"I am Silva Barkley!" After their initial amazement, the golden dragon Silva quickly approached Muria with her friend, the adult silver dragon Gwyn, to engage in conversation. After all, since he had personally come to greet them, it would be rude not to acknowledge him.
"I am Gwyn Clyde," the silver dragon introduced herself as well. She was already thoroughly impressed by Synapse and was contemplating whether she could find a way to secure a residence here. After all, there was plenty of space, and it seemed that quite a few dragons lived here. Since they were all metallic dragons, it shouldn't be too difficult to find a place.
"I am Muria Iapetos Elonsas," Muria said with a smile. As he expected, the faces of the silver and golden dragons before him showed expressions of astonishment.
Elonsas was a well-known golden dragon surname across the continent. With the legendary achievements of Dragon King Deimos and the globally renowned Golden Sun Atris, the name carried immense weight. Upon hearing Muria's name, the two dragons were instantly shocked. Muria, on the other hand, was unfamiliar with their surnames, and he didn't care much about such things. No matter how prestigious other surnames were, they couldn't compare to his.
"So, you're a descendant of the Dragon King," Silva and Gwyn's expressions became more serious upon realizing Muria's lineage. The bloodline of a Dragon King far surpassed their own.
Considering Muria's young appearance yet immense power, they quickly understood the reason. Based on his age, Muria was indeed young, but his bloodline was so strong that he had already ascended to the legendary rank.
"We are all of the same kin; no need to be too formal. Just call me Muria. I'm only a little over a hundred years old, younger than both of you," Muria said with a grin.
His words made the two female dragons' expressions stiffen slightly. If it weren't for the fact that they couldn't defeat him, they might have already attacked.
"That would be too disrespectful, Your Highness," Silva declined politely.
"Let me show you around Synapse," Muria suggested, not dwelling on the matter of titles. He was already accustomed to being addressed with honorifics; his earlier remark was just a courtesy.
"Your Highness, did we come at a bad time? You seem quite busy," Silva asked, her eyes filled with awe as she looked down below. She could see chromatic dragons being loaded onto floating ships and transported to some cloud islands below, where they were taken into sealed buildings.
She didn't know what fate awaited these dragons, but her keen hearing seemed to pick up faint sounds of dragons crying out in distress from within the buildings.
"It's no trouble. I can spare some time," Muria replied with a smile. He had delegated the coordination of the war efforts to Mia, as the general strategy had already been set.
The cloud giants served as the main soldiers pushing forward, while the storm giants patrolled the frontlines to provide support. If they encountered powerful native creatures that they couldn't defeat, they would immediately request reinforcements from Synapse. Each battle was to be fought with overwhelming odds in their favor, minimizing their own casualties while maximizing their advantage, all to conquer the Dragon Peninsula with minimal losses.
"May I ask why you've sent so many giants to capture dragons? What are your plans for them?" Gwyn glanced down below. She could see the floating city continuously transporting various powerful, bound creatures from the lower cloud islands and the ground. Once these creatures were sent to Synapse, they were never seen again. She couldn't guess their fate, but given that their ruler was a golden dragon, they might endure some hardships, but probably wouldn't lose their lives.
Maybe. Gwyn had noticed that there were quite a few chromatic dragons here as well. However, these chromatic dragons seemed different from what she remembered; the magical glow around them was unusually intense—a trait typically associated with metallic dragons who spent years engrossed in magical research.
"I am deploying my army to conquer the Dragon Peninsula. My plan is to transform this peninsula into a true haven for dragons under my rule," Muria said, smiling as he revealed his intentions, which he saw no need to hide.
"A haven for dragons?" Gwyn keenly noted Muria's choice of words. Currently, the peninsula was predominantly occupied by chromatic dragons, yet Muria referred to it as a land for dragons.
"What do you plan to do with the chromatic dragons on the peninsula?" Silva asked.
"For adult dragons and those above, I will offer them the chance to surrender. Those who comply will be integrated; those who refuse will be sealed," Muria replied. Sealing was a method commonly used by metallic dragons against chromatic dragons in conflicts. However, Muria's sealing techniques differed from those typically known to metallic dragons.
"And what about the younger dragons?" Silva continued.
"Young dragons will be separated according to age and educated. I intend to reverse the influence of their inherited traits as much as possible, especially for the hatchlings. To achieve this, I've established a dedicated academy for dragons. Would you like to visit?"
Muria spoke with a smile, glancing at the three young dragons beside him. "The academy isn't just for chromatic dragons; there are also many metallic dragons attending."
