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ascension of the golden dragon
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00:00I am the second princess of Clan Aurelion, pureblood golden scale, and I fell in love with a filthy black
00:07serpent.
00:08In my past life, I chose him at the selection rite, insisted on him as my bonded mate.
00:13I was the one who defied every voice in Clan Aurelion to drag him out of the serpent's abyss and
00:19up to Drake's fire.
00:20We spent every night together, and on our wedding day, the black serpent I dreamed of for years
00:26drove a blade straight through me, three months pregnant.
00:30I collapsed in a pool of my own blood. Draven's voice was full of disgust.
00:34If you hadn't been in the way, I would have had Issa Luth long ago. You deserve this.
00:40Only then did I understand. From the very beginning, he'd had his eyes on my sister, the one already chosen
00:47as the next Archon.
00:49Isolde nestled into his arms. The foot slammed into my bleeding chest.
00:54Pathetic little wretch.
00:56The pain through my heart sent tremors down every limb. With my last breath, I curse you both to ruin
01:04without end.
01:06And if fate grants me another life, I'll be all the one holding the blade.
01:13My eyes open. I'm standing on the sacred altar. Wind howls across Drake's fire, carrying ice and the scent of
01:20stone.
01:21I'm alive. No. I'm reborn.
01:24My father, the man who died long ago in my previous life, touches my shoulder. A quiet reminder.
01:32Seraphina, you're the one who insisted on bonding with the Black Serpent. Why are you standing there like you've seen
01:37a ghost?
01:38Bonding? I look down past the sacred altar. The serpent candidates stand in a line, waiting to be chosen. The
01:45selection rite.
01:45I've returned to the day I chose my bonded mate. Father.
01:51A voice cuts me off. Draven Vos steps out of the line. He walks right past me, his gaze burning
01:56toward Isolde behind me. He drops to one knee.
02:00Lord Artron, with all due respect, my heart does not answer to obligation.
02:04It knows only one name, and it is not Seraphina.
02:08He lifts his head toward Isolde.
02:09I wish only to stand beside the first princess, Isolde. For the rest of my days.
02:15Dead silence. Father's expression darkens.
02:19Everyone knows the Black Serpentine claim half-Leviathan blood, but the lineage is impure.
02:24By every rule, Draven Vos has no right to set foot on the sacred altar.
02:29I'm the reason he's here. I liked him. I chose him.
02:33I forced Father to make an exception, to let a serpent stand before dragons.
02:37And now, moments before the bond ceremony begins, he slaps me across the face in front of everyone.
02:44David's eyes were cold, contemptuous, and full of calculations.
02:48It hits me at once. He's reborn too.
02:51Draven thinks bonding with my sister will rocket him to the top.
02:54What he doesn't know is that who becomes the true Archon of Clan Aurelion isn't his choice.
02:59It's mine.
03:00This time around, without my designation, I'd love to see how far either of you climb.
03:06Father erupts. His dominance aura crashes down like a man's life.
03:11Draven's knees buckle. His forehead hits stone.
03:14You forget what you are.
03:15Seraphina is the second princess of Clan Aurelion.
03:19Do you think you're choosing livestock at market?
03:22Even with the Archon's aura grinding his joints to the breaking point, Draven refuses to yield.
03:27He speaks through clenched teeth.
03:29Lord Archon, what is my crime?
03:31Must I bond with the second princess simply because she fancies me?
03:35I love the first princess, Isolida.
03:37The first princess trains day and night. Treats everyone with grace.
03:42The second princess is reckless, idle, never once honed her power.
03:47If any of you were in my position, who would you choose?
03:51Every word sounds sincere, but I know exactly what's behind it.
03:55In the last life, he learned Isolde was father's chosen successor.
03:59Bond with the Archon's chosen.
04:01Share the ancestral power.
04:03Catalyze his impure Leviathan blood.
04:05Evolve into a true Leviathan.
04:07It's never been about love.
04:09It's about leverage.
04:11Father's fury deepens.
04:13The dominance aura intensifies.
04:14A filthy serpent daring to judge my daughter!
04:18You have a death wish!
04:20Father, stop!
04:22Isolde steps out from behind me.
04:24Her cheeks flush pink.
04:26Her eyes glistened with just the right amount of tears.
04:29Every word of Draven's confession, she heard it all.
04:32I accept him.
04:33Stunned silence.
04:34Father stares at her.
04:36Isolida, do you hear yourself?
04:39He is Seraphina's chosen mate.
04:41And Draymond Vos is nothing more than a mongrel serpent.
04:45Bonding with him would only drag you down.
04:47Before he finishes, Draven produces an obsidian case from inside his robes.
04:52He kneels again, presenting it to Isolde with both hands.
04:55The lid opens.
04:57Inside lies a pearl.
04:59I offer this to the first princess.
05:02Someone in the crowd recognizes it instantly.
05:04A Leviathan pearl!
05:05I glance at it, lower my lashes.
05:08Leviathan pearl.
05:09An ancient relic from the depths of the serpent's abyss.
05:12Nine out of ten who search for it, never come back.
05:14In my last life, I burned through every resource the clan gave me trying to find one for Draven.
05:19He'd held me close, voice soft.
05:21It's just a myth, Sarah.
