This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

The battle raged on, and Kain couldn't shake the nagging suspicion that Serena might be right.

The dragons' apparent lack of surprise, their abrupt departure to the east, and the growing wave of corrupted creatures all pointed to a deeper connection. However, the immediate crisis demanded their full attention.

The corrupted creatures showed no signs of slowing, and despite their best efforts, the defence lines were steadily being overwhelmed.

The black smoke clung to wounds made by the corrupted and worked to gradually change them from the inside.

Many injured individuals and spiritual creatures could be seen seemingly internally struggling with something before their entire body is made pitch black—except for their eyes which glow an eerie red.

Therefore, despite fighting for a long time, the numbers of enemies they've faced has not reduced due to their own allies replenishing their numbers.

Kain thought that only creatures of flesh and blood were at risk of turning, but after a member of the Order's contracted blue-grade Rock Golem also got corrupted, Kain realized that all creatures were at risk.

Seeing this, Serena's contracts who had previously been very active on the field thinking themselves immune, grew much more reserved.

Kain continued to direct the Vespid Guards assisting the evacuation, he'd lost several of them in the course of the battle to save others, but interestingly not a single one had turned. All of them had simply died after their injuries grew too severe.

However, before Kain could continue exploring why, a loud, echoing roar filled the air. It was followed by another, and then another—a cacophony of dragon roars that rolled across the mountain range like thunder.

Kain whipped his head around, squinting at the horizon. The skies to the east were filling with shadows as dragons of all colors returned, their powerful forms blotting out the setting sun.

"They're back!" Serena shouted, her voice a mix of relief and urgency.

The dragons descended like an avalanche. Dragons of varying sizes and colors swooped down, engaging the corrupted creatures with unrelenting ferocity.

"Step back!" bellowed a familiar voice—Galadriel, his red scales gleaming as he landed with a heavy thud near the remnants of the village. His gaze swept over the defenders. "We'll take it from here!"

Kain hesitated, his instincts screaming against retreating, but Serena grabbed his arm. "Let them handle it," she urged. "We've done what we can."

Reluctantly, Kain signaled for Aegis and his other contracts to fall back. The members of the Order and the remaining Elorians followed suit, retreating behind the dragons' massive front line.

Kain and Serena regrouped with the others, watching the battle from a safer distance.

The powerful might of the dragons was on full display as they devastated the ranks of the enemy.

What caught Kain's attention most, however, were the younger dragons. Despite their smaller size and lower strength compared to the elders, they charged into battle without hesitation.

A trio of young dragons—one blue, one green, and one red—working together to subdue a larger corrupted bear-like creature. The blue dragon used its lightning breath to paralyze the creature, while the red and green dragons took turns delivering powerful physical strikes.

"They're fearless," Kain noted, voice tinged with admiration.

"But reckless," Serena added, as the green dragon was swiped aside by the bear's massive paw, leaving a deep gash along its side.

The dragon let out a pained roar but quickly rejoined the fray, undeterred. What surprised Kain was how the black smoke clinging to its wound dissipated almost instantly, as though unable to take hold.

Serena and some of the other more astute members of the Order narrowed their eyes as they also noted this detail about the dragons.

Kain frowned, watching as another young dragon—a black-scaled one—sustained several injuries but continued fighting without any sign of corruption.

A thought nagged at Kain as the battle began to turn in their favor. The dragons' overwhelming strength was pushing the corrupted creatures back, and the tide of battle seemed to shift.

But even as the immediate danger lessened, something kept bothering him…where were the adult dragons? The sounds of fighting to the east had stopped, so they were likely free. Moreover, a single high-level dragon could probably wipe out all of the corrupted creatures in seconds alone.

Why have the reckless young dragons risk injury?

Did they just want to train them in actual combat?

Or…

Kain couldn't help but note that the young dragons tended to not use their heads much when fighting, leading to them suffering way more injuries during the battle than was needed.

Therefore, by now, even the dumbest of viewers were able to ascertain that the dragons were somehow immune to being converted by this black smoke. Explore stories on empire

Perhaps they wanted to use the reckless nature of the young dragons to fully display this unique advantage of the dragons? But why?

What could they possibly gain by showing off to some ordinary Elorians and young humans much weaker than them?

I should think that with the pride of dragons, seeking the approval of creatures weaker than them would be something they'd disdain to do.

He turned to Serena, his expression grim. "You said you think this mission might have been about these creatures. What if the dragons have been dealing with them all along? And what if the Order or Elorians knew but were helping as much as the dragons would like?"

Serena nodded slowly, "Allowing citizens of both nations to see for themselves the potential threat, and how indispensable the dragons were would be beneficial for them in terms of negotiations."

Another roar echoed across the battlefield. It seems like the battle was taking too long for one of the adults, and so a several bolts lightning rained down from the sky from the largest blue-dragon Kain had seen yet and annihilated the remaining corrupted creatures.

The dragons regrouped, their injuries glowing faintly as they began to heal naturally.

The battle was over—for now.

But for Kain, the questions were only beginning.