Valerian, The Legendary

The dragon chuckled and said, “Forget it. That is the story after you have passed the trial. But first, I am interested in the vial of blood in your hand.”

Valerian replied, “Oh, this? So I filled a vial of infected dragon blood and channeled the missing six attributes through it. Although I was as skeptical at first, the conjecture played in my favor. All the books define dragons as creatures created by sheer and pure magic. So, to cure the infection in the blood of Sir Gladis, I came up with the idea of restoring the original composition of the blood.

Since the blood and bones of a dragon are made of magic, their blood must be made of magic too. Simply looking at the problem, Gladis suffers from an overdose of the darkness element. So I just countered it with light at first. Then I thought of the various restrictions this might bring out for Gladis, so I poured in all the other element mana, and the blood turned bright gray.”

The dragon nodded and said, ‘Indeed, it turned the color of the natural dragon. However, what if I told you that a dragon’s body would never expect mana from an external source? How do you plan to solve that?”

Valerian was surprised, but thinking of the situation, he mumbled, “External methods cannot exercise this cure, and eight can the blood be infused.”

The verdant green dragon smiled and said, “You can think all you want.”

Valerian thought but suddenly realized that the dragon had yet to tell him anything, so the young child asked, “Old sir, please tell me about yourself?”

The old dragon said, “I am Sophos. The Medicus of the Dragon Kingdom. Now, back to the question.”

.....

Valerian returned to his thoughts and said, “This cure cannot be administered without suffering pain, Sir. However, I can make it less painful if the administrator is the inflicted person himself.”

Sophos nodded and said, “Go on.”

Valerian said, “If Gladis can channel the mana from his core throughout his body at a steady pace, he might be able to lessen the pain and gradually achieve complete health.”

Sophos did not react for a few minutes and said, “It is indeed possible and better than any external intervention. But the risk of an even greater injury is still present. You understand it can easily cause an imbalance in the elemental attributes.”

Valerian nodded and said, “Yes, but as a dragon, Gladis must have a high sensitivity to his body and the mana channeling inside him. So if he feels that the pain inside his body is reaching a level where he can explode, he must stop. And to lessen the risk, he can focus on the small injuries first and then deal with the big cuts.”

Sophos nodded and said, “Very well put up. Indeed the blood of the Magnus family is flowing through talented veins.”

Valerian scratched the back of his head. He did not know how to accept this compliment and said, “Sir, would you like to come along and help me treat him?”

Sophos nodded, and they both moved through the woods, heading toward Gladis. On the way, Valerian asked, “Sir, can you give me a hint? Who was my grandmother?”

Sophos replied, “Child, why do you talk as if she no longer exists?”

Valerian was surprised and then said in a low voice, “My parents do not exist, so how can my grandmother exist?”

Sophos shook his big head and replied, “I see. Did your mother not leave anything behind for you?”

Valerian nodded and told him about the letter. Sophos asked him to tell what the letter’s content was, and Valerian feeling an inexplicable trust towards this old dragon, told him everything. Sophos chuckled and said, “Well, the saintess Misericordia you must look for is your grandmother. She was a follower of the temple of mercy. Have you heard of them?”

Valerian was surprised but nodded and said, “The temple of mercy is an active group of people who believe that actions of mercy will get them closer to the Primus and a good afterlife.”

Sophos nodded and said, “Good. I will tell you her story after you have climbed the throne.”

Valerian nodded, and they approached Gladis.

...

“Shit, shit, shit...” Cupido said while freaking out. Her long tail and slender body were dynamic mappings and scaling the summit. She was utterly freaked out at the solution Valerian had come up with.

Gale looked at the sky and said, “Cupido, can you stop flailing your tail in my face? I am about to lose my shit.”

Cupido stopped, but then she stood before Gale and asked, “Did you see his performance> If he is not a genius, then who is?”

Gale chuckled and said, “Oh, weren’t you the one who said you wanted to shred him to pieces?”