05:23Don't waste yourself on it.
05:24The pearl was in his hands the whole time.
05:26And now, to win my sister's favor, he pulls it out without a second thought.
05:30Everything I gave him.
05:32A joke.
05:33Isolde takes the obsidian case, deeply moved.
05:35She flicks a glance at me, sharp, triumphant.
05:39Then turns to father.
05:40Tears shimmer.
05:41Her voice trembles just enough.
05:43My whole life, you've favored Serafina.
05:47And now, finally, someone chooses me!
05:51Would you tear that away from your own daughter, just for Serafina's sake?
05:55Father hesitates.
05:56His gaze lingers on the Leviathan pearl.
05:59Then he turns to me.
06:01Serafina, don't make this difficult.
06:04If his heart lies with your sister, let it go.
06:06Don't be unreasonable.
06:07I close my eyes.
06:09A bone-deep exhaustion settles over me.
06:12Isolde and I share a father.
06:13That's all we share.
06:14Her mother, Illara, was an iron-scale dragoness.
06:18The lowest subspecies among dragonkind.
06:21She died shortly after giving birth to Isolde.
06:23Too weak to survive.
06:24Father later married my mother, the previous female archon of Clan Aurelion.
06:29Pure blood, golden scale.
06:31Her blood and her rank made me the rightful heir from the moment I drew my first breath.
06:36But growing up, even the Clan could see it.
06:38Father measured us on two completely different scales.
06:41With Isolde, he was a merciless drillmaster.
06:44He threw her into the bone wastes as a child and never looked back.
06:47Even when she crawled home covered in wounds, he wouldn't let her shed a single tear.
06:53You are my daughter.
06:54Weakness is not yours to claim.
06:56With me?
06:57Even though my raw talent surpassed Isolde's, he said he worried I'd suffer on the path of cultivation.
07:03Without hesitation, he pulled me out of training entirely.
07:06You don't need to be strong, Sarah.
07:08Just be happy.
07:09To everyone else, I was the pampered princess.
07:12But I knew the truth.
07:13This wasn't love.
07:14It was a leash.
07:15He was raising me to be useless.
07:17In my past life, I wandered deep into the Clan crypts by accident.
07:21Found Father kneeling before a black obsidian tombstone.
07:25The name carved into it.
07:26Ilara.
07:27His voice was low, tender.
07:28Nothing like the way he spoke to me.
07:30Ilara, my love.
07:32After all these years, it is still you.
07:34It has always been you.
07:37Rest easy.
07:39I've kept my promise.
07:41The girl knows nothing.
07:42Not her power.
07:44Not her birthright.
07:45Nothing.
07:46Our daughter will have everything she deserves.
07:49I stood in the dark.
07:50Ice spreading through my veins.
07:52He wasn't spoiling me.
07:54He was making sure I'd never threaten Isolde.
07:56Father wanted me to choose Draven Vos, a black serpent with low standing.
08:01Once bonded to him, no one in the Clan would ever take me seriously.
08:04And now, Draven has produced a Leviathan Pearl.
08:07Father seizes the chance to boost Isolde's power.
08:10Pins the label of unreasonable on me.
08:12Orders me to step aside.
08:15Fine.
08:16You want it?
08:16Take it.
08:17I agree too fast.
08:18Father blinks.
08:19Draven's eyes flicker.
08:20Isolde, though.
08:21She walks up to me.
08:22Voice coated in honey.
08:23I only want what's best for you, little sister.
08:27After all, a forced bond breaks both.
08:32Tell you what.
08:33She smiles, scanning the crowd.
08:36Pick another mate.
08:37I'll bond with Draven.
08:39You'll have your own match.
08:40And Father can stop worrying.
08:41Father watches Isolde with open adoration.
08:44But they both know the truth.
08:45Every candidate invited to the sacred altar today is a serpent.
08:48And aside from Draven, not one of them stands out.
08:51I don't bother with her games.
08:53I raise my hand lazily and point in a random direction.
08:56That one.
08:57I'm pointing at a silver serpent.
08:59In human form, he's unexpectedly striking.
09:02Pale skin.
09:03Silver irises with slit pupils.
09:05A lean frame.
09:07Wiry but strong.
09:08Almost a match for Draven Voss in appearance.
09:10But his mana is so faint it barely registers.
09:13A candle about to gutter out.
09:15If black serpentine blood is considered low, then silver serpentine, in the eyes of dragonkind,
09:21is nothing more than a worm with scales.
09:23Apart from shifting into human form, they have almost zero combat ability.
09:27The silver serpent freezes when my finger lands on him.
09:30Isolde presses her hand to her lips, feigning concern.
09:33Each word drips with just enough sweetness to cut.
09:36Oh, Sarah.
09:38Are you sure?
09:39He looks...
09:40Fragile.
09:41I'd hate for him to reject you, too.
09:43The silver serpent speaks.
09:45No hesitation.
09:46No way.
09:48I accept.
09:49The entire crowd flinches.
09:51Even I pause.
09:52He walks straight out of the line.
09:54Stops before me.
09:55And extends a pale, slender hand.
09:58Your Highness.
10:00My name is Kale.
10:01A beat of silence.
10:03His voice drops.
10:05Quieter.
10:05Almost to himself.
