I Only Tame Dragons

Within two hours, Horizon, Von, and the others could already see the warm glow of town lights just beyond the treeline.

"This is Mappletown," Lydia announced as they neared the town. "Small place, just on the outskirts of the Singing Grove."

"Good thing you kept your word," Nyx muttered, her voice a low hiss. "Because if you tried fooling us, you\'d be seeing your last sunrise."

Lydia let out a forced laughed. "Who\'d be dumb enough to cross you guys? After what I saw back there, I\'m not about to gamble with my life." she lied.

"Make sure of it," Nyx hissed, slithering back into Horizon\'s hood to settle in. "If I catch you lifting even one of my treasures, you\'re dead."

"Why are you so obsessed with treasure anyway?" Lydia asked, eyebrow raised.

"And you\'re not?" Nyx retorted.

Lydia smirked. "Touché."

The group pressed onward into Mappletown. Horizon glanced up at the sky; the fading light told him it was already late in the evening.

"Should we hit the inn first?" Von suggested.

"Great idea. I\'m starving!" Lydia said eagerly.

Nyx rolled her eyes. "You\'ve already done your job. Why are you still hanging around?"

"Don\'t be like that! I know the best inn in town. Follow me!" Lydia flashed a smile and went ahead before the others could say no.

"Should we exchange these items for gil first?" Horizon asked, patting the heavy bags of loot in his hand.

"The shops are probably closed for the night," Von replied. "Let\'s save it for tomorrow."

They made their way into a bustling inn. The place was lively, packed with all manner of creatures — humans, dwarves, elves, beastfolk, halfbreeds, and others enjoying their meals and drinks.

The warm scent of roasted meats and freshly baked bread filled the air, mingling with the hum of conversation and laughter.

"This place is jumping," Cappy remarked as they found an empty table. A young beastfolk waitress approached them almost immediately to take their order.

Across the room, snippets of conversation floated over:

"Crown Jade Wood is hosting the competition this year, right?"

"I wonder what those snooty high elves have planned this time."

"You competing this year?"

"With prizes like enchanted artifacts and millions of gil on the line? Of course, I am!"

Lydia picked up on the excitement, and leaned back in her chair. "Looks like everyone\'s gearing up for the annual competition."

"I don\'t blame them," Von said, glancing around the inn. "It\'s the most anticipated event of the year."

Lydia tilted her head and gave Von a curious look. "You\'re an elf, aren\'t you? Aren\'t you going to compete and represent your hometown?"

Von downed his drink to avoid the question. "Ahaha . . . The elites are already in. There\'s no room for me in that kind of competition anyway."

"I\'m entering," Horizon said, his voice cutting through the noise with a calm finality.

Von choked on his drink.

Lydia raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Looks like Horizon\'s got some competitive fire in him."

"H-Horizon, what are you saying?" Von asked, wide-eyed in horror. "I thought we\'re going to build our home."

Horizon\'s eyes gleamed with determination. "I want to win this year."

Von could only stare, unsure whether to be impressed or terrified by the certainty in Horizon\'s tone.

"I want to win and make a name for us," Horizon said. "The prize money and items from the competition would help us immensely. If we win, more people will be drawn to our house. They\'ll come to us, and then we\'ll have a real force behind us."

Von raised an eyebrow and swallowed hard. "Wait . . . are you saying you want to build a guild?"

Horizon nodded. "More or less. That\'s where we\'re headed anyway. You don\'t really expect us to live just the two of us, isolated in our territory forever, do you?"

Von scratched his head, trying to process the gravity of what Horizon was saying. "So . . . let me get this straight . .

. your endgame is to establish your territory? A powerful guild to rule over it?"

"That\'s right," Horizon confirmed. His voice was firm, without any doubt. "Not just any territory, though. I want to build something that\'ll be the greatest in all of Eternia."

In truth, Horizon\'s desire wasn\'t only about proving something to Trisha and Travis. His draconic blood yearned for more — to establish a lair, to claim dominion. It was an instinct that ran deep, one shared by Nyx and the other great wyrms of Drakha. It was in his nature to conquer, to rule.

Von\'s mouth hung open, stunned by the sheer scale of Horizon\'s ambition.

Lydia was equally taken aback, and chugged her beer before forcing a laugh. "That\'s . . . quite the goal you\'ve got there. Ambitious."

Nyx nestled in Horizon\'s hair. "A man should always have ambition," she said with a sly grin, her skeletal wings twitching with excitement. "Besides, winning this competition means treasure — lots of it. We have to enter."

Horizon turned to Von, waiting for his response. Von took a deep breath, then sighed in defeat.

"Fine," he said, shaking his head with a mixture of exasperation and amusement. "But you realize, right? Our stats are too high to compete in the newbie section. At best, I\'d be placed in the intermediate level of the games."

Lydia\'s eyes widened in surprise. "Wait . . . does that mean your stats are already in the triple digits?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. Intermediate meant three digits.

"Keep your voice down," Nyx warned. "You\'re attracting too much attention."

Von puffed his chest, pride shining in his eyes. "Yeah, that\'s right. My stats are well into the triple digits — particularly in the two-hundreds."

Lydia gasped. "W-what? That makes you . . . incredibly strong!"

Von laughed, flaring his nostrils with confidence. "Of course I am, my dear Lydia. You can count on me in any fight."

"Hoi, stop telling everyone your stats. It\'s private," said Cappy.

Von only waved his hand in dismissal. "It\'s fine. Everyone knows it."

Lydia pressed her lips together, silently thankful she hadn\'t tried to pull anything on them earlier.

It was clear now — Horizon and Von were far from ordinary.