novelraw Chapter 43: Desire and Reason
Chapter 43: Desire and Reason
The bright moonlight flowed like water over the Iron Fir Hills, and Garoth’s scales shimmered with a cold metallic luster in the night.
He folded up the map and gazed into the distance.
Samantha was still hunched over, repairing her alchemy workshop; the clinking sounds of hammering rang especially clear in the silent wilderness.
Garoth’s tail lightly tapped the ground, but his thoughts had already drifted to the abandoned mine—the nest of the Rockgrub worms, the location of the Marnes Dungeon, and very likely the resting place of a legendary alchemical tool.
A greedy fire burned in his chest, urging him to set out immediately and claim the treasure as his own.
At the same time, reason whispered: rashly charging in might cost him dearly, even his life.
Feeling the inner struggle, Garoth took more than ten deep breaths before reason gradually gained the upper hand, slowly suppressing the greed, arrogance, and pride born from his draconic nature.
When it came to legendary alchemical tools, these emotions had surged to unprecedented heights just moments ago.
Greed made him want to obtain the legendary alchemical tool at all costs.
Arrogance and pride made him feel certain of success, ignoring the risks. Fortunately, since becoming a dragon hybrid and first experiencing these emotions, Garoth realized that if left unchecked, if he did not subject them to his reason, they would eventually ruin him. So he often fought against them.
Though he still couldn’t completely rid himself of their influence, he was no longer entirely driven by them.
Exhaling slowly, Garoth’s gaze cleared.
“These inherent vices formed alongside our legacy are like a raging flood and a fierce beast—truly terrifying.”
No matter how other dragons might be, Garoth refused to let his reason be affected by these emotions.
Although he was a naturally gifted hybrid dragon with evolutionary talent, he was still far from possessing the reckless arrogance of those who look down on everything.
“If I were one of the legendary dragons, perhaps I wouldn’t need to consider so much and could simply embrace my nature. Their arrogance and confidence would be justified.”
Garoth thought to himself.
“But legendary dragons are elusive. The vast majority of dragons are like me, or even weaker. The negative impact of these emotions far outweighs the benefits.”
“Why not purge them? The gods worshiped by the dragons are real—they should be able to do such a thing.”
Garoth pondered silently.
The obsessive greed for treasure like a curse, unreasonable arrogance and pride... to Garoth, these were obvious invisible shackles placed on dragons.
Even without special talents, even the weakest white dragons among them, Garoth believed that as long as these invisible chains could be broken, dragons with their innate physique and talents would surely soar to heights ordinary dragons could never reach.
If these vices were eliminated, the declining dragon race would surely recover quickly, and a revival of the ancient glory might not be impossible.
But why wasn’t it happening?
Were the dragon gods incapable?
Or unwilling?
Garoth couldn’t figure it out. He shook his head and stopped thinking about it, focusing instead on the matter at hand.
He turned to the young red dragon and asked, “Samantha, what do you think a legendary alchemical tool would be like?”
Samantha paused her hammering on the rock slab and turned to face Garoth.
Tilting her head, she pondered for a moment, her eyes sparkling with excitement:
“It has to be something... that makes the entire wilderness tremble! Like a giant cannon that sprays lava and causes the earth to shatter? Or a mechanical core that can summon storms?”
Garoth chuckled softly, “Perhaps.”
Having also heard the rogue’s tale, Samantha couldn’t hold back her excitement and said, “My dear brother, do you want to explore the dungeon? Take me with you! We will definitely get the treasures inside and then dominate the wilderness!”
“By then, you would be the supreme Dragon King of the Ser Wilderness, and I would be the Red Dragon Queen beneath you, above all things!”
“We’ll rule the Ser Wilderness together, with an infinitely bright future and a flourishing dragon life.”
Supreme Dragon King, Red Dragon Queen... so melodramatic.
Moreover, she hadn’t even considered the risks involved.
Garoth glanced at the excited young red dragon, eager to explore the dungeon immediately, and said, “Stop dreaming. If you have time to fantasize, you’d better study alchemy more.”
“My dear brother, if you don’t want to go, then give me the map and let me go!” Samantha said eagerly.
Garoth’s expression remained unchanged. “Do your own work. This isn’t something for you to worry about.”
Samantha wanted to say more, but when she met Garoth’s calm, deep eyes, she felt an itching sensation on her body.
Not a real itch, but some kind of ‘premonition.’
Because it happened so many times, Samantha could roughly sense the signs before Garoth wanted to hit her.
His current expression, gaze, and tone were all warning signals of danger to Samantha.
She sulkily turned away and didn’t mention it again.
Elsewhere, Garoth suppressed the greedy, arrogant emotions and thought with reason, weighing pros and cons.
“The Marnes Dungeon is suspected to exist beneath the abandoned mine where the Rockgrub worms dwell, possibly hiding a legendary alchemical tool.”
“The Worm King was injured not long ago by a Brass Dragon and hasn’t recovered. Ordinary Rockgrub worms pose no threat to me.”
“But the abandoned mine isn’t large; it might just be an entrance to the dungeon. Who knows if there are creatures more advanced and powerful than the Worm King down there?”
“Besides, the dungeon was destroyed a thousand years ago. Even if the alchemical tool really exists, whether it is intact or usable is uncertain.”
“There are too many uncertainties; the risks far outweigh the benefits.”
After much thought, Garoth temporarily suppressed the idea of exploring the dungeon.
After all, it was only a legendary alchemical tool. For a dragon destined to become legendary, obtaining it would only make the early stages smoother, not something absolutely essential.
Taking unnecessary risks for an uncertain, possibly useless item was something only a young dragon clouded by greed and arrogance would do.
Garoth chose to refuse.
He only needed to progress steadily and evolve gradually to become stronger—there was no need to take risks.
It wasn’t worth it.
However, he didn’t completely give up.
If he could obtain a legendary alchemical tool before level 20, it would still benefit him greatly.
“When I grow strong enough to defeat the Worm King and subjugate it, I will use it and its swarm of Rockgrub worms to explore this dungeon.”
Garoth made his final decision in his heart.