10:07I've always wanted you to know it.
10:09I take his hand.
10:11It isn't cold the way I expected.
10:12A warmth I didn't anticipate.
10:14In that instant, the skin over my collarbone flares hot.
10:18Kale's grip tightens around my fingers.
10:20He lifts his head.
10:21Looks straight into my eyes.
10:22His silver irises reflect my face.
10:25If you'll have me, I swear on my blood and my bones.
10:30Not in this life or any other.
10:33Tray you.
10:34Or leave you.
10:35Golden divine light flips the sky and cracks across the sacred altar.
10:40Ceiling is open.
10:42The flash lights up his face.
10:44Something inside my chest cracks open.
10:46Melts.
10:47Kale is the first person in two lifetimes who chose me without a single moment of hesitation.
10:52The corner of my mouth lifts on its own.
10:55A voice shoves its way in from the side.
10:58Draven stands with his arms crossed, looking down at Kale like an insect.
11:02Your Highness.
11:03Silver Serpentine have virtually no Morna.
11:06Bonding with him won't do a thing for your power.
11:09Kale lowers his head slightly.
11:11Not avoidance.
11:11Habit.
11:12He's heard this too many times.
11:14The smile on my lips goes cold.
11:16What's wrong, Draven?
11:17Jealous?
11:18And let's be clear.
11:20You call Silver Serpentine lowborn?
11:23Does Black Serpentine blood run any nobler?
11:27The smirk on Draven's face turns to stone.
11:29I catch it.
11:30The hatred that flashes across his features.
11:32A fraction too slow to hide.
11:35In my past life, I wasn't blind.
11:37I chose him over every candidate because he once saved my life in the bone wastes.
11:41That was the first time anyone shielded me with their own body.
11:44I thought it was real.
11:45Now he humiliates me in public and clings to my sister for power.
11:49So don't expect me to play nice.
11:51I turn to face the plan.
11:53From this day forward, Kale is under my protection.
11:56He is mine.
11:58My gaze sweeps the crowd.
12:00Touch him and you answer to me.
12:03The crowd shrinks back half a step under my stare.
12:06Draven's fists clench.
12:08Whatever makes you happy, Your Highness.
12:10Kale's fingertip brushes mine.
12:12I turn to look at him.
12:13Those silver slit pupils fix on me.
12:16Fragile, trembling, and impossibly bright.
12:18You're the only one who ever saw me.
12:20Something slams against my ribs.
12:22Enough.
12:24It's time.
12:25Begin the soul bond right.
12:27Four of us step into the runic circle at the center of the sacred altar.
12:30Ancient dragon script blazes to life beneath our feet.
12:34Divine lightning strikes.
12:35The altar channels it, tearing soul fragments from each pair and branding them into irreversible bonds.
12:41But the power gap between dragon and serpent is vast.
12:45The bond's energy surges from the stronger vessel to the weaker, seeking balance, like a flood pouring into a creek.
12:52Both serpents buckle at once.
12:54Draven collapses under the force.
12:56Blood spills from the corner of his mouth.
12:59He struggles to lift his head, reaching toward Isolda.
13:02Isolda, please help me.
13:04Isolda starts to extend her hand.
13:06Father stops her cold.
13:07Serpent.
13:09Your blood is barely worthy of my daughter as it stands.
13:13If you can't endure this, then it's your fate.
13:16Draven's eyes go wide.
13:17He stares at Isolda, the same woman who blushed while accepting him moments ago, now standing safely outside the circle.
13:24Her expression is calm.
13:25Deren, I am the next Archean of Clan Avelion.
13:28Every drop of my martyr is precious.
13:31So, I can't give you any.
13:33Disbelief carves itself across his face.
13:36On my side, Kale is in just as bad shape.
13:39Silver scales surface along his neck and arms.
13:42His body convulses.
13:43I raise my hand to channel mana into him.
13:46Kale lurches back.
13:47Your highness, the first princess is right.
13:50If I can't endure the bond's power, then it means I'm not worthy of you.
13:55They call you lowborn and you just accept it?
14:00We're bonded now.
14:03That means we live and die together.
14:06So shut up.
14:07I grab his shoulder.
14:09Mana pours from my palm, flooding into his body in a steady, relentless stream.
14:14Golden dragonfire threads along the bond's pathways, flowing into him.
14:19And then I notice something strange.
14:21Kale's body absorbs my mana with impossible efficiency, as if he was born to receive this exact power.
14:27For the weakest serpent alive, that makes no sense at all.
14:32Now isn't the time to ask.
14:34I file the anomaly away.
14:35The soul bond rite ends.
14:38Draven lies soaked in sweat and blood, pinned to the ground, jaw locked, crimson still leaking from his mouth.
14:46Kale stands untouched.
14:47I feel Draven's stare, turned to meet it.
14:51His eyes are dark, resentful, as if I owe him something.
14:54Last life, Draven barely took a scratch.
14:57I was always the one fighting his battles.
14:59Now he's chosen the clan's anointed next archon, and nearly died during a bond ceremony.
15:05And he has the nerve to look at me?
15:07I mouth one word at him.
15:09Ice cold.
15:11Deserved.
15:12Isolde doesn't notice the exchange.
15:14Her eyes close.
