DADH Chapter 2

TL: Moonlit

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The news of a double-yolk dragon egg had even startled the elder dragon Herse, who resided beneath the abyss.

Supporting himself with a cane, Herse trembled as he walked through the abyss, his wings dragging on the ground. Memories flickered in his clouded dragon eyes. The young dragon standing before him thought he had fallen asleep until Herse opened his eyes again.

Recalling some dragon folklore hidden deep within the long ages, Herse spoke slowly, “Indeed, there have been cases of double-yolk eggs among our dragon kind. However, we dragons are inherently domineering. During the early stages of development, the weaker one is unconsciously absorbed by the stronger one, resulting in only one dragon hatchling.”

The young dragon listening nearby sighed, “It is a sad and helpless situation for dragons.”

Herse also let out a sigh, then a different gleam appeared in his clouded eyes. He spoke with a lofty tone, “But for the first time in history, a double-yolk egg is about to hatch among our dragon kind!”

“Listen up, all of you! The second little one might be timid, so no dragon is allowed to intimidate it unless it comes out on its own!”

Suddenly, a blue young dragon exclaimed, “Ah! Since there will be two hatchlings, won’t we need more preparations?”

Those words awakened the entire dragon clan.

Yes!

We need to add another nest filled with gold and gems!

We must dig another well-ventilated and warm hatchling den!

We need to prepare teething stones for each stage!

…

The entire dragon clan mobilized because of the existence of the second hatchling. The neighboring races near the Dragon Abyss were once again subjected to the plunder of the dragon clan.

Before being plundered, they were forced to listen to this group of violent dragons boasting about the news of a new hatchling.

The nearby races wore resigned expressions as they listened silently.

It’s just a new hatchling, heh, dragons have no shame. They rob us twice with the same excuse!

Then a gentle-natured elf suddenly felt that something was off. He paused and said, “Wait a minute, what do you mean by ‘another hatchling’?”

The proud fire dragon, who was bragging above, looked at him with an expression that said, ‘Are you an idiot?’ and proudly replied, “Of course, it refers to the second hatchling!”

The faces of the other races turned wooden as they thought, “…?”

And so, the news of another hatchling spread like wildfire among the marauding dragon clan, overwhelming the nearby races.

Oh my goodness!

The dragon clan without a dragon lord is trouble, even the robbers can’t stand up!

With two dragon lords now, the bandit dragon clan is going to rule and dominate!

Suddenly, many races seriously considered whether they should relocate as an entire tribe and become neighbors with the dragon clan. Originally, it was to resist the “incoming outsiders” foretold by the great seer, but now, even before the outsiders arrived, they might be completely wiped out by the dragon clan!

—

Jing Nian had no idea that his one glance had caused such a big misunderstanding.

He was still busy… soothing the little dragon in the egg.

“Sob sob…” Since realizing that this formidable creature, whom he couldn’t defeat nor do anything about, was not temporarily confined in his own shell but permanently, the little dragon burst into tears.

Wah, his territory had been invaded!

The teardrops of the little dragon fell with a “plop plop” at Jing Nian’s feet. Jing Nian pitifully tried to diminish his presence, carefully figuring out ways to console the dragon.

However, the domineering nature of dragons was deeply ingrained. The little dragon couldn’t accept the fact that his most private shell was going to be divided.

Jing Nian couldn’t console him at all.

Seeing the little dragon cry so sadly because of him, Jing Nian felt both ashamed and guilty, feeling like a beast.

…And he wanted to cry too.

He had been trapped in the dragon egg for three days, not the kind of time flow in a holographic online game where three days in-game equals twelve hours in the real world. He could clearly feel that it had been three real days.

His hologame compartment was custom-made because of his physical condition. He could only use it for a maximum of twelve hours at a time, and if he exceeded that limit, the health mode would automatically activate, forcibly logging him out.

It had been twelve hours, and he hadn’t been forcibly logged out. But if he added the time he spent in the competition earlier, it had been almost a whole day. His family must have noticed that they couldn’t contact him and would surely come to his room to check on him. By now, his family should have already discovered him.

Jing Nian’s expression became downcast.

Three days had passed, and he was still here. It could only mean that his family had probably found out that something had happened to him but couldn’t wake him up, or… he was already dead, which was why he had crossed over to this place.

Regret filled Jing Nian’s heart. He couldn’t imagine how his family would feel when they found him lying in the hologame compartment. He had secretly participated in the competition not only because he enjoyed it, but also to prove to his family that he wasn’t completely useless, that he wasn’t just a helpless Jing Nian who needed protection. He wanted his family to feel proud of him someday because of his achievements.

But after winning the championship, he had backed out at the last moment.

And now, not only would his family not know that he had won the interstellar championship, but they would also think he had given up on life and died inside the hologame compartment.

They would be so devastated, so disappointed…

In the end, he couldn’t even tell them that he had worked so hard to make them proud.

Thinking of this, Jing Nian felt his breathing becoming difficult, and his chest weighed down heavily. He looked up, and a tear silently rolled down his fair cheek.

“Plop…”

As if it was a signal, the crying little dragon suddenly paused. It realized that a drop of rain fell on its head, followed by a fine drizzle.

How could it rain inside the shell?

The little dragon momentarily forgot about crying and widened its eyes, looking up.

The boy’s skin looked fair and tender. When he cried, a rosy flush appeared on his delicate face. His thin body curled up, and his hair was the golden color that the little dragon liked, resembling gold. The tear-filled eyes were also the blue color that the little dragon liked, resembling gemstones.

Moreover, when he cried, he seemed like a baby dragon too.

The little dragon made a humming sound, its teardrops still not dried, and just stared at Jing Nian who was crying.

