Near the opposite edge of the Beast Forest, where travelers coming from Lionel usually passed through when leaving the forest, there was a thriving village inhabited by beast kin.
The occupants were the children of the Beast Goddess.
They possessed forms that were part human and part beast, resembling creatures of different species.
Daina, a fox demon, gently rose from her bed, which was mostly made of plants and clay.
She had striking, catlike eyes with vertically slit pupils and vibrant brown irises.
Two fox-like ears protruded from the top of her hair.
“Kyle,” she called in a soft, gentle voice.
A middle-aged man rushed inside and bowed before speaking respectfully.
“Greetings, Blessed of the Goddess.” Two sharp teeth, akin to those of a snake-type beast, revealed themselves when he spoke.
If one listened carefully, they could hear a faint hissing sound in his voice.
“I just received a message from the Goddess, and I’m going to need your help in a few days,” she said, her tone carrying more of a request than an order.
Kyle wasn’t surprised to hear that she had received a message from the Beast Goddess.
She wasn’t called Blessed for nothing.
The Goddess had even gone as far as granting her an Aspect.
Eric woke up after a whole day of rest, his senses passively feeding him information about his surroundings.
This time, he didn’t activate them fully, wanting to prevent another backlash from probing powerful beings.
Then he felt a presence beside him.
It was the familiar soul of the Mistress.
Eric turned and bowed, expecting to see the familiar sight of the massive dragon.
Instead, he was shocked to find a beautiful middle-aged woman standing before him.
She had bright blue hair and the characteristic golden eyes of a dragon.
“How do you feel, child?
Having fun with your new body?” Eric nodded absentmindedly, still confused by her human form.
She smiled knowingly and decided to clear up his confusion so they could get down to business.
“Don’t worry about my form.
I am a thousand-year-old dragon.
Such transformations are a minor matter.” Eric stared at the Mistress, unconvinced.
You don’t look a day older than thirty, he thought, deciding not to say it aloud for fear of offending her.
She smiled, deciding not to tell the human kid that she could hear his thoughts loud and clear.
She didn’t want to make the atmosphere awkward for him.
“Do you know what’s better than having a powerful body?” she asked.
Eric thought about what to say, but nothing came to mind, so he simply shook his head.
She gestured for him to sit, then materialized a chair from static electricity for herself, leaving Eric to sit on the floor.
It was then that Eric noticed he was naked.
The dark cloth the wolf had made for him must have been destroyed in the explosion.
Before he could complain, the shadows around him rippled, and a new set of clothes formed around his body.
It was as if she had anticipated his question and ordered the wolf to clothe him.
Eric decided to be very careful with his thoughts in front of this dragon.
Deep within a forest filled with wild beasts and harrowing plants, one of its rulers, the great Mistress of Storms, took on a human form and sat down to teach an Awakened child, like a mother teaching her own.
Even if the most honest man witnessed such a spectacle and reported it to his kingdom, no one would believe him.
Eric stared at the dragon, waiting silently for her to speak.
“If I may ask, why do you want to become stronger?” she asked.
Eric wanted to answer instantly.
Such a simple question—anyone could give an answer.
But when he searched for a reasonable one, he found nothing.
There was no noteworthy reason he could speak of.
Yes, he had dreamed of wielding supernatural powers and doing cool and dangerous things, but that was merely youthful curiosity.
He had never possessed a profound ambition worth speaking of.
But then he remembered how his sister had been taken away from him, and he decided what to say.
“To protect those I care about,” he answered.
Amused, the Mistress asked, “Oh?
So, if you had everything you ever wanted and your family was safe, would you stop cultivating then?” Eric shook his head.
“I might be young and naive, but the few days I spent outside my home have taught me that the world is never safe.
You might be minding your own business and accidentally come across something you’re not supposed to see, only to be killed because someone wants to silence you.
You might even be killed by the residual effects of a battle that has nothing to do with you, and no one will bat an eye because you’re just a nobody.” The dragon was slightly surprised by his mindset, but she had encountered personalities far more extreme than his.
She conjured a sword made of electricity and held it before Eric.
“This is a sword.
Its primary purpose is destruction, yet a city cannot stand without weapons.
Do you know why?” Eric nodded.
“Because whenever someone builds something, there will always be another who desires to take it, destroy it, or claim it as their own.” The Mistress smiled.
“Exactly.
Creation gives birth to desire, and desire gives birth to conflict.
That is the nature of the world.” She looked at the sword in her hand before continuing.
“Do not misunderstand me, Eric.
Strength does not make the world peaceful.
Sometimes, it is the very thing that creates conflict.
But without strength, you have no choice when conflict finds you.” Eric remained silent, carefully listening to every word.
“You want to become strong to protect those you care about.
That is admirable.
But protection is not merely standing between someone and danger.
Sometimes, it means becoming powerful enough that danger thinks twice before approaching them.” The Mistress’s expression became slightly more serious.
“You know, beasts build things too.
Before my mate ruled this place, this forest was nothing more than a death zone filled with corpses and negative energy.
He did not simply destroy what was here.
He built something new upon its ruins.” She gestured toward the vast forest surrounding them.
“Everything you see here—the territories, the villages, the order among the beasts—exists because someone was strong enough to create it and strong enough to defend it.” Eric looked around the forest, his expression gradually changing.
For the first time, he began to understand.
Strength was not merely about defeating enemies.
It was also about having the power to protect what you created, what you loved, and perhaps even the life you wished to live.