The Encounter Between the Forsaken Healing Magic’s Beloved Child and the Betrayed Black Dragon Princess of Calamity - 6

Chapter 6: The Betrayed and Wounded Dragon Princess ※???’s POV

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※???’s POV

At a small kingdom where the dragon race resided, Dragroar Kingdom. Born as the daughter of the Fafnir family, I was destined from a young age to live my life as the dragon queen. My family had ruled over this kingdom for over three thousand years, but that said, the Dragroar Kingdom had a special custom. The strongest would reign supreme as the king and my family simply held the throne for years because we were overwhelmingly stronger than the other dragons. 

In other words, neither those who came before me nor those born after me in this kingdom were stronger than me and that included my father, the current king. Whether I liked it or not, I was destined to become the queen of Dragroar Kingdom. 

But…

“U-Ugh…”

“Ugh… Thi-This is…?!”

“Fufu~ It seems even the proud Fafnir family, the strongest family in the kingdom, cannot withstand the power of this poison.”

At the royal banquet, my father and mother were poisoned by someone they trusted. It was the young leader of the White Dragon Clan. His name was Klaus Drache Lindwurm, my childhood friend whom I had adored like an older brother. His family had served my family for generations, but of course, I was poisoned along with the rest of my family as well.

“Now then. Your Majesty, let us begin with the Royal Selection immediately. Surely the esteemed Fafnir family wouldn’t even think of refusing, right? It’d be a dishonor to the royal dragon lineage flowing in Your Majesty’s vein, after all.”

In the Dragroar Kingdom, the king cannot refuse the battle to determine the supreme ruler. The battle was called ‘Royal Selection.’ This was the unwritten rule that had been passed down since the creation of this kingdom. Only the strongest dragon could lead the kingdom and all the dragons. 

“Kla-Klaus… Why?”

“Why, you ask? Isn’t it obvious? Seeing you ruling over me so arrogantly like that just because you’re stronger… No, that’s not quite. I just hate those eyes.”

“M eyes…?”

“Yes, precisely. Whether it’s the confidence of the strong or whatever, I just can’t stand the way your crimson eyes always look down on me.”

“Tha-That’s…”

Never once had I looked down on him. In fact, I had admired him. Klaus, who was always so calm, gentle and carried himself with grace…

“Enough. You can just stay there and watch the end of Manfred Drake Fafnir, your king.”

Despite suffering from the poison, my father fought valiantly. The battle raged on for three days and three nights, but in the end… My father was defeated by Klaus. 

“Kukuku… Kuhahahahahaha! With this, I am now the King of Dragroar Kingdom! I will give my first order as the king! Kill all members of the Fafnir family! They are nothing but vile sinners, who have reduced the glorious Dragroar Kingdom to this disgraceful state!”

“-?!”

And so, I was persecuted by all dragons and forced to run away from the kingdom.

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“Now, prepare yourself to die!”

“Don’t underestimate meeeeeee!”

With the Dark Forest spreading beneath my feet, I fought off the pursuing dragons above. Even though I was poisoned, the Fafnir family was not considered the strongest family without reason. But still, I was greatly outnumbered. Bit by bit, the relentless pursuers injured me, rendering me battered and exhausted beyond limit. 

“If only… If only we weren’t poisoned…”

It seemed this poison was extremely lethal. Dragon races like me had natural resistance to poison, but I could barely summon even 20% of my true strength because of this poison. At this rate, I would meet the same tragic end as my father, killed mercilessly by the other dragons or I might succumb to the poison, just like my mother.

“So, this is the true power of the Fafnir family? Their family was revered as the strongest, well, I can see that they are strong, but they’re not as strong as they claimed to be.”

“Yeah… In the end, we were all deceived by this family…”

It seemed the other dragons believed the reason why my father was defeated by Klaus and why I was running away so disgracefully like this was because the strength of the Fafnir family was not as powerful as they were led to believe. I could see anger and contempt in the eyes of the dragons chasing me. 

“Fufu… So, in the end… The weak have to bear all the blame, huh…”

Shaking my head, I laughed bitterly. No matter how much the dragons valued strength, but seeing the trust the Fafnir family had built with the dragons over generations was now in shambles made me feel sorry for my father, who had dedicated his life for the country and its people. Me too. I was in pain too since the one who had betrayed us was Klaus, someone who I had admired and respected. 