"An academy for dragons!" Silva and Gwyn exchanged stunned glances. They had been in a state of continuous shock since they arrived. The idea of Muria conquering the entire peninsula had already amazed them, but now they were hearing about an academy specifically for dragons. It was hard to believe that such a powerful creature like a dragon would need an institution like an academy.
"Yes, an academy. The purpose of the academy is to help dragons grow better. If possible, I would like to invite your children to enroll."
Muria extended the invitation. This was an idea that had come to him during his visit to the Golden Dragon City a few days ago. Although there were already some young dragons at the academy, most of the students were chromatic dragons. As a golden dragon, Muria wanted to find some metallic dragons to balance things out.
However, the number of metallic dragons in Synapse was very low—less than a hundred—and most of them were adults. Among them were members of a clan that had developed from two ancient dragons who had recently snuck into Synapse for fun. After enjoying a leisurely life here, they had consulted Muria and then brought all their dragon children and grandchildren over. Naturally, Muria welcomed this, as who would complain about having more dragons?
As part of the agreement, Muria had the right to mobilize and command them. When the dragon academy was first established, he appointed the two ancient metallic dragons as professors and enrolled their young descendants as the first batch of metallic dragon students.
"An academy?" The three young dragons reacted differently from their mothers. Although they didn't fully understand what an academy was, they instinctively felt a sense of dread. Muria's warm smile suddenly seemed sinister and terrifying to them.
While they didn't know what an academy was, they knew the word "school" from the academy's name, which made them think of learning. For these young dragons, who were less than twenty years old, learning was a painful experience. As metallic dragons, they were forced from a young age to learn various spells and read numerous books, which were too boring and tedious for their young minds to appreciate. So, they often found ways to sneak away and play.
...
Silva and Gwyn, along with their three young dragons, visited the dragon academy that Muria had just established, while William stayed behind to interact with some of the legends on the central cloud island. He had no interest in the so-called dragon academy, as he had no dragon children.
"This academy is still in its early stages; many facilities are not yet fully developed, and the faculty is still being assembled," Muria explained as they walked across a smooth jade playground with the five dragons. "However, I have already invited two ancient metallic dragons and an ancient green dragon as professors. They've committed to teaching at least twelve classes per month, so there's no need to worry about the quality of education."
"Ancient dragons as teachers?" Silva and Gwyn were amazed. Generally, only direct descendants could receive instruction from ancient dragons, yet here, ancient dragons were teaching at the academy.
"Before the academy was founded, I had already educated many chromatic dragons, so I can show you what these dragons have achieved with proper education."
Muria led them through the academy, showcasing various facilities designed specifically for dragons. To further entice them, he called for some young chromatic dragons. He summoned three each of the red, blue, green, black, and white dragons. The dragons arrived and obediently lined up in a row.
"Feel free to choose any one of them," Muria said confidently with a smile.
"This one," Silva said, somewhat puzzled by Muria's smile, and pointed randomly at a young blue dragon.
"What's your name?" Muria asked the blue dragon.
"Nasan Bark."
"Very well, Nasan Bark, step forward."
Following Muria's command, the blue dragon obediently stepped out of the line and looked up at him, hoping to be rewarded with crystals for good behavior.
"Tell me, how many first-level spells have you mastered so far?"
"Seven first-level spells," the blue dragon replied proudly. Among his peers, this was considered an outstanding achievement—not compared to wild dragons, of course, as they were not even worth mentioning.
"Show us all the spells you've mastered."
In front of the amazed gazes of the two female dragons, the young blue dragon clumsily cast seven first-level spells. Although the execution was rough, considering its species and age, it was impressive.
"Are all the young
dragons here at this level?" Silva asked in astonishment. If all the dragons were at this level, then this education system was truly extraordinary.
"Of course. You can choose another dragon at random," Muria said with a smile.
Soon, under the curious eyes of the two female dragons, they pointed out several more young dragons, each showcasing the spells they had mastered. Their praise echoed repeatedly. Silva then glanced at her three children with an increasingly disappointed look—a look of disdain.
This change in her gaze made the three young dragons huddle together in fear, sensing that something bad was about to happen to them. They realized that Muria was the cause of all this. The way they looked at him was no longer with admiration but with growing coldness.
...
"Your Highness, there is new information."
Just as Muria was showing Silva the results of his educational efforts, an urgent report was delivered to him.
"A storm giant knight scouting the Dragon Peninsula has discovered human activity. Following them, he found nine human cities, numerous villages, and large tracts of cultivated farmland. Some chromatic dragons were also spotted among them."
"It seems I'm not the only one eyeing the Dragon Peninsula. There are humans interested in this land as well," Muria remarked with a dismissive smile after reading the report. "But since I've already made my move, I'm afraid they'll have to bow out. This land can only have one master."
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