15:15She sinks into the fresh mana coursing through her, satisfaction spreading across her face.
15:22Father, the covenant has spoken.
15:26I'm ready to receive the Archon's flame!
15:29The crowd stirs with excitement.
15:31Every new Archon's ascension triggers the dragon's resonance.
15:35The resonance releases ambient mana that nourishes every dragon present, pushing them past barriers, sometimes by an entire rank or
15:43more.
15:44Father beams.
15:45The sacred altar is cleared.
15:47Isolde stands at the center of the open circle.
15:50She glances at me, motionless on the sideline, and her lip curls.
15:54Sarah, I understand you're upset about Draven.
15:59But that's no reason to stand in the way of the resonance.
16:04Would you drag the entire clan down with you?
16:07The crowd catches it.
16:08Murmurs swell.
16:10Your highness, settle your quarrel with the first princess in private.
16:14Don't delay the resonance!
16:15Draven was right.
16:16The second princess can't compare to the first princess.
16:19If it were me, I'd choose the first princess too.
16:22Draven smiles.
16:23Sarah, everyone can see the truth.
16:26I must have been blind to ever stand by you.
16:29Kale's brow furrows.
16:31He shoulders Draven aside, steps in front of me, and gently presses his hands over my ears.
16:36Their words are poison.
16:38Don't let them in.
16:39The weight on my chest lifts.
16:41I give him a real smile, then turn toward Isolde, basking in her victory, and speak calmly.
16:47Islene, you will never be Archie, and the Covenant will not grant you the flame.
16:53If you try, the resonance will destroy your power from the inside out.
16:57A beat of silence.
16:59Then the crowd bursts into laughter.
17:01Draven folds his arms, contempt dripping from every glance.
17:04Who are you to judge the first princess?
17:08If she can't be Archie, who can?
17:10You?
17:11Enough of this nonsense.
17:13Father's expression hardens.
17:16Serafina, step aside.
17:18A flick of the wrist, Manna shoves me and Kale to the edge of the platform.
17:22Isolde locks eyes with me, triumphant.
17:24Watch closely, Sarah.
17:26Watch what centuries of sacrifice look like.
17:30Isolde stands at the heart of the Sacred Altar.
17:32She unleashes her Manna.
17:34A deep hum resonates through the stone.
17:37Power radiates outward.
17:38The ground shudders.
17:42Pillars of golden light converge from every direction.
17:46Ancestral echoes of countless dragon bloodlines answer the call,
17:50weaving together into a thunderous, sky-darkening tide of resonance.
17:55Isolde stands at the center, poised, regal.
17:58Layer upon layer of golden energy knits itself into a breathtaking tapestry.
18:04A net of staggering power.
18:06The clan watches, mesmerized.
18:08The dense Manna begins to disperse, drifting toward every dragon present.
18:13Then, confusion.
18:15Strange. Why can't I absorb any of it?
18:18Same here.
18:20It just passes through me, like it doesn't recognize me.
18:24More voices.
18:26More unease.
18:27Heads turn back toward Isolde on the altar.
18:30She doesn't notice.
18:31Still lost in the moment.
18:33The ritual concludes.
18:34She bows to heaven and earth.
18:36Then raises her voice.
18:38I, Isolet Aurelion, firstborn of the Golden Scale.
18:40Call upon the dragon's re-resonance.
18:43Grant me the Archon's flame.
18:45Silence.
18:46Nothing happens.
18:48Panic flickers across her face.
18:50She prostrates herself, calls out again.
18:53I, Isolet Aurelion, invoke the rite of ascension!
18:59This time, she gets an answer.
19:01From me.
19:02I stand beside Kale, voice steady.
19:05You can kneel until your scales crack.
19:07The answer is no.
19:10Dead silence.
19:11Every pair of eyes in the clan turns to me.
19:14Father thinks I'm sabotaging the ceremony.
19:17Combined with Isolde's failed succession, his rage boils over.
19:21His full dominance aura crashes down, driving me to my knees.
19:26Seraphina.
19:28You have never disappointed me more than today.
19:30I've indulged you in everything.
19:33But this...
19:34This is the clan's future.
19:36And you keep sabotaging it.
19:40Today, I'll discipline you on your mother's behalf.
19:43He raises his hand.
19:44Mana compresses into a force field, hurtling toward my face.
19:48I watch it come, calm.
19:49Draven stands nearby, suddenly anxious.
19:51Sarah, just apologize.
19:53Now.
19:54Do you actually want to get hit?
19:56The blast is anxious.
19:57He flinches.
19:58Self-preservation kicks in and darts to the side without a second thought.
20:02Then Kale launches himself forward.
20:03His eyes shift from silver to pure white.
20:06Slit pupils contract to pinpoints.
20:08Silver scales erupt across his neck and forearms.
20:11A low, guttural hiss tears from his throat.
20:13Half-shifted, he throws himself in front of me and takes the Archon's full-force strike,
20:18head-on.
20:19Blood sprays from his mouth.
20:21Once.
20:21Twice.
20:22Three times.
20:23And he crashes backward into me.
20:24His fingers claw at my arm, trying to push his last scraps of mana into my body.
20:28Kale, truly, completely, for me.
20:32Father sees a serpent openly defy him.
