Chapter 2: The Red Dragon's Treasure Hoard
Following the familiar scent left by his mother in his bloodline, Cassius twisted and turned through the deep cave until he finally reached a stone door.
The stone door was thick and emanated a sense of danger.
This was the secret treasure hoard of the red dragon.
It was her private domain, her place of greed, a location in all of Anzeta that every creature longed to reach but could never find.
The red dragon cautiously extended a claw, pushing open the heavy stone door and quickly beating his wings to take off.
"Boom!"
In an instant, seething lava surged forth.
It roared like a furious giant beast, steaming with terrifying heat, eager to devour any living being.
This was the red dragon's harshest punishment for creatures that dared to covet her treasures—reducing them to molten remnants in the lava, leaving no bones behind.
Even though Cassius reacted in advance, the lava filling the entrance still inevitably engulfed him.
Fortunately, the same blood flowed within him as his mother, naturally attuned to fire and heat.
Although his scales were thin and his skin tender, unable to enjoy a lava bath like an adult red dragon, the lava was merely uncomfortably hot for him, posing no threat to his life.
"Hey-yoh!"
The young red dragon used his wings as paddles, flapping with all his might to push himself toward the depths of the treasure hoard, entering a deep tunnel.
The view opened up before him—
Gold, piled high like hills.
Coins shifted at the slightest touch, flowing like a river and clinking down onto the rocky ground.
Amidst the golden mountains, items glimmering with magical light were buried.
Cassius felt his breath quicken, involuntarily exhaling a puff of heat, his orange-yellow slit pupils reflecting the gleaming gold.
The deeply ingrained greed in his red dragon blood urged him to stay here, as if a voice in his mind was telling him:
Claim this gold, claim these treasures—they are all his.
"Boom!"
A tremendous sound made the mountain shake.
It was the roar of the red dragon and the fierce shout of the paladin.
The sound snapped Cassius out of his deep greed.
Yes, he didn't have much time.
The red dragon was battling the paladin, and it was clear she was losing.
Once his mother was killed, the vengeful paladin's next target to eradicate evil would likely be him, this "young evil."
But taking all this gold with him was simply impossible.
No wonder this red dragon was being targeted by this near-legendary paladin—so much gold, probably millions of coins.
She must have looted an entire kingdom's treasure accumulated over generations in one go. Otherwise, even an ancient dragon's hoard wouldn't be this extravagant.
He also understood why a heat-loving red dragon would appear in the cold Anzeta Wilderness—she was fleeing with her loot.
"Magical items, I only need magical items that can enhance my ability to survive."
Cassius quickly regained his composure, suppressing his greed as he sifted through the golden piles, checking the magical items glimmering with energy.
"Blade Ring, reduces slashing damage."
"Soul Amulet, allows once-daily Speak with Dead."
"Magic Nullifying Amulet, can negate a spell of level six or lower once—an artifact for exploration, taking it."
The young dragon swallowed the mithril-crafted, intricately decorated amulet in one gulp.
Red dragons are natural spellcasters, their bodies serving as inherent magical storage and materials, allowing any magical item to be preserved within and function.
It's said that some ancient dragons with "spell addiction" even carve magical runes onto each scale, using them as magical scrolls at any time.
"Heart of Lava, deals additional fire damage, nice."
"Blazing Staff, three charges of Fire Ray, taking it."
In mere seconds, the red dragon had swallowed over a dozen magical items, but only these were valuable. Many of the rest were flashy court magic items, expensive yet not particularly useful.
Clearly, this adult red dragon had a much stronger love for gold than magic.
The sounds of battle outside grew more intense, but the roars were noticeably weakening.
The red dragon was reaching her limit.
"Time to go."
The young dragon headed toward the cave exit but frequently looked back at the pile of gold, as if under a charm spell.
The greed rooted deep in his bloodline created a nearly irresistible urge to devour all the gold, a craving as addictive as a drug.
Unfortunately, the magical items were already close to filling his stomach.
"Just one bite, just one bite."
Cassius opened his massive jaws and gulped down a big mouthful of gold, the remaining coins flowing like a waterfall from the corners of his mouth.
He expected a metallic texture, but surprisingly, in his sulfur-laden, scorching mouth, the gold coins felt like greasy sweets with a strange, soft texture.
The translucent panel appeared before him again.
Achievement: [Gold Devourer]
"As an evil dragon, you are not satisfied merely hoarding gold in your cave; you wish to merge it into your insatiable body. Your greed astounds even the gods.
When you gain sufficient strength, the world will be consumed by your boundless desire."
Obtained passive trait:
[Metallic Scales] Level 4 (4250/5000)
AC +2, Constitution +1
When you devour a certain amount of precious metal, its elements will adhere to your skin and heart. Your scales will take on a corresponding metallic sheen, significantly enhancing your armor and constitution.
(Note: Yoan Caparius was one of the most greedy dragons in the multiverse, even eyeing the gods' treasury. He ultimately got his wish and was turned into a massive golden statue, eternally adrift in the Astral Void.)
"Clink, clink..."
The red dragon felt the gold rapidly melting inside him, flowing to his skin, where his crimson scales began to show a faint golden glow under the firelight.
Meanwhile, the red dragon's heart beat powerfully, nourished by the elements, pumping even hotter blood throughout his body.
"Huff——"
Cassius exhaled a satisfied breath of hot air.
It's worth noting that increases in the attribute panel are not merely linear but almost exponential. Each level is about 1.2 times stronger than the last, greatly enhancing constitution.
"Good stuff, too bad I can't take all the gold."
Cassius hadn't expected that a moment's greed would yield such a delightful surprise, but with the battle outside nearly over, if he didn't escape now, he'd lose his chance.
Allowing his bloodline to affect his mind in this life-or-death situation would make him the stereotypical red dragon with muscles for brains.
"Time to go."
The red dragon, filled with extreme pride and arrogance, would never even consider abandoning treasures and fleeing the nest.
Fortunately, his dear mother wasn't entirely like that, at least leaving a narrow escape route for the hatchling.
With his belly bulging, the young red dragon scrambled out of the treasure hoard, running and flying toward the cave exit in the opposite direction of the nest.
This led to the southern slope of Cloud Peak, and further down was the Bokara Forest. Once there, he would be free to "fly as high as the sky, and roam as wide as the sea."
An adult red dragon would have too much size and noise to hide easily, but the towering spruces, birches, and other trees made it simple to conceal a young dragon, even allowing him to live and hunt there.
"The wind's tight, let's scram."
Cassius looked at the cave exit ahead and leapt forward.