy we can pass on."

"Oh, and fairy tales, don’t forget about them."

"You too, are now a Daughter of the Sea."