***Imperial Palace***
The palace was in chaos at the moment. Most of the low-ranking servants were rushing around without knowing why, while the high-ranking ones were frantically carrying out orders with anxious expressions.
The reason behind this turmoil was a massive explosion in the Third Empress's chambers—so massive, in fact, that the capital trembled as if experiencing an earthquake for a brief moment. Though the cause was still unknown, the Emperor's expression made it clear that it was far from a good thing.
In a designated room within the palace, the imperial family had gathered.
"Agatha, what was that explosion? Don't tell me you lost control," said a voice. The owner of the voice had a curvaceous figure and wore a purple dress that accentuated her curves beautifully. Her fiery red, curly hair left no doubt that she was the First Empress.
"Oh, come on, sister, you felt it too, didn't you? There was something strange about the power in that explosion. Even though Agatha is incredibly powerful, that force was on a completely different level. Honestly, I'm curious how she even survived it," said another voice. The owner of this voice had an innocent aura and a sweet-looking white dress. Her green hair, flowing down to the ground from her shoulders, made it evident that she was the Second Empress.
In truth, the entire imperial family was in that room. After the explosion, Arthur had summoned them all and told them to drop whatever they were doing and come immediately.
"Agatha, I think you owe us an explanation. You haven't said a word since this morning, and you haven't even told us where Angelica is," Arthur said.
Agatha finally sighed and gave in.
"Angelica is fine and resting in her bed. Actually, she's the one behind all of this."
"WHAT?!" a voice exclaimed from the room.
"Calm down. The explosion wasn't caused by her power. I'll explain everything as much as I understand. Keep in mind that everything I'm about to say is just my assumption, and I'm aware it could be wrong," she said, ensuring everyone understood before continuing.
"You know that dragons can acquire memories from their ancestors through sleep. These memories allow dragons to grow stronger much faster than usual."
"We already know this, Mother. But it doesn't explain anything!"
"Calm down, Flora. I'm not finished yet. Don't interrupt me."
"Sorry, I'm just so worried about Angelica."
Aware of her emotions, Agatha didn't respond harshly and resumed her explanation."Anyway. Sometimes, though very rarely, it's possible to establish a connection through this method with either living, powerful dragons or those who have already passed away but are so extraordinarily strong that their souls remain intact. Through this connection, the dragon can transfer some of its teachings, power, wisdom, or other traits. Most likely, Angelica connected with one of them during her sleep and managed to gain its favor. Dragons don't bother with those they deem insignificant, but it seems this dragon took a liking to Angelica and granted her a portion of its power.
If that were all, it wouldn't be a problem. But as someone who was at the center of the explosion, I could feel it—it wasn't an ordinary dragon. It was likely one of the most powerful dragons to have ever existed. Its goal was to transfer power to Angelica, and the explosion was merely a side effect—a result of overflowing mana. If its intention had been different, it wouldn't have just been the palace destroyed; the entire Dragon Continent might have been blown to smithereens."
After Agatha finished speaking, silence filled the room.
"How much stronger do you think Angelica became?" Arthur asked.
"For now, I don't think it's too much. Honestly, there's a limit to what can be given. You can't turn someone into the strongest being in an instant. But…"
"But?"
"My guess is that the power given to Angelica likely increased her potential and growth rate. The best way to empower someone isn't to pour strength into them but to help them create their own power and forge their own path. And frankly, I don't think a being as powerful as this dragon would forget such a principle. That means we won't truly understand how much it has helped Angelica because she already had absurd potential and growth speed. Now, I doubt we'll be able to measure it at all."
"Ugh, my head hurts. Anyway, let everyone inform the servants that there's no issue, and call the people to the church. After this explosion, they'll surely have questions," Arthur said.
"What will you tell them, Father?" asked the eldest prince for the first time. With his golden hair and crimson eyes, he looked like a leader anyone would want to follow, and his sharp intellect only reinforced that perception. He quickly deduced that Arthur wouldn't be telling the truth.
"I could say Agatha had another nightmare or that she got angry at a stain on the wall. Since the mana waves resemble the previous power, maybe they won't investigate further."
"Hey! I don't do such childish things; no one will believe that!" Agatha protested, but the gazes in the room were all fixed on her as if looking at someone delusional.
"Mother, you've blown up your room a total of seven times this year alone. Normally, if something like this happened in another country, the people would think it was an enemy attack. But just look outside."
Although the city and its people were far from the palace, once you reached a certain level of strength, seeing long distances became a trivial matter.Agatha looked outside, and what she saw nearly brought her to tears. Although the people seemed slightly concerned due to the magnitude of this particular explosion, most of them were continuing with their daily routines. She could even hear gossip here and there, as if this were just another ordinary day.
"Alright, I give up, little Flora."
"Okay, enough chatter. Everyone back to your duties. This time, I need to come up with a good excuse—Angelica's power must not be revealed."
"Understood."
***One Week Later***
My eyes slowly opened, and I took in the changed world around me. Everything felt strange, and there was a slight sting in my eyes. Almost imperceptible, colorful mists were everywhere. As I tried to understand what they were, knowledge I had never learned appeared in my mind. Apparently, this mist was mana—a living or non-living essence present in all things. Those with lighter-colored mana had weaker magical abilities, while darker mana indicated greater magical strength.
'This is amazing! With this ability, I can better understand the elements around me and gain new affinities. I can even measure the power of my enemies and identify their affinities! But I'll need to practice. It seems I can't sense mana stronger than my own.'
It appeared my grandmother had not only given me wonderful gifts but also imprinted the knowledge of how to use them into my mind. So this is what it feels like to be a dragon, I thought to myself, as I reviewed the information in my mind.
'Woah! There are so many ancient spells here! With these, I can harm those stronger than me and block their attacks. There are also some sword, movement, and other weapon techniques. Wow, and a ton of recipes for weapons and potions! Hehehe.'
Though these memories wouldn't make me strong enough to defeat the enemies my grandmother spoke of, they would certainly make life a bit easier. In fact, I was so lost in planning my next moves that I didn't even realize my mouth was watering—until I saw it.
'W-What the hell is that?!'
Finally, I remembered.
'She said there were three gifts. It seems one is my eyes, another is the memories, and the last is this. I can say, she saved the best for last.'