20:34Fury consumes what's left of his restraint.
20:36He begins charging another strike.
20:38In the same breath, I lean down, wrap my arms around Kale, and whisper against his ear.
20:43Don't be afraid.
20:43The Covenant of Flame answers to me.
20:46Father's attack never lands.
20:49A bolt of golden dragon fire descends from the heavens.
20:52Boom.
20:53It hits Father dead on.
20:55Scales to bone, everything scorches black.
20:57But that's only the beginning.
21:00One bolt.
21:01Two.
21:01They hammer down like divine tribulation made personal.
21:05By the end, Father is blasted back into his beast form.
21:10Isolde agapes at me.
21:12Seraphina, what did you do to Father?
21:15I pull my hand from Kale's healed wounds and rise slowly.
21:20Centuries ago, my mother gave her life defending Clan Aurelion against the Dark Horde.
21:25The ancient dragon god Pyracis honored her sacrifice with a divine gift to her bloodline.
21:30I, Seraphina of Aurelion, second princess of Clan Aurelion, hold the right of designation.
21:34Anyone who strikes me will face divine repriotion.
21:37And anyone who harbors malice towards me will never be Archon.
21:40I don't believe you.
21:41You're lying.
21:43You're nothing.
21:44You haven't grown a single rank in centuries.
21:47You designate Archon.
21:49You must have sabotaged me.
21:51Set some trap.
21:52I won't let you get away with this.
21:54She charges at me.
21:55Her flawless features twisting into something feral.
21:59I exhale.
22:01You're no exception.
22:03Bolden dragon fire falls on Isolde.
22:06Her cultivation is nowhere near Father's level.
22:08The bolts chase her across the platform.
22:11Scrambling.
22:12Stumbling.
22:13All dignity stripped away.
22:14The same Clan members who worshipped her moments ago don't dare move an inch.
22:19Sarah, you hid this from me.
22:22If you told me the truth, I wouldn't have done it this way.
22:25I laugh.
22:26Scalding tears roll down.
22:28I wouldn't have what?
22:29I wouldn't have put a blade through my heart?
22:32Derevan, didn't I tell you?
22:34Yes, I can never be Arpen myself.
22:36But bond with me.
22:38Stay faithful.
22:39And on the day I ascend, you would have evolved into a true Leviathan.
22:43Our children would have inherited the Covenant.
22:46But you didn't believe me.
22:47Do you know why you were reborn with me?
22:49Because the moment I died, the bond tore your soul apart with mine.
22:54My death was yours.
22:56You just didn't feel the blade.
22:58Draven stumbles backward.
22:59He looks down at the bond mark on his hand.
23:03The one tying him to Isolde.
23:05The color drains from his face.
23:07A dragon's roar erupts from the sacred altar.
23:10Isolde, scorched, humiliated by divine retribution,
23:15consumed by jealousy over the power I hold,
23:18loses the last thread of reason.
23:21The dormant void taint in her iron scale bloodline ignites.
23:25She shifts into beast form.
23:27Golden scales begin to darken at the edges.
23:30Her eyes bleed from gold to the empty black of the void.
23:33Her dragon form warps, twists, until she looks less like a noble dragon,
23:38and more like something that clawed its way out of an abyss.
23:55She attacks indiscriminately.
23:58Corrupted dragon fire sprays in every direction.
24:01Clan members scatter, screaming.
24:04The sacred altar, once solemn and revered, becomes an inferno.
24:09Father drags himself toward me in beast form.
24:13Tears line his reptilian eyes.
24:16Sarah, please, spare Islet.
24:20This is all my fault.
24:21I was wrong.
24:22I should never have done what I did to you.
24:25But she has trained for centuries.
24:27I can't watch her lose everything.
24:31I look into his eyes.
24:32My mother's last words echo back.
24:35Sarah, I hate him.
24:37You know what the saddest part of my life is?
24:40I can never compete with a ghost.
24:44There is one way to save her power.
24:47Hope flares in his gaze.
24:49Deren is bonded to Islet.
24:51He bears half her karmic burden.
24:53Appoint a Draven.
24:55To save her, you'll need to sacrifice him.
24:57Extract his serpent's core.
24:59Let Islet absorb it completely.
25:01She'll stabilize.
25:05No!
25:06Take my core and I'll never evolve!
25:08Never become a Leviathan!
25:10Sarah, this is revenge!
25:12Father doesn't even glance at him.
25:15Serpent, you swore you'd give everything for Isleth.
25:20Now keep your word.
25:22Father extracts the serpent's core himself.
25:25The moment the fist-sized pulsing black crystal is torn free.
25:29In that instant, Draven seems to age centuries.
25:33He can only watch as Father feeds the core to Isolda.
25:37No!
25:38I've seen enough.
25:40Kale leans against my shoulder, voice low.
25:42Sarah, let's go.
25:44Deep into the night, I lean against the edge of the moonvale hot springs.
25:48A silver serpent glides across the surface toward me.
25:52Kale shifts to human form.
25:54He rests against me, letting my palm wander across his chest.
25:58I study him.
26:00Kale's silver irises glow faintly in the dark.
26:02No calculation in them.
26:04Nothing but feeling.
26:05Deep, bare, bottomless.
26:07The question has been circling since this morning.
