Inside the cave, Snow Kui trailed behind Morax—now in human form—with absolute boredom written across his face.
He poked at geckos on the cave wall, flicked at stalactites, and generally acted like someone who came here for a picnic rather than a mystical encounter.
When Morax stopped, Snow Kui nearly bumped into him. He leaned out from behind the Archon's tall frame and looked ahead.
The passage ended in a solid wall of rock.
"Oh! Here! Don't be fooled just because it looks like a wall—this is actually that big fella's horn!"
To demonstrate, Snow Kui raised both hands above his head, index fingers pointed up like makeshift horns.
Morax examined the rock surface with a deeper, heavier gaze.
"No. It truly is a rock. All of this is rock."
"…huh?"
Snow Kui blinked.
That wasn't what he remembered.
"But last time, there was a huge rock-element creature here—horns on its head—looked kind of like a dog? Or a lizard?"
Morax flicked Snow Kui's forehead.
"Neither. It is both stone… and an unfinished dragon."
Golden sigils flowed into the wall, disappearing into the rock like drops of water into sand.
This startled Snow Kui.
"You—you shouldn't do that. That big guy gets angry."
He remembered clearly the last time he woke it—being nearly buried alive by flying stones was not pleasant.
Morax, voice calm and unhurried:
"I greeted it politely."
A second later, the entire cave shook violently.
Snow Kui crossed his arms.
"See? It's angry."
But no attack came. Instead, a deep, rumbling voice echoed through the cavern.
"Who… has awakened me?"
Morax's reply was neither humble nor arrogant—just factual.
"Stone yet not stone. Dragon yet not dragon. You possess the patience to bury yourself beneath the earth, surrendering sunlight for endless slumber."
A bitter laugh rolled through the cavern.
"If I could walk beneath the sky, why would I rot here in darkness? You see my state already—do not mock me."
"Your insight and strength are beyond mere mortals. Can you… grant me a path to the surface?"
Snow Kui froze.
Wait.
Why was the conversation going so well?
He stomped out from behind Morax.
"Hey! Why are you talking nicely to him? When I woke you up, you weren't like this!"
The cave voice paused. Then:
"Oh. You are the little one who chipped my horn. That was not 'waking me.' You irritated me awake."
Morax turned his head. Snow Kui flushed.
"I—well—then why didn't you ask me how to get out?!"
"You were weak. At that time, you couldn't even withstand the force I used just to drive away nearby creatures. What ability did you have to lead me out?"
Snow Kui's face reddened.
Honest words… hurt the most.
Morax was amused.
He liked this straightforward rock.
"I can indeed bring you to the surface—but all power comes with price."
"As it should."
"Then hear my terms."
Morax's voice carried authority—enduring, unshakable.
"One. You shall not harm anyone under my protection.
Two. You shall abide by the laws of humans.
Three. If I call upon you, you do not refuse."
"Agreed."
Morax's expression shifted—solemn, almost solemn enough to weigh mountains.
"There is something you should know. Even without me, given thousands—tens of thousands—of years, you would eventually finish your metamorphosis. Would you still choose to trade freedom for sunlight?"
A quiet laugh answered him—one filled with resignation.
"For a being with consciousness, this darkness is already a prison."
Morax nodded.
"Very well. Then our contract is formed. Break it, and—"
He paused, remembering Snow Kui's earlier insults about eating rocks.
"…you shall return to the eternal darkness of the earth."
Snow Kui stared at him.
Better than making the punishment 'eat rocks like buns.'
Morax inhaled.
"Watch closely. Learn."
Golden light washed over him.
Sigils—the language of creation—floated around him. The cave answered with rumbling resonance.
From deep within the rock wall, a surge of pure Geo energy erupted—dense, overflowing, enough to tear Snow Kui apart ten thousand times over.
Snow Kui's jaw dropped.
He had always assumed only Archons possessed such power.
But this creature—this sealed stone dragon—was not a mere elemental beast.
They were kin of the earth.
Two forces resonated.
Morax's "Principle"—the governing law of Geo.
The stone dragon's raw elemental might.
Element met Principle.
And the mountain opened.
Not shattered.
Not broken.
Shifted.
The earth rearranged itself to make way.
Snow Kui was scooped up by Morax like a wayward kitten and lifted from the opening cavern as the rock dragon was unearthed—dug from the depths like a mountain-sized gemstone waiting to breathe.
On the surface, sunlight touched it for the first time.
Snow Kui flew closer, waving a hand in front of the creature's vacant eyes.
"It… can't see anything?"
"Because it is still only a stone. Not yet a dragon."
Morax extended a finger.
Golden characters flowed toward his fingertip, turning it into polished amber-light.
He touched the stone creature's forehead.
Light poured in.
The world held its breath.
Two beams of golden light burst from the dragon's eyes—pure, ancient, awakening.
A pulse of life shook the air.
The stone was gone.
A dragon stood in its place.
Morax stood before it—backlit by the blazing sun, silhouette majestic, commanding the sky itself.
Heaven moves all things. Mountains are shaped. Wastelands birth stars.
Snow Kui stroked his chin, muttering.
"…Right. I came here to watch them fight. Why are they suddenly being friendly?"
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