After the emotional outburst, Jing Nian realized that the little dragon had stopped crying at some point and was now staring at him with wide, curious eyes.

He choked back a sob and embraced the little dragon, who had unconsciously moved closer to him while observing. The soft and warm touch exclusive to a hatchling brought a hint of solace to his panicked and sorrowful heart.

Just at that moment, Jing Nian suddenly felt the eggshell tremble.

A dark shadow approached from afar, gradually blocking the light shining into the eggshell. It was then that Jing Nian saw clearly that the dragon egg was located inside a building resembling a stone cave.

The eggshell of the little dragon was made of a magical material. When light penetrated the creamy yellow exterior, it became soft and warm, transmitting a gentle and opaque glow. Jing Nian could only see the shape of the gradually enlarging shadow from inside the eggshell.

The shadow had two erect long ears, and its massive body resembled a pear shape, small on top and larger towards the bottom. Its belly was also quite large, and the rumbling sensation came from the movement of this shadow as it walked.

“Duang! Duang! Duang!” The sound of giant footsteps slowly approached, and with each step, the eggshell would shake and sway.

Afterward, the colossal shadow stopped in front of the dragon egg.

Jing Nian held his breath and clutched the little dragon tightly. The eggshell trembled again, giving him a sensation of being suspended in mid-air.

The eggshell was lifted by the giant shadow!

Jing Nian’s heart sank.

From the perspective of this world, which featured Western dragons, it wasn’t difficult to deduce that the shadow was probably some kind of magical beast.

Moreover, a magical beast that dared to intrude into the dragon’s lair and steal dragon eggs probably wasn’t intending to raise them!

In all settings, dragon eggs were considered valuable and could fit in the palm of a hand, measuring about one and a half meters. But the size of the shadow was more than ten times that of the eggshell!

Could it be that they were coming to steal and eat the dragon eggs?

This thought turned Jing Nian pale, but to his surprise, the little dragon in his arms cheered, and its head popped out from his embrace. Its two front paws excitedly rested on Jing Nian’s arm as it looked toward the outside of the eggshell.

“Duang! Duang! Duang!” As another shadow approached, the eggshell shook once again, being transferred to a second erect-eared shadow.

A mysterious and peculiar voice came from outside.

The little dragon in Jingnian’s arms became even more excited, mimicking the sound from outside with its childish roars of “Ao, ao.”

A word flashed through Jingnian’s mind.

—Dragon language?

He lowered his head to look at the little dragon, and indeed, from its excited expression, he could probably tell that it wasn’t the first time it had encountered the shadow from outside.

Suddenly, he remembered something. He glanced at the little dragon’s wings, which hadn’t fully developed yet, and then looked at the suspiciously-shaped ears of the creature outside. He suddenly noticed a common feature.

He probably guessed what the outside shadows were—dragons.

The crisis of being eaten had been averted, and Jing Nian felt relieved. However, he had a moment of confusion. Why did these majestic and dignified dragons walk with upright wings? Didn’t it seem quite ridiculous?

His confusion only lasted for a moment because Jing Nian remembered the image of the dragons he had glimpsed through the soft horns of the little dragon. It made his scalp tingle!

The little dragon was no longer in danger!

But his own crisis was not resolved!

He couldn’t imagine what would happen if these dragons discovered that there was an unknown creature inside this little dragon’s eggshell.

He quickly held his breath again, trying to empty his mind as much as possible.

Because he had a strange feeling that even his thoughts and mental fluctuations could be sensed by the dragons outside.

Outside the eggshell.

All the dragons had been warned that the second hatchling was very timid, and unless it took the initiative, they should not easily try to capture its dragon soul power for fear of scaring it.

Today, it was the turn of two young dragons, He Kun and Xuan Lei, to take the magic dragon egg to the pool of magic dragon blood for its baptism.

Before they arrived, the two dragons had discussed and agreed that they would step lightly when entering the dragon egg lair. They lifted both their toes to minimize their footsteps’ impact on the ground.

Their usually restless wings remained stiff and folded, afraid that flapping them might create a gust of wind.

However, they still couldn’t avoid making a commotion.

Just as Jing Nian completely cleared his mind.

Both dragons with their awkward forms suddenly paused in their steps because they sensed the second faint consciousness inside the eggshell suddenly hiding.

The two dragons lowered their heads and glanced at their clumsy feet, then simultaneously raised their heads. Their dragon eyes glared fiercely at each other.

It’s you!

Clearly, it’s you!

It’s you, it’s you, it’s you!

It’s you, it’s you, it’s you!

Hmph!

Angry sparks flickered in the eyes of the two dragons. The blame and anger conveyed through their gaze and breath were not enough to express their fury.

“Roar!”

“Roar!”

The furious roars of the two dragons simultaneously echoed through the dragon egg lair, signaling an imminent clash.

In the depths of the abyss, at the Holy Dragon Blood Pool, the dragons there heard the two roars and their faces turned pale, thinking, “Oh no!” They swiftly spread their wings and flew out of the lair, heading towards the dragon egg nest.

But it was already too late.

The dragon egg lair had turned into a battlefield between the two dragons. Boulders flew in all directions, and thick smoke filled the air. When the other dragons arrived, they witnessed a milky-white dragon egg being thrown out in a parabolic arc amidst the flying sand and rolling stones.

 

Author’s Note:

[Short Interlude]

From then on, the young dragons of the dragon clan lost their privilege of approaching the dragon eggs.

Upon receiving a lovely suggestion, I decided to name the dragons based on their colors and attributes.

I made some changes to the names in Chapter 1, which can be referenced at the end, or not at all.