26:09We've never met before.
26:10Why does he feel like this about me?
26:13Is it because of my title?
26:14Kale reads the doubt on my face.
26:16This isn't the first time we've met.
26:18His silver scales shimmer.
26:20Memory fragments flow through the bond and into my mind.
26:23A flash.
26:24A finger-length silver snake pinned under the boots of dragon-born boys.
26:29Battered and bleeding.
26:30A younger version of me barges in, plants herself between them, and chases them off with a tongue lashing.
26:37Another flash.
26:37The little silver snake, barely alive, curled in a crack between rocks.
26:42A teenage version of me crouches down.
26:45A wild rabbit.
26:46A handful of berries.
26:48Again and again.
26:49Without knowing it, I saved him more times than I can count.
26:53The last image.
26:54Kale, now in human form, standing at the farthest edge of the crowd, watching me on the sacred altar, about
27:00to begin the soul bond rite with Draven.
27:03The memory breaks off.
27:04My voice comes out rough.
27:06Is this about debt?
27:07Who chose me because I saved you?
27:10It isn't suspicion.
27:11It's fear.
27:12Fear that one day, he'll say what Draven said.
27:15That I chained him with kindness.
27:16I didn't fall in love with you because you saved me.
27:19I was already in love with you.
27:21Everything you did only proved I wasn't wrong.
27:53My heart hammers against my ribs.
27:54He leans in.
27:56Hot spring water laps over both our shoulders.
27:59Silver scale marks glow beneath the surface.
28:02Kale's body temperature rises the instant he presses against me.
28:06Nothing like the cold serpents are known for.
28:08You're warm.
28:10Only when I touch you.
28:12His lips find my collarbone.
28:14Then, a sharp, brief sting.
28:16A silver serpent mark brands itself into my skin.
28:19Nate mark.
28:20I grip the back of his neck and bite down.
28:22A golden dragon scale mark surfaces on his nape.
28:25From this moment, the bond is absolute.
28:28He is mine.
28:29And I am his.
28:30One night of passion.
28:32Serpents aren't that impressive, honestly.
28:34He just flipped me around and wore me out until dawn.
28:37I could barely stand.
28:38The next morning, I haul myself upright.
28:41One hand braced on my lower back and kick Kale in the side.
28:45He blinks up at me, genuinely wounded.
28:48Did I break you?
28:50Satisfied.
28:50Very satisfied.
28:52Kale scrambles up to help me walk.
28:54We barely make it past the sanctum's ward line before I stop.
28:58Someone is crouching outside the barrier.
29:00Draven.
29:01Draven looks years older than yesterday.
29:03His gaze finds the silver mate mark on my collarbone.
29:06His pupils shrink.
29:08His face goes gray.
29:09He stares for a long time before he speaks.
29:11Sarah, I was wrong.
29:13Isoleth and your father, they don't see me as a living thing.
29:18Only you ever treated me as an equal.
29:21Draven thought bonding with the Archons chosen would launch him to the top.
29:24But beyond that Leviathan pearl, he has nothing of value to offer.
29:28They stripped him and threw him aside.
29:31Last night, father's rage needed a target.
29:33He doesn't dare touch me again.
29:35Those dozen bolts of divine dragon fire already hammered him back to beast form.
29:40Provoking me further might annihilate his soul entirely.
29:44But the fury needed somewhere to go.
29:46The daughter he spent years crippling turns out to be the Covenant's bearer.
29:50Everything he built for Isolda.
29:52A joke.
29:53Overnight.
29:53So he turned on Draven.
29:55A mongrog like you is utterly useless.
29:59You're not even fit to be my daughter's pet.
30:02I'm starting to wonder if your little display was a performance you and Serafina arranged together.
30:08Father used a soul siphon on Draven.
30:11Forced his way through layer after layer of memory.
30:14Searching for proof of betrayal.
30:16The process is agony.
30:18He found nothing.
30:19Draven barely survived.
30:21But relief didn't last.
30:23When Isolde awoke and the full humiliation of the day settled in, something in her curdled.
30:28She seized Draven by the throat.
30:30Teeth bared.
30:31You declared your love for me in front of everyone.
30:34And when it mattered, you chose a worthless organ over my life.
30:38Deven Vox, you deserve to rot.
30:43I look at his broken body, feel nothing.
30:45The moment that blade went through my heart, whatever connected us died with me.
30:50Kale speaks for me.
30:51You merely hu-iliated Serafina in public, then abandoned Isoleth when she needed you.
30:58And now you come crawling back?
31:00Drarion, where is your shame?
31:03Killing intent flashes in Draven's eyes.
31:06His body tenses.
31:07Then the realization crashes in.
31:10No serpent's core.
31:11No power.
31:13Just a shell.
31:14He crumbles, pleading.
31:16Seraf, you hold the right of desigonation.
31:18You must be able to break a bond too, right?
31:21Break my bond with Isoleth, and I'll serve alongside the White Spurpent.
31:25As your mate, after everything we had, you'll help me.
31:29I know you will.
31:31Kale's head whips toward me, panic in his eyes.
31:35How adorable.
31:36You actually believe that.
31:41Darren, why would I help you?
31:43I gave you everything.
31:45You wanted her.
