This was the talent of an earth dragon.
There were a few different paths that their ancestors had taken, but few were able to properly thrive.
After all, the earth dragon bloodline was the thinnest of them all.
Other dragons came into being through various magical means. Those who evolved did so mystically and became beings far beyond their original stations.
Earth dragons were simply evolved lizards.
They could fly, but they didn't have wings like their peers. They were massive, but they were shaped like lizards with draconic features rather than true dragons.
Their species had always been discriminated against. They rarely gained access to resources, and since they didn't have a powerful ancestral bloodline in their heritage at all, they weren't able to harness the same talent that the other dragons had.
Hell, even the common fire dragons and water dragons had some sort of lineage, even if it wasn't powerful. They were the only ones that started at such a low threshold.
Draga, the Mountain God, was a unique case.
He grew up in the mountains alone, unaware of how weak his bloodline was.
No, rather, he didn't even know what bloodline was since he didn't have any ancestral memories supporting him.
He was forced to find out how to survive. And, since he was unaware that being a dragon was something special, he formed a different perspective on their existence than anyone else.
Draga never prioritized magic. The creatures around him only had their inherent skills, so he focused on his own.
It took a while to find them. Since mana didn't respond well when expelled, he couldn't mimic the ranged attacks of the creatures he saw.
But, what about his physical strength?
As he continued to train, his strength grew exponentially. He was able to rule the mountain with it, and he was able to expand his domain beyond it.
The mana in Draga's body stopped resisting him.
Though it still couldn't be emitted properly, it sunk into his flesh and bones and made his body infinitely stronger.
By the end of his reign, he could easily pluck stars out of the sky. Even other Supreme Gods had to be wary of him.
Once he went out into the world and saw how it functioned, he created an empire for himself where earth dragons could feel at home.
There was just one problem.
He was infertile.
His body lost its reproductive capabilities when it started being hardened by mana. His techniques were important for earth dragons, but at the same time, they were detrimental towards their population.
It was a technique that couldn't be widespread. Without descendants, Draga passed his skills on to disciples who chose to enter the same path he did.
And as his life continued, Draga focused his efforts on finding a way to make all earth dragons prosper.
He wanted to create a blood lineage that could promote them to the same starting line as their peers.
Perhaps that was what alerted the other dragon clans.
They saw him as a barbarian. He was uncouth and came from a place outside of draconic society, so he was nothing more than an animal to the Holy Clan equivalents of the time.
Watching him gain influence was one thing. He didn't intrude in their territory, so they didn't bother with him.
But once he became a threat? Once he started trying to change the society they created?
Naturally, he had to be exterminated.
Draga and his apprentices were all slaughtered together to ensure that his legacy could never make its way into the world again.
Earth dragons were left without a leader and forced to return to the kingdom that would later become Arulion, and Draga's story became a fairy tale that wasn't even told in the current day.
Melania had been given his bloodline because it was the strongest earth dragon lineage to ever exist.
But, as soon as she finished digesting it, she was made aware of the consequences.
She had to make the conscious choice of whether she wanted to follow his path or not.
Luckily, until she figured out what she wanted to do, her natural strength talent as an earth dragon would support her.
The hole she made in the wall was an extreme shock to both August and Valerie.
"Melania…?" August said, frowning slightly.
He didn't understand what had happened, but he remained calm since all of this was simulated by his father.
Melania turned around with a curious look on her face.
"Yeah? What's up?"
She acted like nothing major happened. She still remembered every second of the past two years she'd spent on the mountain, but she immediately realized that no time at all had passed in the real world.
Adapting was something she'd become used to through her circumstances. Even if it was something on this level, she was able to play it off and keep her mind stable.
August was even more confused after hearing her casual tone.
She seemed to be fine, but how was she able to produce that kind of power?
From what he'd seen, Melania was more of a smart person than a strong one.
Clearly, he had underestimated her severely.
Seeing the two of them look at her strangely, unable to find a way to breach the subject, Melania smiled awkwardly.
"Well, I guess I got some benefits from that," she said, glancing over at the chunks of rock that used to be her cocoon.
August and Valerie could only nod and accept it.
