On the river shore and after Einar departed with the baby dragon, Derek was curious to ask about his words' meaning and what he meant by his understanding of his decision, but he quickly controlled himself and only thanked him.
Tom nodded in response, accepted his thanks, and gave him a few instructions about how to control his greed.
Derek sat down with an order from Tom, and after that point, he kept lecturing him for hours about the dangers of greed without sufficient strength.
He even went out of his way and threatened to kill him if he ever got greedy enough and placed his life in a dangerous situation that might kill him.
Derek was shocked by his words, but when he recalled the privilege and the noble's reactions his Highness spoke about, he clearly understood his meaning.
He wasted something so precious that wouldn't even be enough reason to trade with his son's life, much less a random kid he met and got acquainted with inside of his guild. If Derek dares to play with his life that was saved by Tom once again cause of greed, Tom will personally take that life and sell all of his belongings.
This basically means that Derek's life was no longer in his hands but in Tom's.
He was quite reluctant at first and wanted to deny that he was in danger when his Highness arrived at this place, but he knew that such baseless excuses wouldn't get him anywhere with someone who knew his strength, power, and capabilities since he was young.
Thus, at the end of the few hours of lecture, Derek accepted his fate and refrained from going against Tom, vowing to serve under him and become his disciple for life.
After finally getting rid of the ticking bomb beside him, which is Derek, fixing him for good after he lost a whole privilege and a potential danger for his life, Tom's emotions were a bit in turmoil.
He looked up from the window facing Irinas, the capital city his guild was based at inside the kingdom of Stegon, and uttered.
" Tell me, my old friend, have I made the right decision? For your son's life, I sacrificed the last True Dragon that will ever be born in our world. Was it really the right choice to trade an innocent soul for your greedy son's life? I know I was indebted to you after you saved my life back then, but did I really have to?"
Thud!
With a loud thud, Tom dropped to the ground on his knees, tears flowing out of his eyes like a miniature fountain.
He was an upright person who believed in good and justice; he never committed sins he wasn't forced to do.
Yet, this time, he felt that he had the decision to save that innocent True Dragon's life and place him deep inside the forest to develop without anyone ever finding him.
So why didn't he do it and let Derek perish instead? Why did he have to waste a whole privilege that might bring him countless resources and, at the same time, sacrifice the True Dragon just to save the life of his friend's son?
" No, I have made the right decision. A True Dragon is but a beast who doesn't care about human lives, taking them on a whim. My old friend saved my life, and now I repaid it with his son's life; that was the correct decision; I shouldn't feel guilt about a beast."
Another voice sounded in his head, giving him a huge headache," Are you sure that was the right decision? You had the strength and power to save him, yet you didn't. That True Dragon also has feelings, he will be tortured every day for eternity, and he will have to provide his precious scales and blood to satisfy the greed of humans for eternity. Are you really proud of that decision? Also, have you forgotten about the letter you found on top of your desk a few days ago?"
Tom's eyes turned bloodshot after he heard his inner voice; he crazily stood up like a madman and threw the letter on his table to the ground, refusing to look at it another time.
Only a few words were written on the letter, but somehow, the longer someone looked at the words written, the more they felt the obligation to execute that action.
" The last true dragon is worth more than your life, save him, and you shall be granted power beyond your comprehension, mortal."
This letter had been delivered to his office a few days ago and placed on top of his desk; before he even learned about what Derek did, he chose to ignore it, but after everything that occurred today, he felt that a calamity would soon hit him.
" Just from the words alone, I can tell that the one who wrote this letter isn't someone I can provoke. He also foresees the birth of this True Dragon, which is something that not many people can do in our empire. Not even the time mage, who is the minister of the emperor himself, can achieve such a feat. But I don't regret it; my son's friend's life was way more important; beasts are beasts; I have made the right decision."
After a few minutes of calming down, he wiped the tears off his face, fixed his messed-up clothes and disheveled hair, and took his seat behind the desk again.
With a flick of his hand, the letter that was right below him turned to dust.
" Time to concentrate on my future problems and strength; all of what happened is in the past, no more my concern." He then summoned his spear out of his spatial ring, placed it on his back, and left the room.
Back in the room, a fierce whirlwind composed entirely of flames engulfed the spot where the letter had been incinerated. After a brief moment, the fire subsided and dissipated, exposing a letter that was indistinguishable from the previous one, except for the altered message inscribed on its surface.
" Your skin will be burned off for not fulfilling your mission like the way you burned this letter. Next mission..."