31:47I carried your child.
31:49You put a blade through my heart.
31:51I gave you the right to stand on the Sacred Ultra.
31:54You humiliated me in front of my entire clan.
31:57Every.
31:57Single.
31:58One.
31:59The fact that you're still breathing is mercy enough.
32:02The light dies in Draven's eyes.
32:04A long silence.
32:05Then he covers his face, and a strangled sound escapes.
32:08What have I done?
32:09He knows me well enough to know I don't look back.
32:12Draven returns to Isol.
32:13In my last life, I never let anyone in the clan belittle him.
32:17I shielded his pride at every turn.
32:19In public, in private.
32:21Isol doesn't bother with any of that.
32:23She tears him apart in front of everyone.
32:26Strips him down to nothing, whenever the mood strikes.
32:30The clan follows her lead.
32:32They only kneel to whoever holds the leash.
32:36Draven's life now, compared to the one I gave him, worlds apart.
32:41Father summons me to the Sacred Altar.
32:43Before the entire clan, he performs the appropriate gesture.
32:47Forces Isol to lower her head and kneel in front of me.
32:51But her words give everything away.
32:52Sarah, perhaps Father went too far.
32:55But the clan cannot go a single day without an archon.
32:58Would the Covenant let clan Aureon crumble, just to protect you?
33:02Let's set our differences aside.
33:04The clan's survival matters more than either of us.
33:06Not an apology.
33:09A negotiation.
33:10It works on the crowd.
33:12Hesitation ripples through.
33:13Then voices join in.
33:15Your Highness, the last Archic, your mother,
33:17gave her life to protect us from the Dark Horde.
33:20The Dark Horde is growing restless.
33:22Without a new archon, when the wards fall,
33:25we won't survive a single assault.
33:27Please, grant the succession to the First Princess.
33:31I stay silent.
33:33My gaze catches the knowing glance Isolde and Father exchange.
33:37The picture crystallizes.
33:39Father, Mother was right about you.
33:41You have no vision.
33:43You'd do anything to put your first love's daughter on the throne.
33:46Even lie to the entire clan!
33:49Serafina, what are you talking about?
33:51I raise my hand.
33:52The Covenant responds.
33:53Every clan member's mana rank materializes before my eyes.
33:57Laid bare.
33:58Isolde's power is impressive.
34:00Radiant, even.
34:01But she's not the strongest here.
34:03Issa Leith is your arch's chosen.
34:06But Clan Avelion has never chosen its archon by blood.
34:10It has always been by strength.
34:13My mother put you in power to prevent a civil war.
34:16And after all these years, you just couldn't let go.
34:19A voice rings out from the crowd.
34:21Thyra, Copper Scale Dragon.
34:23The only one who never mocked me since the Selection Rite.
34:26She stands straight-backed.
34:29Power should be earned by those who prove it.
34:32Not handed to those born with the right name.
34:34I meet her eyes.
34:36Give a single nod.
34:37Clan Aelion will hold open trial of merit.
34:41Whoever stands last earns the right to rule.
34:44The clan erupts in cheers.
34:46Only Father and Isolde stand pale and still.
34:49That night, Kale clings to me as usual.
34:53He nuzzles his forehead into the curve of my neck.
34:56His nose brushes my jaw.
34:57I sigh, about to pull him closer.
35:00The world lurches.
35:01I sense it instantly.
35:03The ward barrier shattered.
35:05Drake's fire's protective wards were set by my mother,
35:08sealed with a fragment of her own soul.
35:10No dark horde, no matter how powerful, could breach them easily.
35:14Unless someone opened them from the inside.
35:16By the time Kale and I reach the surface, Drake's fire is in chaos.
35:21Dark horde, everywhere.
35:24High-tier beasts rampaging through the clan.
35:26A dragon hatchling is pinned under a beast's clawed foot, seconds from death.
35:31I move without thinking.
35:32One strike, the head rolls.
35:34Warm blood splashes across the hatchling's face.
35:37She throws herself into my arms, sobbing.
35:40Your Highness, I almost died.
35:42Mama and my sister, they led the beasts away to protect me.
35:47I hand her to Kale, tell him to keep her hidden, and run in the direction she pointed.
35:51I arrive to find the mother and sister cornered by a pack of beasts, barely hanging on.
35:57I cut in.
35:59Save one.
36:00Then a second.
36:01A third.
36:03Through the smoke and carnage I spot Phyra.
36:05She's shifted, copper dragon form, leading a small squad in a defensive line, shielding
36:11the elderly, the young, the wounded.
36:13Her commands are sharp.
36:14Her fighting is vicious.
36:16I make a note of her.
36:17By the end, I'm running on fumes.
36:19Then I see them.
36:20Isolde.
36:20Father.
36:21No surprise.
36:22The moment I announced the trial of merit, I felt it through the covenant.
36:25Someone was deliberately weakening the ward barrier.
36:28I knew he'd gamble everything.
36:30Isolde crouches in front of me.
36:32Her arm moves.
36:33A blade punches through my chest.
36:36I cough blood.
36:37Her eyes are fully black now.
36:39Void corruption running deeper than before.
36:41Sarah, so what if you hold the covenant?
36:43Put you in the ground, and the next archon will still be me!
