Reincarnated as a Dragon – The path of the Dragon God

Henry eyed Vishara from head to toe. Aside from her luxurious and ornate garbs, her appearance was the same as before. There was a huge change but it was unseen, perceptible only through her actions. Her powers had grown much since their last encounter— however, Henry was relieved to know she had not grown out of his reach.

“You looked slightly older than before, Henry,” said Vishara. Her lips curled into a grin as she let her gaze wander all over his body. “I never had a preference for my soulmate but I believe now I do.”

“Hmm,” Henry mumbled in response.

“And of course, Rayne.”

The person in question grimaced.

Vishara approached Rayne, spreading her arms. “I will forever be grateful to you, my dear descendant. You are the reason that we are all here now.”

“I am aware. Henry has been constantly reminding me of this fact.”

“As he should, Rayne. We must always take responsibility for our actions. We must always acknowledge our faults and mistakes. Only then can we evolve and become superior to our former selves. That is the creed of Bloodrune.”

“Bloodrune?”

“My name. Vishara Bloodrune.”

“Why was that never mentioned in the ancient texts?”

“Because I am the only Bloodrune left, even in my time. I’m sure I do not need to tell you why I’m the only Bloodrune left now, do you?”

“No, you don’t need to.”

“Splendid,” Vishara tittered and moved on to the next person, which was Alani. The vampire’s smile disappeared when her gaze fell on the only human in the room. “A human… Only a human.”

Alani tried not to cower in Vishara’s presence but she failed. She ended up flinching from Vishara’s gaze alone as she let out a small squeal.

“I’m surprised Henry would take a liking to you. How did this happen? Do you know?”

“I-I…”

Henry stepped in between the two. “You do not need to know. My love affairs are none of your concern.”

“But it is my concern. You have my acknowledgement, Henry. It would reflect poorly on me if you have… poor associates, shall we say?”

“Careful with your words now, Vishara. Remember where we are. You have more to lose if we fight.”

“You dare threaten Her Majesty in my presence!” Samira snarled.

“Stand down,” Rayne commanded.

“But Your Majesty, he—”

“Your outburst will not help me in the slightest, Samira. Use your head.”

“I-I… I’m sorry, Your Majesty,” Samira apologised, lowering her head.

“Leave us, Samira.”

“Y-Your Majesty?”

“I said, leave us.”

“But what about—”

“Leave. Us.”

Vishara’s chilly voice froze Samia’s tongue. She said not another word and quickly took her leave.

“Sorry, you had to see that, Henry. My subjects have too much loyalty for me. Why don’t we move our conversation to a private room?” Vishara asked and began walking in the direction leading away from the large double doors before them.

“What’s beyond these doors?” Henry inquired.

“The throne room. The audience hall, as all of my subjects would call it.”

“And we aren’t going into the audience hall?”

“You met my subjects, Henry. Do you reckon our talks would be uninterrupted if we involved my subjects?”

“I suppose it would be exasperating. But where are we going?”

“My private chamber, where else?”

As they began to leave, the twin doors creaked open and a man appeared from the throne room. The man was smartly dressed, garments unbefitting for combat. This person was no fighter but he had a reasonable amount of brawn to his body.

The man looked around, confused, when he exited the room. When he caught Vishara in his sight, he rushed up to her. “Your Majesty!” he exclaimed. “Where are you heading off to? What about the audience with your esteemed guests?”

“My esteemed guests are right here with me. As for you and the others, you are all dismissed.”

“Dismissed? But Your Majesty, we—”

“Do not make me repeat myself, Lionel. I will see to my guest myself.”

“Your Majesty, we are your council and advisors. What use are we if you don’t seek our council when the moment calls for it?”

“I’m not having this,” Vishara said and snapped her fingers. A glowing magic circle appeared underneath their feet. “Don’t come looking for me.”

“Your Majesty, wait—”

Before Henry or his women knew it, they were no longer in the corridor outside of the throne room. They were in a room, a spacious one. There was a large bed at one end of the room and a working desk at the other. In the middle of the room, there was a pair of sofas facing one another with a table in between.

“Welcome to my private chamber,” Vishara said and sat down on the sofa, gesturing for Henry to sit on the other side.

Henry sat down in the middle while Rayne and Alani sat on each of his sides.

“Would you like something to drink or eat?” Vishara asked, glancing between Rayne and Alani.

“I would like to get this over with as quickly as possible,” Henry retorted.

“Don’t be a mope, Henry. This is a long-awaited reunion, isn’t it?”

“We are not friends, Vishara.”

“If we aren’t, then maybe you should be speaking to me softly and with respect. I allow your way of speech because of our previous acquaintances.”

Henry was having none of it. He leaned forward and looked Vishara straight in the eyes. “Are you planning to wage war with the Argon Kingdom?”

“If it comes to that. Anyone who gets in my way is my enemy. Even you, Henry.”

“What happened to your vengeance?” Rayne asked. “Did you give up on it? Why the sudden pursuit of peace?”

“This is my vengeance. Rather, my vengeance is only a small part of my dream. Since the ones who wronged me are all dead, I can only seek to destroy their legacies. Just so it happens, their legacies are in the way of my dream. Peace has always been my true desire. I realised that I could pursue my dream while also pursuing my vengeance. Neat, isn’t it?”

