Chapter 3: Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans
Opening the carriage door, the interior space was not as small as it appeared from the outside; in front of the dragon Ralfael was a long staircase resembling a basement. Looking back, she could see the connection point between the door and the staircase, where layers of shining magical runes were carved, seemingly alive and swirling.
“Sir Ralfael.”
The blue-scaled dragon behind her timidly addressed the leading red-scaled dragon, speaking in a cryptic and ancient language.
Subhumans do have their own language; for instance, the dragon race uses Feimabaha Dragon Tongue, a language that can be traced back to the ancient divine court in dragon legends, although there is no existing evidence indicating that those ancient glorious civilizations ever existed.
The existing dragon settlements are mostly small and primitive, and Ralfael, with her red scales, was the daughter of the leader of a dragon settlement on the Southern Continent. The other dragons beside her all came from the same tribe.
“Don’t talk, Ral. That human is still outside.”
“…”
The dragon named Ral was the smallest among the five, her face bearing a youthful innocence. Hearing her companion’s quiet reminder, she immediately glanced back in alarm.
Outside the door, the sound of hooves echoed, causing the entire interior space to sway slightly with the motion. Other than the fact that the space was larger than a normal carriage, there was nothing else different.
Fortunately, that human did not appear. The tall human seemed even more terrifying than the fat humans in the circus. Ral was always afraid that he would strike her with the black stick in his hand; it must be some kind of dreadful instrument of punishment.
The leader, Ralfael, glanced down at the space, raised her claw, and walked downwards. Below was a wider space with four rooms lined up from left to right, but only the middle door was open; when she looked inside, it was empty, with nothing there.
After hesitating, they chose not to disturb anything or open any doors, and after a while, they squatted down against the wall.
Ral lowered her gaze slightly, listening to the sound of hooves outside, feeling a bit despondent as she murmured to her companions,
“This time… where are we being taken? Will we be brought to be eaten? Can we go home?”
The atmosphere among the dragons fell into silence, with no response from her companions, as they themselves were uncertain about their fate. The thunderous sound of hooves could not alleviate the gloom. Ever since they were taken from their birthplace, they had been treated in a subhuman manner, and the long years of hopelessness and pain had slowly worn down the light in their hearts, leaving them feeling numb.
Only Ralfael’s drooping green eyes glimmered slightly; she still stared blankly at the ground but held onto Ral’s small claws beside her.
“I will bring you back.”
Back to the dragon nest where they used to roam freely, back to the side of their loved ones, and make those damned humans pay the price.
But after all, this was just an empty promise, dissipating like foam after a few seconds, falling into the endless silence of the carriage.
Outside the door, the man in the black hat, Fisher, looked at the boundless wilderness, reached into his coat, and pulled out a small handbook. The cover of the handbook was brightly colored and printed like a fairy tale book sold to children, commonly seen in Saint Nali. The cover bore gilded cursive writing that read,
“Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans.”
This was a small booklet that Fisher had accidentally come upon five years ago.
At that time, interested in researching subhumans, Fisher had unknowingly bought this booklet from a shady vendor, thinking it documented the characteristics of subhumans, treating it as a treasure to bring home. After all, books on subhumans were rare at that time, yet when he opened it at home, aside from the preface, everything else turned out to be blank.
Thinking he had simply bought a pirated book, he didn’t pay much attention until a year ago, when he had his first close encounter with subhumans, that he realized the terrifying aspect of this blank book.
Opening the cover, he saw the preface on the first page written in epic language,
“The Crimson Dragon Queen rises first, burning all of humanity to silence with her wrath.”
“The Mysterious Child of the Sea will stir up great waves, erasing the sins of humanity.”
“The God of the Sky will leave the remnants nowhere to hide, with no place to belong.”
“The Undying Sorceress writes their epitaph with magic.”
Fisher lowered his gaze slightly; to this day, he still could not forget the images that flooded his mind when he first saw these words, the so-called hellish illustrations were nothing but this.
After long study, he ultimately concluded that this recorded four subhuman species that would soon bring destruction to human civilization.
Why was Fisher so certain about these prophecies and not dismiss them as merely the terrible jokes of some humorous gentleman?
Flipping the page again, he bypassed the lit section for “Sorceress” and saw the blank second page suddenly illuminate, words shimmering with golden light gradually filling the top of the second page, constructing a new section.
[Dragon]
Then, the energy suddenly brightened, revealing a line of illusory text only visible to Fisher.
[Please select research subjects, available subject count 0/2]
[Ralfael, Crimson Dragon]
[Ral, Blue Dragon]
[Fashir, White Dragon]
[Keshil, White Dragon]
[Mill, Yellow Dragon]
Hopefully, this time he wouldn’t make the same mistake as last time. After searching for so long, he must succeed.
The Crimson Dragon Queen.
Fisher cracked the whip, speeding up the journey while selecting Ralfael as the research subject. The remaining available subject count was kept as a backup plan in case he chose wrong.
The handbook glowed again with golden light, and beneath [Dragon], strange characters resembling both claw marks and slash marks appeared. The letters produced a captivating suction, reminiscent of a black hole. Simultaneously, the muscles hidden beneath his suit suddenly tensed, and his face turned pale.
He gripped the reins tightly, and once beads of sweat began to form on his forehead, with the completion of that strange inscription, the excruciating pain finally disappeared, but his pale complexion did not fade. Every time he bound a new subhuman research target, it felt like undergoing the most brutal torture in the world, a pain that was still unbearable for Fisher, who had experienced it before.
After another long moment, clenching his teeth and bowing his head, Fisher finally took a deep breath, allowing the rigid muscles of his body, stiff like iron, to gradually relax.
In the next moment, the illusory text flickered again.
[Research subject binding successful]
[Constitution +7, Reproductive Capability +4, Feimabaha Dragon Tongue +3]
[Researching subhuman individuals to unlock more]
Fisher ignored some of the odd prompts with a dark expression, feeling his body’s hardness increase several levels, to the point where he could punch a cow to death.
Indeed, the increase in constitution was much greater than that of the [Sorceress].
Fisher blinked, suddenly looking up to see the southern continent’s sky slowly turning crimson in the distance. The weak red area on the other side sparkled like shining stars emerging from a beach as the tide receded.
Night was approaching, and the horses were breathing heavily.
“Snort!”
“Clop, clop.”
Fisher pulled the reins, slowly bringing the horses to a stop. Just then, the carriage came to rest at the edge of a quiet river. However, there were still no signs of life around, and it was eerily silent.
Tonight, they could only rest here. Fisher closed the small booklet, placing it in his inner pocket, and looked back at the tightly closed door of the carriage.
Inside the space, there were five subhuman dragons waiting for him.
(End of Chapter)