“Argh-?!”

Despite being heavily wounded on my back and wings, I somehow managed to shake off my pursuers, but…

“I… I can’t anymore…”

Eventually, my body lost all strength. I fell into the forest. 

“Heh… So this is where I will die…”

Klaus’ poison had spread through my entire body. I couldn’t move my body anymore. There wasn’t a single pair of me that came out unscathed. My face, back, chest, wings, and limbs were all damaged. I also sustained some fatal wounds. 

“So frustrating…”

To think I would rot away here without avenging my father and mother first… I had to die here, unable to do anything…

Filled with frustration, I unconsciously let out a roar. I had to hide myself in the forest if I wanted to survive. The dragons circling above would find me soon. I remembered their bloodshot eyes as they pursued me.

I… Do I even want to live?

With all the wounds and poison, the chances of me surviving this ordeal were practically zero. More than anything, I was alone. I didn’t have anyone who would come to my aid. I didn’t have anyone at all. 

So… Why I…

“Heh. Thinking about it is pointless.”

Yes. I want to live. I want to survive. I don’t want the throne though. I have no need for a kingdom that killed my father and mother. I don’t care what happens to the people of the kingdom who hurt me. I just… I just want to live. 

I wished that from the bottom of my heart and then… Something touched my body. The monsters in this forest feared the dragons. They never dared to approach us, but… It seemed there were reckless ones among the monsters. 

I cast my eyes downward to look which monster dared to touch me and there, I saw…

“Ah…”

A small human boy was looking up at me.

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“…I can’t believe I get to experience a miracle in my whole life.”

Countless wounds that the dragons had inflicted on me and the poison that had been ravaging my body, everything had vanished. I didn’t even need to question how. 

“Fuh…. Fuh…”

This small boy, who was lying unconscious on the ground, had saved me. 

“The light that came from his hands…”

It was a small and faint light, but at the same time… It felt really warm. The dim light gently enveloped my body, healing not only my physical injuries and the poison that was consuming me, but even my heart. My heart that had been on the verge of breaking was healed by this boy. 

“It must be some sort of healing magic, but…”

Dragons were highly powerful. We had resistance to poison and magic. We were also highly skilled in using magic. We could easily cast advanced spells, beyond the reach of humans. We had some magic spells  that only dragons could use, but…

“Healing magic shouldn’t affect a dragon like me.”

Yes. This was the dragon’s unique predisposition. Our bodies were designed in such a way that we didn’t require healing magic. In fact, healing magic didn’t have any effect on dragons because of how highly resistant we were to magic. Especially magic used by humans. Magic cast by humans shouldn’t have any effect on us. Hence why the healing magic that this boy used was… Definitely not normal. 

“Who are you exactly?”

Healing me in my dragon form must have depleted him of magic power, leaving him exhausted and fast asleep on the ground like this. Not only was I much bigger than him in my dragon form, but I was highly resistant to magic too. For now, he was breathing peacefully in his slumber while snoring snuggly, but… The Dark Forest was a place that the humans had long feared. Sure, for a dragon like me, this forest was nothing, but for a fragile human like him to set foot in a land teeming with countless powerful monsters was simply unthinkable. 

Not to mention…

“This boy didn’t fear me… No, that’s not entirely right.”

He feared me, but despite his fear, the boy still tried to help me when he saw my battered state. I had tried to scare him off by growling at him, thinking it would be safer for him to stay away from this dangerous place, but the boy didn’t leave. 

This boy must be a very kind hearted boy…

“Heh. What a stupid thought.”

Klaus, someone I trusted with all my heart, had betrayed me. The other dragons too. They quickly turned their backs on me without hesitation. So… This boy too. He must have ulterior motives too. I couldn’t afford to trust anyone anymore. 

“Although a tiny boy like him couldn’t do anything to harm me, but I still need to remain cautious.”

Back in my original form, I moved closer to him and gently stroked his soft cheek. The warmth of the boy’s hand and the warmth from the light that had saved me, lingered in my heart. They stirred a bittersweet sense of longing and nostalgia in my heart.

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