I'm Actually Not Overpowered! - 228 Is That A Dragon In The Sky?
The dragonkin tribe was faced with a burden too heavy to bear.
On one hand, they could choose to fight against the dragons—risking their lives. As for the second option, they could live on the meager resources they had left, hoping to survive the winter.
Based on their observations, both choices boded a tremendous loss for their tribe.
“Our neighboring tribes also face a similar problem of scarcity. Asking them to come to our aid would be dooming their people to the same fate.” Sirius heard their Tribe Leader mutter to herself.
He understood just how weighty the responsibility she was saddled with was—the heavy burden she had to shoulder. Heavy is the head that wears the crown indeed. Still, he needed her to endure.
Everyone needed her to endure.
“The way of our tribe is that of relentless effort. We clawed our way to the top for a reason. We are resilient!” She growled, almost as though convincing herself, more than she was addressing the two warriors kneeling before her.
Sirius knew the foremost problem that plagued his leader, and that was the third option available to their people.
‘Plunder!’
Their tribe was the strongest among the dragonkin in the surrounding region.
Just as humans had various areas of civilization, the dragonkin also had numerous tribes. In fact, one might say that humans got this idea from them.
If it was the will of their leader, they could invade the other tribes and steal their resources. This would ensure their survival, at least to an extent.
‘But that won’t happen.’ Sirius knew the reason behind her decision, and he agreed with it.
The dragonkin race operated based on their pride as warriors, and they shared a deep sense of kinship with every member of their race. Each tribe, though diverse in location and customs, shared solidarity.
In fact, it was commonplace for them to join forces to take down a common enemy.
Not once in their history had they ever turned their fangs on each other, and Sirius knew their leader would never resort to such underhanded tactics—especially with her noble nature. That left yet another option.
“Shall we attack another settlement? The human regions, perhaps?” The Tribe Leader’s voice was sullen, but there was a hint of steel in her voice.
Contrary to popular belief, dragonkin weren’t savages that believed in conquering weaklings. Sure, they considered humans as frail beings, weaker and less evolved in many respects. The humans were however too insignificant to be deemed worthy of attention.
Hence, this was the rationale behind their lack of interest in attacking them.
‘We only battle our equals—like the beastfolk—or those stronger than us.’ Sirius thought to himself.
Killing humans and ravaging their communities would put a stain on their honor. However, now that they have reached this point of desperation, what was the use of honor? Would honor feed them?
“Is it not worth considering, at the very least?” The Tribe Leader’s voice was thick with emotion. It was obvious to Sirius and Lydia that she was uncomfortable with the choice.
No one wanted to go down this route, but perhaps it was the only way.
“Or perhaps not. Haa… humans live quite far from our territory, and we hardly have enough resources as things stand.” Things would have been different had they made up their minds earlier, but it was too late now.
The closest and most guaranteed target was the Dragon Nest. Unfortunately, that brought them back to the initial problem.
“What a truly precarious situa—”
“W-WHAT IS THAT?!”
“A-A DRAGON!”
“A DRAGON IS HEREEEE!!!”
Just before the Tribe Leader of the dragonkin could finish her statement, loud screeches echoed from outside the tent.
The entire area erupted in chaos, as the silhouettes of several dragonkin could be seen running helter-skelter. Frightened screams pierced the air, and the ferocity of the screams indicated the severity of the situation.
“A dragon? Here?!” Sirius’ eyes widened in both shock and fear.
Did he and his team members mess up? Had they accidentally awakened a dragon? Did the dragon follow them back to the camp?
‘But how? I took all precautions!’ He broke into cold sweat, glancing anxiously at Lydia.
His lover also had the same expression as him—shock, disbelief and fright.
“I-I have to see for myself! Lydia, stay here with the leader!” Sirius ordered, swiftly rising to his feet in a hurry.
“I’m coming wi—”
“Stay here! That’s an order!”
He marched on resolutely, refusing to take another look at his distressed lover, or at the shaken Tribe Leader. Sirius emerged from the tent and raised his eyes to the sky.
Several dragonkin were already out in the open—all with their various weapons ready. Some donned Magic Items, ready to fight till their last breath to protect themselves from the monster hovering above their heads.