36:47I look down at the sword in my chest.
36:50Then I look up at Isolde.
36:52I smile.
36:53Thank you, sister.
36:54I needed you to do exactly that.
36:57Isolde freezes.
36:59Pain blazes through me, stamped into the soul.
37:02A memory the body never forgets.
37:04I can't stop the trembling.
37:07Father walks to my side.
37:09His voice is almost gentle.
37:10If you weren't the bearer, if you hadn't stood in Isolde's way, I might have let you live.
37:16Pity.
37:17I lift my head.
37:19My voice doesn't waver.
37:21So to kill me, you broke the ward barrier.
37:25Let the dark horde in.
37:29Let your own people die!
37:32Father doesn't blink.
37:33Acceptable losses.
37:34Everything I've done is to give Isolde the flame.
37:40To give the clan a stronger leader.
37:42The weak die to beasts, because they were never meant to survive.
37:47One thrust isn't enough for Isolde.
37:50She snaps.
37:50The blade drives into me again and again, pouring out everything she's held in.
37:55I'm stronger than you!
37:57Why do you get to decide?
37:59I suffered for centuries.
38:01And I was so close.
38:03And you took it all away, with a few words!
38:09Even Drarin.
38:11Her teeth grind harder.
38:13That mongrel said he regretted choosing me.
38:17Said I could never compare to you.
38:21So I took his core.
38:24Let him go ahead and wait for you.
38:27Sarah, the clan's faith belongs to me.
38:31So you have to die!
38:34Behind me, the roar of beasts.
38:37The screams of the dying.
38:38All tangled together.
38:39I look at Isolde.
38:41When the Covenant granted me the right of designation.
38:44It also feared the power would be too concentrated.
38:48So it sealed half my divine power inside you, as your talent.
38:52And it barred me from becoming Archon myself.
38:55If you had truly served the clan.
38:58If you'd held no malice towards me, the succession would have been yours without question.
39:03But you chose the wrong path.
39:05Your suffering wasn't my doing.
39:07It was father's obsession and your own hunger for power.
39:10But you blamed me for all of it.
39:12And now that you've struck me with intent to kill.
39:20The seal is broken.
39:22Isolde.
39:25Your talent was never yours.
39:27It was my power holding you up.
39:30Now it comes home.
39:31The blade buried in my body erupts with golden light.
39:34Isolde tries to release the hilt.
39:36Her hands won't move.
39:37Mana drains from her body.
39:39Torrential.
39:39Unstoppable.
39:40Flooding into mine.
39:41Father, help me.
39:43My power is draining.
39:46I look up at father.
39:48He's always loved Isolde best.
39:50The daughter of the woman who owned his heart.
39:52That devotion never wavered.
39:54Not even now.
39:54He moves to kill me outright.
39:56But in his desperation, he forgets.
39:59Striking me, carries a price.
40:02This time, the covenant shows no mercy.
40:05Golden dragon fire hammers father until his soul disintegrates.
40:10He scatters into nothing before our eyes.
40:13Isolde doesn't have time to grieve.
40:15Every shred of gifted talent has been reclaimed.
40:18Her mana plummets to that of an ordinary dragon.
40:21And behind her, the dark horde circles.
40:24I pull the sword from my chest and walk away.
40:27Isolde finally grasps her situation.
40:29Terror floods her face.
40:30Terra, you can't do this to me!
40:32I'm Isoleth!
40:34I'm the first princess of Clan Arion!
40:36I'm your sister!
40:37You can't abandon me for those!
40:40Scream behind me.
40:41This time, I don't turn around.
40:43I drive out every last beast and rebuild order on Drake's fire.
40:47The hatchling from before runs up and wraps herself around my leg.
40:50Your highness, without you, I'd be an orphan!
40:53Clan members who used to look through me now kneel at my feet.
40:56Your highness, we were blind before.
40:59You drove back the horde.
41:00You saved Dragonspine.
41:02The Archon's crown belongs to you.
41:04I shake my head.
41:05I place the Archon's crown into Thyra's hands.
41:08The one who never mocked me.
41:09The first to stand up for an open trial.
41:11The one who held the line when the dark horde came.
41:14Shielding the weak.
41:15Saving lives while others ran.
41:17I will always protect Clan Arion.
41:19But the Archon's seat was never meant to be inherited by blood.
41:22Power belongs to those who protect, not those who take.
41:25Thyra is the right choice.
41:26I return to the Sanctum, devote myself to cultivation.
41:29With my full divine power restored, my strength surges beyond anything I imagined.
41:34Divine tribulation descends, bolt after bolt, and I weather everyone.
41:38Then, Ascension.
41:39Under the gaze of the entire clan, I shift into my true form.
41:42A complete golden dragon, blazing against the sky.
41:45A silver dragon coils beside me.
41:47Kale, transformed through the bond.
41:49No longer silver serpentine, a silver dragon.
41:52Though his clingy nature hasn't changed one bit.
41:54His voice flows through the bond.
41:56Where you go, I go.
41:57That was the oath.
41:58I tilt my dragon head toward him.
42:00Then hold on tight.
42:01I've heard the Divine Realm has terrible weather.
42:04Two dragons, one gold, one silver, spiral upward and vanish into the clouds.
42:09They never come back.
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