A Deal Between Lords

Thick black clouds suddenly gathered on top of the Eroded Peaks, and thunder rumbled through them ...

Simultaneously, the earth began to shake heavily and big chunks of the nearby mountains started falling down ...

As a result, multiple geysers erupted throughout the Eroded Peaks, killing hundreds of Elite and weaker Beasts by boiling them to death in mere seconds ...

Every nearby Beast and Dragon felt absolute terror and impending doom; it was as if Death itself was approaching them.

And all of them ran as far as they could from the heart of the Domain ...

All of this was the result of the Dragon Lord unleashing his Killing Intent on the Archivist for uttering the name of that damned Era, The Dracocide Era ...

The Dracocide Era, according to Humanoids, or The Age of Torment, according to Dragons, was an Era where humans discovered a new type of Magic which they called "Scales Magic" ...

Humans discovered that by sacrificing the Scales of Dragons, they were able to gain unfathomable powers. Powers ranging from increasing their life span to being able to warp Reality itself, all depending on how strong the Dragon was.

As soon as that information spread, Dragon Scales became the most expensive resource in the world.

As a result, hunters and adventurers from all over the world embarked on ruthless expeditions to hunt down and slaughter the Dragons mercilessly for their scales ...

As humans advanced further in Scales Magic, a Royal Light Mage discovered an even better way to harness the power of the Scales ...

"So instead of killing Dragons to take their scales, you are suggesting that we skin them alive and then heal them so they can regrow more Scales, and keep repeating this process? I like the sound of that" Said an Emperor of a forgotten Empire.

As time passed, not only hunters killed Dragons, but entire Kingdoms and Empires solely dedicated all their focus to that matter.

And just like that, the skies that were once filled with majestic Dragons became desolate and devoid of their presence, and the once-thriving dragon race was reduced to mere remnants ...

The most clever among the dragons quickly decided to retreat to the most remote and inaccessible corners of the world, hiding themselves from the relentless onslaught.

The less fortunate Dragons, however .....

Let's just say that some of these Dragons faced a fate too gruesome to mention.

Ironically, the Dracocide Era ended because of that very discovery ...

As the number of Dragons dwindled, a colossal world war erupted over the remaining few.

In the chaos, humanity turned on itself, forgetting about the Dragons entirely.

The relentless fighting escalated until the Armageddon of that Era happened, ending it and announcing the beginning of a new Era, The Draconic Retribution Era ...

And humanity, once again, had to start from scratch ...

The Draconic Retribution Era was an Era in which, for the first time ever, all the human Lords united for a cause; they had to prevent the extinction of the human race ...

But that's a tale for another day.

The Archivist showed no reaction to the Dragon Lord's fit of rage; he continued speaking as if nothing was happening

"Only fools don't learn from the past, Oh Ancient Lord"

The Dragon Lord's eyes were quivering with anger ...

Right now, he wanted to obliterate the Archivist

Luckily, he was smarter than acting upon his feelings. He also knew that ...

'The Hegemon is right ...'

It took a while for the Dragon Lord to calm down, and after he did, he began to think rationally about everything the Archivist said

First of all, he really needed more Kings, this matter has been agonizing him for centuries ...

'To ensure the survival of the Kin'

And not just that

'If more Kings emerged, there's a high possibility that the old Kings will feel threatened, thus, they will strive to reclaim their dominance'

His eyes gleamed

'A new Dragon Lord might emerge'

After the Dragon Lord concluded that, he realized that Pride was not really a matter of concern right now ...

'It is indeed so measly to even be mentioned in such a situation'

He looked at the Archivist and asked in a more composed tone

"What is it that you have to offer?".

The Archivist waved his hand, and a book appeared floating beside him

"Teach the methods in this book to your most promising Royal Dragons.

With the help of these methods and the dedication of the Royals, they might evolve and become King Level Beings"

At this point, the deal was almost sealed for the Dragon Lord ...

'Whatever needs to be done wouldn't be worth more than empowering the kin!'

Without moving his eyes from the book, The Dragon Lord asked

"What do you want in return?"

"I want to locate an individual"

" ... Elaborate"

The Archivist waved his hand again, making the book disappear and forcing the Dragon Lord to look at him, though he had an annoyed expression ...

"The individual's age should be around two years old right now, but despite his age, he should be both smart and strong enough to stand out among his peers"

"Which Kingdom"

The Archivist replied nonchalantly

"I don't know"

When the Dragon Lord heard that, he was barely able to hold back his laughter

"Don't know? You want to search the entirety of Dracarion?"

For a moment, The Archivist felt amused ...

Dracarion was the name of the world during The Draconic Retribution Era

'So this is his way of getting back at me after I mentioned The Dracocide Era'

'Funny Dragon'

He took note of that but didn't comment on it, and he continued speaking as normal

"I'm not in a hurry"

In all honesty, The Dragon Lord didn't care all that much about all these details; he found it troublesome

'As long as I'm getting the book, nothing else matters'

'I won't be the one searching any way'

The Archivist added

"The individual should be able to recognize the name (Sal The Summoning Lord). Use this piece of information to discern him from others"

The Dragon Lord nodded

"I accept your offer. However, it's going to take years, and I want to be paid upfront"

"Not an issue"

And just like that, the Deal between the Lords was sealed.

The Archivist was quite pleased with the results ...

He chose the Dragon Lord for this phase for multiple reasons

'Firstly, if I don't involve him now, then it'll be very difficult to involve him later'

The Dragon Lord was an important figure in the world; he's one of the epitomes of the Beast Race.

Because of that, his participation in The Archivist's Ploy was a key point.

'Second, The Draconic Domain has gotten stale'

Things here haven't changed for centuries, The Dragon Lord probably can't differentiate between the year 1500 and the year 2000 because it has all been the very same, and that needed to change ...

'Third, The Dragon Lord is one of the very few Lords who can get the task done without directly interfering'

A couple of millennia ago, The Dragon Lord built a connection with an Ancestor of one of the most mysterious Kingdoms in the world, and they would get the job done in the best humanly way possible.

'Also, This is the best way to involve that certain Kingdom in my ploy ...'

The Archivist waved his hand and gave the book to the Dragon Lord

"Begin as soon as possible. And when you acquire the information, you know where to find me"

The Dragon Lord didn't even glance at him; he quickly took the book and began to read its contents.

With a sinister smile on his face, The Archivist took to the skies and flew towards the North ...

'Four birds with a single book, not bad, right?'