“I-It’s big!” Sirius found himself remarking in amazement and shock.
This dragon was much larger than the largest he sighted in the Dragon Nest. It had to be a very powerful adult male for sure!
It was dark, so only its massive silhouette could be seen in the night sky as it circled the camp. Sirius found himself gulping nervously, as he watched the looming figure draw closer.
‘If we join hands, we can manage to subdue it, but at what cost?’ Sirius didn’t want to imagine the number of casualties they would suffer at the hands of this obviously powerful dragon.
Dragonkin could sprout wings and fly, but their aerial ability paled in comparison to an actual dragon. In addition, with the dragon possessing the advantage of surprise, they hadn’t prepared an appropriate defense strategy for dealing with such a frightening opponent.
To put it plainly, they were screwed!
“Damn it! Is this my fault?” Sirius sprouted his wings and readied himself for combat.
He swiftly instructed the guards and warriors around to assume battle formation, concentrating his efforts on ensuring the camp of their leader was well fortified.
pαndα-noνɐ1,сoМ
His lover was in the tent as well. As much as he loved his people and cherished their tribe, he wanted Lydia to survive this assault, at the very least.
That was why he utilized his authority as her superior to make her stay put.
‘Anything for you, Lydia!’
>WHOOOOOSOSSSHHHHHH<
The wind around parted, and Sirius could feel an immense pressure surging as the dragon drew closer. A flap of its wings sent huge gusts of wind swirling around. A few more flaps, and their finely made tents would be uprooted.
As it closed in on them, Sirius could see more of its features, and he was quite shocked by how different the monstrosity appeared compared to others of its kind.
For one, its body had the gleaming glow of metal, and it had smooth skin, rather than scales. Blue energy warbled at certain joints and areas across the dragon, and it seemed odd in general.
Regardless of these differences though, Sirius—as well as his fellow warriors—concluded that it was a dragon. Thus…
“Get ready, everyone!”
It needed to be eliminated!
“THAT’S QUITE ENOUGH!” A voice suddenly boomed from atop the dragon.
It contained such authority that even Sirius froze for a few seconds, practically flinching due to the raw power the voice exuded. Both fear and amazement assailed him.
‘I-is this a Skill? This dragon is more dangerous than I thought!’
The most surprising thing about the voice was that it didn’t seem like it came from the dragon itself. No, it felt like the voice emanated from some other being. It was enough to cause the mighty Sirius to reconsider assault.
“DO NOT ENGAGE, IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIVES. I HAVE NOT COME TO FIGHT YOU.”
Sirius had a serious inclination to believe those words, thus he ordered his men to be on standby.
‘A dragon wouldn’t bother reasoning with us, considering how they consider dragonkin inferior to them in all ways.’
Besides, if this dragon had any intention of attacking, it would have simply rained down fire and Magic from its superior vantage point—the sky.
Not only would his people have been caught by surprise, but even if they wanted to retaliate, it would be impossible to launch a successful attack due to the immense distance.
Ultimately, by not attacking when it had the element of surprise, as well as by descending, it was eliminating the glaring advantages it already possessed. Besides, something about the voice that spoke to him made it convincing to believe it came in peace.
Thus, the dragonkin fanned out, creating a massive circle at the center.
The dragon safely landed on the ground. Fortunately, there were no surrounding tents for its massive feet to trample upon.
‘I-It really is massive, and strange-looking.’ Sirius thought, as he observed the majestic form of the beast as it settled.
However, more intriguing than the beast—well, in a certain respect—were the two entities who stood atop it.
They were humans—one a dark-haired male, while the other was a young female with crimson hair.
They both seemed like warriors, hardened and fearless, in fact the male directly stared Sirius in the eye. He had a dangerous smile on his face, sending an instant chill down the warrior’s spine.
Something about this young man, this human, seemed deadly. And it wasn’t just the fact that he was casually standing atop such a massive dragon.
“I will only say this once, so listen carefully.” Once the male human spoke, Sirius realized he was the one with the imposing voice from earlier.
More dread filled his heart as he listened to the next words of the young man.
“Take me to your leader.”
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