Valerie was positively stunned.
She had been looking down on Melania. It didn't take much for her to admit that.
However, was she always this powerful, or did she have more talent than Valerie had ever expected?
It seemed she had to reconsider her previous views.
And, now that Melania had shown her such power, she had to start seeing the girl as competition, just as she saw August, Lucas, and Ophelia.
It was a bit easier for August, since he knew what his dad could do.
Melania saying she benefitted meant that Damien had done something and she had been rewarded. If that was the case, then her strength didn't need to be explained.
The more concerning part was that Damien never gave things to people easily.
For Melania to see such an immediate increase in her strength meant she'd done something worthy of such a reward.
If August knew that her current strength was only a byproduct of her trial…perhaps he'd never be able to lift his jaw off of the floor again.
Nevertheless, Melania didn't give them much time to think about it and realize that there were more than a few things wrong with her vague answer.
"What happened while I was trapped? Did you guys find any clues?"
"Ah…"
August nodded, accepting her redirection.
"There was a clue inside the Minotaur's horn. When the Furies died, it appeared and showed us a map that leads to the ocean again. This time, it's probably underwater instead of just on the pier," he said.
"But, I think I've found something else. If I try to read my dad's thought process, then there should be a shortcut somewhere. I've been looking around the cavern walls, but I haven't found it yet."
"As for me," Valerie chimed in, "I also just escaped a cocoon, so…"
Melania nodded. It was an easy situation to understand, especially since it hadn't changed much since her most recent memories in the real world.
"If it's not on the walls, then why don't we see what's beyond them?" She suggested.
"Pardon?"
"I mean, can't I just destroy them? It doesn't hurt to try, right?"
Melania's thoughts had definitely been influenced by her experiences. She still had her wisdom, of course, but she wasn't averse to using brutish methods anymore.
And, if August was being completely honest…
"That's probably for the best."
Melania seemed…different now. She seemed more confident in herself, and that made August more confident in her.
Their attempts to be intuitive hadn't reaped any results.
So, it wasn't bad to try another solution before they moved on, was it?
This was the talent of an earth dragon.
There were a few different paths that their ancestors had taken, but few were able to properly thrive.
After all, the earth dragon bloodline was the thinnest of them all.
Other dragons came into being through various magical means. Those who evolved did so mystically and became beings far beyond their original stations.
Earth dragons were simply evolved lizards.
They could fly, but they didn't have wings like their peers. They were massive, but they were shaped like lizards with draconic features rather than true dragons.
Their species had always been discriminated against. They rarely gained access to resources, and since they didn't have a powerful ancestral bloodline in their heritage at all, they weren't able to harness the same talent that the other dragons had.
Hell, even the common fire dragons and water dragons had some sort of lineage, even if it wasn't powerful. They were the only ones that started at such a low threshold.
Draga, the Mountain God, was a unique case.
He grew up in the mountains alone, unaware of how weak his bloodline was.
No, rather, he didn't even know what bloodline was since he didn't have any ancestral memories supporting him.
He was forced to find out how to survive. And, since he was unaware that being a dragon was something special, he formed a different perspective on their existence than anyone else.
Draga never prioritized magic. The creatures around him only had their inherent skills, so he focused on his own.
It took a while to find them. Since mana didn't respond well when expelled, he couldn't mimic the ranged attacks of the creatures he saw.
But, what about his physical strength?
As he continued to train, his strength grew exponentially. He was able to rule the mountain with it, and he was able to expand his domain beyond it.
The mana in Draga's body stopped resisting him.
Though it still couldn't be emitted properly, it sunk into his flesh and bones and made his body infinitely stronger.
By the end of his reign, he could easily pluck stars out of the sky. Even other Supreme Gods had to be wary of him.
Once he went out into the world and saw how it functioned, he created an empire for himself where earth dragons could feel at home.
There was just one problem.
He was infertile.
His body lost its reproductive capabilities when it started being hardened by mana. His techniques were important for earth dragons, but at the same time, they were detrimental towards their population.
It was a technique that couldn't be widespread. Without descendants, Draga passed his skills on to disciples who chose to enter the same path he did.