The green dragon took three steps back and began spitting on the ground as she exclaimed, “Oh, I am such a fool. I am a fool. Your majesty, please punish me.”

She was agitated and did not know how to vent her energy, and Fortuna said, “Cupido, I will forbid you from meeting Gladis if you do not stop moving now.”

Cupido was shocked, and her body froze at a spot. Gladis was her brother, and she could not stay away from him. This was torture for her. So, she stood behind Arma, mumbling things under her breath. Gale said, “Nicely handled, Yoru Majesty.”

Arma said, “I am still amazed how this guy can figure all this out so quickly. I mean, he is a human, and his age is another thing that shocks you.”

Fortuna said, “Oh, he has been shocking us for quite some time now. I want to see his surprise when he gets to climb the mountain.”

Gale glanced at her Queen and said, “Your Majesty, I see that you are quite sadistic when it comes to him.”

Fortuna said, “You do not know how he teased me in my youth.”

Arma sighed and said, “Your Majesty, you are still in your youth.”

The young Queen snorted and said, “Whatever. Let us watch.”

...

Valerian and Sophos reached Gladis, and the young man said, “Sir Gladis, I have good news for you.”

Gladis looked at the young man but was surprised by the presence of the old dragon. He spoke with a revered tone, “Greetings Elder Sophos.”

Sophos replied in kind, too, “Greetings, Young Gladis. Before you ask me any questions, listen to the good news first.”

Gladis nodded and looked at Valerian, who showed him the glass vial and said, “This is your blood.”

Gladis was surprised. He said, “Kid, are you trying to fool me with this? My blood has long turned dark and murky. How can it have such brilliant luster and mana?”

Valerian smiled and said, “Sir, this is the good news. I found a cure for your situation.”

This sentence shocked Gladis. He thought Valerian was mocking him. He was about to lose his temper when he saw Sophos looking at him. Gladis calmed down. He knew that Sophos was the most righteous dragon in the clan and would never lie to anyone.

Initially, he sought out the old dragon after getting injured. Sophos was grieving the loss of his son and spent most of his time inside his cavern. However, he still did not send away any patients.

Gladis recalled that the wise dragon told him his situation could not be cured. So, how can Valerian find a cure? He looked at the old dragon in askance, and the latter said, “Valerian has found a way. It is true. Listen to him.”

Gladis nodded and looked at Valerian eagerly. The young man told him the method and said, “Sir Gladis, please focus on the blood around the shallow wound on your body.”

Gladis nodded and did as instructed. Valerian watched the process and, at the same time, recorded every minute change in the black dragon’s body. The scales around the wound had gained some luster. Gladis was a dragon, so unlike Valerian’s systematic infusion, he could infuse all the elements simultaneously.

Valerian smiled and said, “This is good progress, the wound is completely healed, and the scales also show some luster.”

Gladis was excited and said, “Kid, thank you.”

He bowed his head deeply to express his gratitude. Valerian was embarrassed. This was a dragon general. He said, “I only did what a good human should do. Please raise your head, sir.”

Gladis raised his head, and Sophos said, “Young Magnus, if you do not mind. Spend the night here, and take a rest. You must have been exhausted, and in the morning, I will take you to the Throne Mountain.”

Valerian was confused and said, “Old Sir, I have yet to face the trial from Five Guardians.”

Sophos spoke in a tone that seemed to be smiling, “There are eight dragon guardians. But three of them do not present trials. They only watch over the Dragon Temples on the three continents. They are humans who are called Guardians of the order, the high priests.

As for the last one, that would be me, Sophos, the guardian of Medicine. I am responsible for curing any ailments my kin must face. By fixing Gladis, whom I failed to help, you have passed my trial too. The only thing left for you to do is to climb the mountain and rectify your problem.”

Valerian was surprised but then nodded. He looked at the horizon and could see the towering mountain where the answer to his questions lay.