Erebus, a dragon who had existed for over ten thousand years, was not amused.

The reason is because of this: In order to get to the Lower Continent from the Main Continent, you have to cross the ocean in a boat.

Erebus does not like boats. Carriages, horses? He could deal with those. But boats were his natural enemy.

He didn’t like the entire concept of them.

Erebus was a dragon whose natural enemy, you could say, was the sea. It was a trait that all dragons, except for the water dragons, shared.

The dragons were creatures of the land and sky. The sea was not the land nor was it the sky.

Meaning, he didn’t like bobbing around on some man-made contraption located on the sea.

Because of this, Erebus had suggested that he just transforms and flies there with them on his back but that was put down by Vyne.

Vyne said, “It’ll draw too much attention.”

Who was the leader again?

Tear, of course, had no problem with the idea of riding Erebus, so she said nothing.

So, this is why Erebus was not amused. He was currently looking out the window of the ship they had boarded with an expression that could only be described as pure disdain.

Vyne, on the other hand, was comfortable seated in a plush chair while writing more on his research. It was a gift he planned on presenting Lord Erebus when he finished.

Tear had gone out to the jewel shop that they had on board. In other words, they were all enjoying(?) themselves.

“How long until this ship reaches the harbor?” Erebus asked Vyne in a voice lacking any emotion.

The voice of someone who had given up hope.

“Lord Erebus, we have another week.”

The travel time from the Main Continent to the Lower Continent was a month. The trio had gotten on the ship to the Lower Continent three weeks ago.

The ship wasn’t a normal passenger ship but one for Questers. This was mostly because normal people simply did not go to the Lower Continent. They hired Questers to go there instead.

Around this time of year, the ship isn’t used as much, but a sizeable amount still came.

Being in an enclosed for three weeks already made Erebus want to burst out of the place. At least when he lived in his castle he would go out in the area surrounding it every now and then and enjoyed a nice run.

But this, this abomination did not allow him to do as so. He really wished he had just flown there...

“Lord Erebus, may I inquire what the Demon Emperor Yvick is like?” Vyne asked, he had never met the man before.

“Yvick, huh... he’s a serious guy.”

Vyne pressed his lips together tightly, he was hoping for more than that. “Anything else?”

“Just don’t be rude to him like you are to Triton, he isn’t nearly as forgiving.”

Vyne made a face. The reason he didn’t get along with Triton was because of his frivolous attitude. He had been the same way with Erebus until he had angered the dragon. At the time, he didn’t know Erebus was a dragon but instead a measly human, so he had insulted him.

A violent shiver tore through Vyne. He would never challenge his master like that again. He could clearly remember the fear that was set into his body, rendering him immobile. That was the first time Vyne was ever afraid for his life.

Frightening. Truly frightening.

Erebus, as if he knew what Vyne was thinking, said, “You should be fine as long as you keep your opinions to yourself.”

“I-I see...”

Tear burst through the door, completely oblivious to the strange atmosphere. “Master! Look at what I found!”

“What is it?”

Tear struck a pose that made even Erebus feel embarrassed for her. “The [Magma Heart].”

Erebus’ eyebrows shot up in shock. The [Magma Heart] was a rock that only the Dragon Continent had.

It was a brilliant scarlet in color with black veins throughout it and it emitted a soft red glow also. The rock was similar to the [Stone of the Moon Goddess and Moon God] but on a much smaller scale.

“Humans went on the Dragon Continent?”

She shrugged. She had never been there either, but she knew the stone was from there because her master told her of it before.

Even Vyne was interested. “How were they able to get this rock? If I remember correctly, it’s deep within the Dragon Continent.”

Erebus nodded. “It’s a semi-rare rock in my home. But for other races, they would never be able to get it unless they went into the Dragon Continent.”

Vyne pursed g his lips in thought. “Perhaps a dragon sold it? It should sell for quite a lot. Tear, how much did you buy this for?”

“150 gold.”

“Only that much?”

“Well, the vendor said she wanted to get rid of it because it’s cursed.”

“Cursed?” Vyne leapt from his chair. Cursed items were an amazing find.

Erebus laughed. “Calm down, it isn’t cursed. The rock drains mana, that’s probably why she said it’s cursed.”

Vyne turned his head towards Erebus, clearly wanting him to go into more detail.

“The stone is able to collect mana and when it reaches its maximum, all the mana it gathered is expelled in a burst. The stones fill up relatively quickly, too. The example I can give you is the weapon Triton made for Yvick. The material he used to make it is called: [Soul Stone]. It’s another rock only made in the Dragon Continent but it drains even larger amounts of mana. It’s called the [Soul Stone] because it drains the mana from inside of bodies too. So, when a target is hit by the lance, a portion of their mana is sucked. It’s a disgusting weapon.” Erebus stopped himself from saying anymore on how revolting the weapon was.

“Is it the same with his trident?” Tear asked.

“Yes, only that material is from the Pure Continent. His is also a little different, it shoots off the mana it gathered. That’s its main attack, not an added bonus.”

“Ooh,” Vyne and Tear both made sounds of understanding.

Erebus displayed a proud expression. He enjoyed teaching the children about these things.

“Give me the stone, Tear,” Erebus said.

“Huh? Sure.” She handed him the [Magma Heart].

Without any hesitation, Erebus ate the stone. He chewed for a little with a thoughtful expression before swallowing. “It was pretty dry, not enough mana stored yet.”

“W-what!”

“Lord Erebus?”

Upon seeing their shocked expressions, Erebus laughed a little. “The [Magma Heart] is food in the Dragon Continent. Same with the [Soul Stone], though, only higher level dragons can eat it.”

Vyne made a face. “You... eat rocks?”

“No, I eat mana stones.” Erebus patted his stomach.

“Dragons... eat mana stones?”

“Of course?” Erebus made a confused face. To him, this wasn’t a big deal.

Even the two eccentrics thought that eating mana stones was strange. They had never seen Erebus do this before.

“Is it possible for other races to eat it?” Vyne asked, an idea for an experiment popped into his mind.

“Probably. I wouldn’t recommend it though.”

Vyne ignored this. “An amazing discovery. Yes, when we get back to the castle I will certainly work more on this.” He picked up his notepad and began to furiously scribble away.

Tear, however, looked a little queasy. She could easily imagine a dragon eating the [Stone of the Moon Goddess and Moon God] without any remorse. The pride of her clan gone, just like that.

With a content expression, Erebus leaned his head against the wall. It had been such a long time since he had eaten some [Magma Heart].

Perhaps he would go home with a little more enthusiasm, seeing as he’d be able to eat to his heart’s content.

Even though he’d have to deal with those troublesome dragons, it would be well worth the trip.

Thoughts like these managed to consume all of Erebus’ attention for the final week of journey to the Lower Continent. A dragon’s attention span could be very amazing, seeing as it distracted him from the fact he was on a ship.

Thinking of mana stones, maybe Yvick had some that he would give to Erebus. Taking mana from the atmosphere to survive had no flavor at all.

Perhaps he should gather some when he returned to his continent.

Decisions, decisions.

So you guys got to learn more about the dragons! And Erebus might be returning to his home continent soon? What is this?