“It’s convenient.”

“Why do you reject me, Henry? I know we started off on the wrong foot but we have resolved that misunderstanding, haven’t we?”

“I wouldn’t have rejected you if your methods weren’t so… bullish and violent. You are willing to wage war for the sake of peace.”

“War is necessary for change. Do you think my words alone would change their minds? No. It wouldn’t. Words meant nothing to them. Believe me. I tried. They only listen when their livelihood is being threatened. They will only change when they are on the verge of ruin. I wouldn’t be doing any of this if there was any other way.”

“What about collateral?”

“Victory and change require sacrifice. Such is the way of the world. Such is the nature of things.”

There was a cracking sound. It came from Henry clenching his fist.

Vishara threw a smile at Henry. “But I will do my best to make sure that no damages will be spilt into Ulrum. You have my word on that and I want your word that you won’t interfere with my… actions if you have no intentions of joining me.”

“I can’t tell if you’re actually that naive or are you just being deliberately ignorant.”

“Do my conditions not satisfy your requirements?”

“A war has different sides. Do you honestly think I only need to worry about collateral from your end? What about the others?”

“I can only guarantee my side of things.”

“Precisely. Whether you meant well or not, Ulrum will suffer. Are you aware that the kingdom has tried to persuade me into… subjugating you?”

“Of course, I am aware.” Vishara’s smile turned wry. “Look here, Henry. I had no animosity against you. I took the crown because I desire a better world, one without unnecessary bloodshed. I’m not a monster. Just someone who wants to right all the wrongs in the world.”

“I don’t care about your ideals, Vishara. That’s not the point. The point here is that I want no part of it. We’re going in circles here. Either you change your methods or you stop what you’re doing.”

“You know I can’t do that, Henry. Do you want me to just… stop? All of this?”

“I won’t stop you from building a nation, a home to call your own. But if this is all for the sake of amassing an army in order to wage war on others, then I am forced to intervene.”

“This is the only way. Even if I do nothing, do you think those humans would leave me alone? The damages had already been done. There’s no turning back.”

“But there is a way.”

“Oh? What way is that?”

“I’m acquainted with the princess of the kingdom.”

“Ah, her.”

“You know her?”

“I have heard of her. I heard she’s one of the few who wishes to distance themself as far away form as possible. She got a good head on her shoulder. It’s a shame that her voice isn’t loud enough in the kingdom.”

“Her voice will be the loudest soon, if you agree to my conditions, Vishara.”

Her smile faded. “That’s a huge gamble, Henry.”

“You said it yourself. Victory and change require sacrifice. But are you willing to sacrifice something of yours?”

Vishara chuckled. “...Damn you, Henry. Damn you…”

“Do we have an agreement?”

“Not so fast, Henry. I am still not convinced.”

Henry narrowed his eyes.

“But I am willing to try your method, Henry. I’m not saying that I will completely disregard my current ways but I will hold off on them for now.”

“That was a quick change of mind,” Rayne remarked.

“I’m not changing my mind. I am merely exploring another opportunity. If this fails—”

“Let us hope that it won’t,” said Henry.

“So,” Vishara clapped her hands, “how can we reach this person?”

“You tell me. I’m sure whatever methods I have, it won’t be faster than yours.”

Vishara tittered. “Oh, you know me so well already,” she said and snapped her fingers.

A few seconds later, Samira came into the room. “I am here, Your Majesty,” she greeted on her knees. “What need do you have for me?”

Instead of words, Vishara drew a small drop of blood from her palm with her nails. The small blood drop turned into a butterfly as soon as it dripped off of her palm. The blood butterfly to Samira, who then received the butterfly with a sheet of paper. The blood butterfly turned into ink on the paper, forming into words.

Samira’s eyes widened when she saw the words written on the paper.

“What do you think, Samira?”

Samira lifted her head from the paper. She bounced her gaze between Vishara and Henry. “Your Majesty, is this your idea?”

“Doesn’t matter whose idea it is. I’m asking for your impartial opinion here as my advisor.”

“Your Majesty, this is… I do not know what to say.”

“Just speak your mind.”

“...Very well, Your Majesty.” Samira paused for a short moment. “I understand the intentions of this plan but it has too many uncertainties. We risk exposing ourselves to our enemies.”

“We will be exposed to our enemies regardless. It’s just a matter of time before the world knows about Verugo. We might as well take charge and make the first move while we are still a cabal.”

“There is another concern, Your Majesty. We do not know this… princess. We do not know her as a person. Truths are often different from the rumours.”

“I’m well aware of the risks, Samira, but this is a chance for a path towards our goal with less bloodshed. It is a very plausible one.”

“How is this plausible?”

“Henry here has a connection with the princess.”

“You are acquainted with the princess, I trust?” asked Samira as her gaze shifted to Henry.

“I am,” Henry answered.

“How certain are you of the princess’ character?”

“Let’s just say, she will be a much better ruler than her brother. She values preservation above gains and all else. She values lives more than profit. Good enough?”

“If Her Majesty has already agreed with you, then who am I to say otherwise?”

“Splendid,” Vishara cheered and rose from her seat. “Now, how about we celebrate this over a feast?”