And as his life continued, Draga focused his efforts on finding a way to make all earth dragons prosper.
He wanted to create a blood lineage that could promote them to the same starting line as their peers.
Perhaps that was what alerted the other dragon clans.
They saw him as a barbarian. He was uncouth and came from a place outside of draconic society, so he was nothing more than an animal to the Holy Clan equivalents of the time.
Watching him gain influence was one thing. He didn't intrude in their territory, so they didn't bother with him.
But once he became a threat? Once he started trying to change the society they created?
Naturally, he had to be exterminated.
Draga and his apprentices were all slaughtered together to ensure that his legacy could never make its way into the world again.
Earth dragons were left without a leader and forced to return to the kingdom that would later become Arulion, and Draga's story became a fairy tale that wasn't even told in the current day.
Melania had been given his bloodline because it was the strongest earth dragon lineage to ever exist.
But, as soon as she finished digesting it, she was made aware of the consequences.
She had to make the conscious choice of whether she wanted to follow his path or not.
Luckily, until she figured out what she wanted to do, her natural strength talent as an earth dragon would support her.
The hole she made in the wall was an extreme shock to both August and Valerie.
"Melania…?" August said, frowning slightly.
He didn't understand what had happened, but he remained calm since all of this was simulated by his father.
Melania turned around with a curious look on her face.
"Yeah? What's up?"
She acted like nothing major happened. She still remembered every second of the past two years she'd spent on the mountain, but she immediately realized that no time at all had passed in the real world.
Adapting was something she'd become used to through her circumstances. Even if it was something on this level, she was able to play it off and keep her mind stable.
August was even more confused after hearing her casual tone.
She seemed to be fine, but how was she able to produce that kind of power?
From what he'd seen, Melania was more of a smart person than a strong one.
Clearly, he had underestimated her severely.
Seeing the two of them look at her strangely, unable to find a way to breach the subject, Melania smiled awkwardly.
"Well, I guess I got some benefits from that," she said, glancing over at the chunks of rock that used to be her cocoon.
August and Valerie could only nod and accept it.
Valerie was positively stunned.
She had been looking down on Melania. It didn't take much for her to admit that.
However, was she always this powerful, or did she have more talent than Valerie had ever expected?
It seemed she had to reconsider her previous views.
And, now that Melania had shown her such power, she had to start seeing the girl as competition, just as she saw August, Lucas, and Ophelia.
It was a bit easier for August, since he knew what his dad could do.
Melania saying she benefitted meant that Damien had done something and she had been rewarded. If that was the case, then her strength didn't need to be explained.
The more concerning part was that Damien never gave things to people easily.
For Melania to see such an immediate increase in her strength meant she'd done something worthy of such a reward.
If August knew that her current strength was only a byproduct of her trial…perhaps he'd never be able to lift his jaw off of the floor again.
Nevertheless, Melania didn't give them much time to think about it and realize that there were more than a few things wrong with her vague answer.
"What happened while I was trapped? Did you guys find any clues?"
"Ah…"
August nodded, accepting her redirection.
"There was a clue inside the Minotaur's horn. When the Furies died, it appeared and showed us a map that leads to the ocean again. This time, it's probably underwater instead of just on the pier," he said.
"But, I think I've found something else. If I try to read my dad's thought process, then there should be a shortcut somewhere. I've been looking around the cavern walls, but I haven't found it yet."
"As for me," Valerie chimed in, "I also just escaped a cocoon, so…"
Melania nodded. It was an easy situation to understand, especially since it hadn't changed much since her most recent memories in the real world.
"If it's not on the walls, then why don't we see what's beyond them?" She suggested.
"Pardon?"
"I mean, can't I just destroy them? It doesn't hurt to try, right?"
Melania's thoughts had definitely been influenced by her experiences. She still had her wisdom, of course, but she wasn't averse to using brutish methods anymore.
And, if August was being completely honest…
"That's probably for the best."
Melania seemed…different now. She seemed more confident in herself, and that made August more confident in her.
Their attempts to be intuitive hadn't reaped any results.
So, it wasn't bad to try another solution before they moved on, was it?
