After Vaan pulled Eniwse up, he immediately noticed her struggle to stand, not because she was injured but lacking strength.
“Although Dragonification significantly raises my physical capabilities, it also consumes a great deal of mana and strains the body. As a result, I will enter a weakened state every time I finish using it,” Eniwse explained after sensing Vaan’s thoughts.
“Aunty Khaleesi said I need to strengthen my body with physical training or consume dragon blood essence to reduce the side effects.”
“Aunty Khaleesi, huh?” Vaan uttered with a weird look.
“Right,” Eniwse affirmed with a nod before mentioning, “You probably weren’t aware since you were training inside the Trial by Fire, but Aunty Khaleesi and Uncle Narvim had been helping me perfect my Dragonification.”
“They’ve also used precious magical herbs and prepared medicinal baths to strengthen my body over these past few days. I don’t know why, but we seemed to be fond of each other and got along very well the moment we met.”
“Maybe it has something to do with you becoming the Red Dragon Clan’s supreme leader?” Eniwse guessed.
She couldn’t think of any other reason why the two dragon lords would treat her so well.
Of course, the dragon lords’ care wasn’t just limited to Eniwse. They also helped Headmaster Astoria, Lady Aeliana, and Lady Hester with their training.
“Is that so? You might be right,” Vaan casually agreed with her guess before saying, “Since they took great care of everyone, I should find them and repay the favor.”
He was looking for Khaleesi and Narvim anyway.
The Red Dragon God’s inheritance didn’t include any mana stones, but it was a different story for the nine dragon lords.
Considering the rich level of mana in the nine peaks of the Red Dragon Clan, the value of mana stones was no different from any other ordinary stones to the dragons.
They could create more mana stones with their magic if they were needed.
“I know where they are. Actually, I was just on my way to see Uncle Narvim when I spotted you,” Eniwse mentioned before offering, “Vaan. I can take you to him.”
“Alright,” Vaan agreed with a nod.
He had already located Narvim’s position on Ninth Peak with Omni-Sense, but he accepted Eniwse’s offer nonetheless.
More importantly, he found it quite weird to hear Eniwse address the two dragon lords as such. He figured the two dragon lords also had mixed feelings about it.
…
A few moments later, Vaan and Eniwse arrived at a flat training ground on the northern side of Ninth Peak, where six Rank 4 young dragons under three hundred years old performed physical exercises under Narvim’s supervision.
The six young dragons all performed the same set of movements but with varying speeds and precision.
Furthermore, the movements looked complicated and bizarre, especially when performed by the dragons. It was like a mix of gymnastics and aerobatics.
That said, Vaan could tell that they weren’t just random movements.
Physical exercise was efficiently depleting the energy in the dragons’ muscles and burning their fat, leaving their bodies in a starved and exhausted state.
And by entering a starved and exhausted state, their bodies naturally but greedily absorb the surrounding mana to replenish and nourish themselves.
…
Meanwhile, Narvim noticed Vaan and Eniwse’s arrival before he instructed the six young dragons to continue their training on their own.
“What brings you here, Supreme Leader?” Narvim greeted.
“I have some business with you,” Vaan stated before glancing at the young dragons. “But before that, I’m interested in the physical exercise they are performing.”
“Oh? If you’re interested in our dragon exercise, I can teach you. However, it won’t be of any use to you. The human physique is far too different from dragons,” Narvim mentioned thoughtfully.
“I will decide if it’ll be useful or not,” Vaan firmly replied before asking, “Is there only this type of dragon exercise? I’m interested in learning them all.”
“Of course, there are different types of dragon exercises. However, the one they are learning is the best kind, the Fire Dragon God Exercise,” Narvim explained before suggesting, “Well, since you wish to learn them all, let’s head back to my cave.”
“I’m certain I have a copy of every dragon exercise stored in my treasury,” Narvim added before paying attention to Eniwse. “Oh, right. Did you also need something from me, lassie?”
“Aunty Khaleesi said she needed some Rank 3 Sunfire Grass for the next medicinal bath, Uncle Narvim,” Eniwse informed.
“Is that so? I understand,” Narvim uttered, seemingly calm on the surface. “We were just about to head to the cave anyway. Since it’s on the back way, you can follow us to grab some before heading back to… Aunty Khaleesi.”
Narvim’s composure almost fell when he noticed Vaan’s sneaky smile on the side. He felt a blood rush, but he quickly forcefully suppressed it.”
“Let us go,” Narvim said with a forced smile.
…
Shortly after arriving at Narvim’s cave, Eniwse grabbed what Khaleesi required, the Rank 3 Sunfire Grass, leaving Vaan and Narvim alone.
“So, Uncle Narvim—”
“Don’t!” Narvim instantly stopped Vaan with a distressed look before pleading, “Take it as I am begging you, Supreme Leader. Don’t start this too. Please.”
The dragon lord appeared to be at his wit’s end.
“Hahaha… Alright,” Vaan softly chuckled.
It was amusing to tease the dragon lord.
If Narvim and Khaleesi had just been open about the truth and told Eniwse everything, they wouldn’t be having this problem.
Nevertheless, after Narvim rummaged through a pile of treasured artifacts and quality minerals, he picked out a semi-transparent white crystal with runic engravings and passed it to Vaan.
“This is a memory crystal. It contains a record of all the dragon exercises inside. You just need to press the side with the three overlaying circles against your forehead to peruse its contents,” Narvim explained. “If there’s nothing else, I will leave first.”
Narvim appeared in a hurry to leave, wishing to get away from Vaan as soon as possible.
Nevertheless, Vaan didn’t try to keep him. Thus, he kept his message short.
“I also need a lot of mana stones. The higher quality, the better. Apart from that, there’s nothing else I need from you,” Vaan stated.
Narvim tapped the ground and summoned a large chest enchanted with spatial magic.
“The mana stones are inside, Supreme Leader. Take as many as you require,” Narvim informed before fleeing the cave without another word.