Chapter 14: Leadership Contest
After nearly a month of rest and recovery, Red Dragon’s territory thrived with growing vitality. Under the command of Lanpu and Big Goblin, the Goblins and Ogres had already begun constructing a makeshift Stone Fortress deep within Giant’s Vale. The walls stood over five meters tall, with Watchtowers erected on higher ground—Lanpu, whose observational range was remarkably broad, had dubbed the structure Rockfort. This transformed the naturally defensible valley into an impregnable stronghold. Even if a full human military force were to assault it, Red Dragon felt confident it could repel them with ease.
“Hurry up and work—no slacking!” bellowed a three-meter-tall Ogre from the top of the Watchtower, shouting down at the laborers below.
Yet the wooden Watchtower groaned under the Ogre’s immense, rotund frame. The sound of creaking timber echoed through the air—like the structure itself was crying out in agony beneath half a ton of muscle and flesh.
“Huff… heave!” The Ogres strained as they hoisted massive logs skyward, shaping the framework for Rockfort’s Watchtower. As distant kin of the giants, Ogres possessed strength far beyond ordinary creatures. Though lazy and perpetually hungry, they made excellent laborers. Meanwhile, the Goblins—naturally skilled at building encampments—worked in tandem with the Ogres, their efforts guided by Lanpu’s Intelligence of 17 and Big Goblin’s leadership. Constructing a basic fortress proved relatively effortless for the well-organized group.
Beneath the towering walls, a swarm of Goblins swung pickaxes, chipping away at stone with fierce determination.
“Move faster!”
“You’re hitting my foot!”
Though inherently lazy and prone to skiving, the Goblins had learned their lesson after the last time an angry Ogre supervisor had crushed a sleeping Goblin into a bloody pulp. That incident had left a lasting impression. For the Ogres, Lanpu’s “punishments” were merely fleeting discomforts. But for the Goblins? One strike meant finality. They knew exactly how permanent that was.
“Awooo—”
“What’s that?”
The workers paused mid-motion, all looking up in sudden alarm as a massive shadow swept across the sky.
Far in the distance, a cluster of colossal silhouettes approached—like a storm cloud descending from the heavens. Over a dozen Wyverns. Drawn by the stirring call of their draconic bloodline, they had gathered in search of a worthy master to pledge allegiance to.
The largest among them stretched over seven meters in length—ferocious, fanged, and imposing. Its size rivaled that of Kai Xiusu, though it was far more slender than the Red Dragon. Unlike true dragons, Wyverns lacked arms and wings. Instead, they bore two scaled legs and a pair of powerful, leathery wings. Their tails were thick and muscular, ending in a wicked, venomous tail spike—their most deadly weapon.
The venom coursing through that spike was lethal. When injected via backflow into the bloodstream, it burned through the heart and major blood vessels with excruciating precision. It was this venom that made Wyverns prized by hunters and adventurers alike, often harvested for alchemical infusions or weapon poisoning.
The Wyverns landed with a heavy thud, their front limbs gripping the earth as their wing membranes folded tightly behind them. They roared—calling out to the one who ruled this land.
The nearby Goblins panicked, fleeing in all directions. They were too small, too fragile. Even a careless movement from one of these beasts could crush them like insects.
But Cannibal Magician stood firm atop the fortress wall, already channeling a Fireball Spell Model. Deep within the cliffside cavern, the Chimera stirred—three heads, each expression distinct, eyes scanning the sky with wary alertness.
“Master! A flock of Wyverns approaches!”
“Roar!”
Red Dragon emerged from the Giant’s Maw Cavern, a thunderous, echoing roar tearing through the air as it descended upon the gathering beasts.
“Submit to me,” Kai Xiusu declared in Dragon Tongue.
The Wyverns responded with a cacophony of snarls and growls. Then, one by one, they bent their long necks, lowering their heads in submission.
But the largest Wyvern—its body massive, its eyes burning with arrogance—spied the Red Dragon before it: a juvenile, barely larger than itself. It let out a defiant roar, its voice a guttural hiss, like a serpent coiled in fury.
This is the chance I’ve been waiting for.
Leadership Contest?
An ancient tradition among dragon-kind. Two dragons duel. The victor becomes the leader of the pack; the loser is cast out.
But for a proud, pure-blooded Red Dragon like Kai Xiusu, such a challenge from a lowly, bipedal wyvern was nothing short of a profound insult.
Had he been a true, full-grown Red Dragon, the outrage would have boiled his blood to steam, and he would have torn the creature apart with his bare claws.
“You have made the worst possible choice,” Kai Xiusu snarled, fury blazing in his eyes—not because of the challenge, but because of his size. How much longer must he wait before he could stand tall, his mighty frame shaking the earth, and make even the mightiest monsters kneel in awe?
“And I shall grant you… death.”
With a powerful beat of his wings, Red Dragon soared high into the sky, circling above the defiant Wyvern, the wind whipping around him like a storm.
[Based on your strength, you can perceive the following information:]
Wyvern
Large Dragon, No Alignment
Armor Class: 13 (Natural Armor)
Speed: 20 ft, Flight 80 ft
Strength: 19
Dexterity: 10
Constitution: 16
Intelligence: 5
Wisdom: 12
Charisma: 6
Skill Proficiency: Perception +2, Hunting +4
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft, Passive Perception 14
Languages: Understands Dragon Tongue
Armor Class Abilities: Multiattack, Bite, Claw Attack, Tail Spike
Challenge Rating: 6 (2,300 XP)
Assessment: Occasionally, travelers in the wild glance upward and witness Wyverns in flight, clutching prey in their claws. These creatures, closely related to dragons, hunt in dense forests and deep caves. They are merciless predators, and when they appear in groups, their presence often sends waves of panic through frontier settlements.
On the ground, the Wyvern’s long neck arched, its head raised in defiance. A rasping, serpentine hiss escaped its jaws.
Hissss—
Then, with a powerful lunge, the massive Wyvern launched itself into the air. Its tail thrashed behind it, the venomous spike glinting like ice under the sun.
“Fire Breath!”
But before it cleared the earth, Red Dragon unleashed a searing, cone-shaped torrent of flame from his maw—blazing hot, aimed straight at the airborne beast.
The Wyvern twisted mid-flight, wings flaring to adjust its trajectory, desperately trying to scramble back toward the ground. But the fire caught it full in the chest. The front half of its body, once armored in thick scales, blackened instantly. Beneath, the flesh seared and blistered, leaving it writhing in agony.
“Roar—!”
The Wyvern shrieked in pain—but barely had time to recover before it forced itself upward again, wobbling through the air. It had no time. The Red Dragon’s next breath was already forming. Deep within his throat, an orange-yellow flame glowed—like the heart of a volcano, about to erupt.
Boom—
A second blast of fire tore through the air. A crimson torrent descended, following the Wyvern’s flight path like a guided missile. The heat warped the air around it, causing visible scorching distortions. The Wyvern, terrified, darted and weaved through the sky in desperate evasion—completely defenseless, unable to counterattack.
(End of Chapter)
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