Chapter 52 The Price of Not Being Afraid of Death
The bright moonlight bathed the coniferous valley, surrounded by mountains on three sides, in a glow.
Mobel carried his charred body, now dead, back to the bears' den, and with a thud, threw the charred corpse to the ground.
However, the bears' attention was not on Mobel.
They looked up as if facing a formidable enemy, their pupils reflecting the silhouettes of two dragons circling in the sky.
Their gazes swept past the pure-blooded red dragons; they were all looking at another dragon.
The red iron dragon's scales were as if cast from steel, and sparks flew from its huge, broad wings. The shadows cast by the dragon, which blocked out the moonlight, almost completely enveloped all the bears present.
With Galos backing him up.
Mobel puffed out his chest and slammed his thick bear paws heavily on the ground, sending up a spray of gravel.
It surveyed the bears, its voice booming like thunder:
"Open your bear eyes and take a look!"
It pointed its claws at the charred corpse on the ground: "This is the consequence of rebelling against the Great Dragon Lord!"
Under the moonlight, the alchemical runes on Mobel's body shimmered, adding to its intimidating aura.
It slowly walked towards the center of the bear pack, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly.
“Old Gore has ruled you for so many years, you even have to consider your mating rights.”
A few low groans echoed from the bear pack, especially from the younger males, who harbored a long-standing grudge against their old leader.
Upon seeing this, Mobel immediately raised his voice: "And now!"
It opened its arms.
"On behalf of Lord Garus, I promise you—all male bears will have the right to mate! And they need not worry about being expelled!"
certainly.
As the leader, I will be at the very front of all the male bears and have the highest priority.
It added to itself in a low chuckle.
This declaration caused a stir among the bears.
Several of the female bears' eyes visibly lit up.
It wasn't just the male bears who were dissatisfied with old Gore's dictatorship; the female bears were also tired of this aging, violent bear leader. Compared to the old bears whose fur was already gray and withered and who were no longer strong, they preferred the young male bears with shiny fur, otherwise they wouldn't have been stealing food so often.
"Not only that."
Mobel continued to incite.
"The Dragon Lord will also bestow power upon us!"
It displayed the glowing runes on its body: "Look at these! Has this stingy, tyrannical old man ever bestowed any favors upon you?"
In the sky.
Galos listened quietly to Mobel's speech.
He was surprised to discover that this cowardly bear actually had a good talent for leadership, and its intelligence was a level above that of other earth bears.
Thinking about it carefully, that makes sense.
It was able to instantly abandon its bear-like demeanor and fawn over itself upon first encountering it and realizing it was no match for it; this speed of response was extraordinary.
At this point, the vast majority of the bears were persuaded by Mobel.
But one of the bears, a fierce and unruly individual who had received considerable care from Old Gore, stepped forward and roared:
"Mobel, stop talking! This is a shameful betrayal! You actually led a dragon to kill the chieftain! And you even tried to make us submit and abandon the honor of the Bear Clan!"
The words had barely left his mouth.
With a piercing whistling sound.
An immense sense of oppression descended from the sky.
The male bear raised its head and saw the dragon-like creature rushing towards it like a crimson meteor. Its courage vanished instantly, and it closed its eyes in fear.
call!
The wind pressure pressed its fur tightly against its skin, but the expected death did not come.
Open your eyes.
The male bear's field of vision was almost completely filled.
Garus stretched out his wings, hovering in mid-air, his deep, dark dragon eyes fixed on the male bear.
"Evil dragon! I, Paris the Earth Bear, have never feared death!"
The male bear, trembling under the dragon's might, roared at Galos, baring its teeth and assuming an attack stance.
Unlike the male bear, which appeared to be facing a formidable enemy.
Galos tilted his head, seemingly puzzled.
"How do you know you're not afraid if you've never died?"
He asked.
Aren't you afraid of death?
That's an oversimplified statement.
Galos felt that he was terrified of death, so much so that he wanted to eliminate all the dangerous factors that made him feel scared and uneasy.
Even I'm afraid, aren't you? Are you stronger than me?
Survival is the instinct of living beings. This sentence, like a spear, pierced through the male bear's psychological defenses, and the fear of death overwhelmed it like a tidal wave.
Its eyes became hesitant, wavering between submission and resistance.
Surrender?
The dragons before me were not even adults.
Submitting to such a young dragon would be beneath my dignity as a great earth bear.
On the other hand, the fact that this young dragon was able to kill its leader means that it is more powerful than ordinary dragons and has excellent potential, making it seem worthy of being followed.
The male bear struggled with his thoughts.
Galos was unaware of the male bear's inner thoughts.
Even if they knew, they wouldn't care.
He disliked being seen as a dragon, nor did he like being resisted, and had no intention of keeping the raging bear alive.
Garus opened his dragon mouth, and a torrent of fiery dragon breath poured out, engulfing the still hesitant and fearful male bear.
Accompanied by a few gradually fading howls and roars, it was burned to a crisp.
"Those who submit live, those who resist die."
Galos raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the giant earth bears, and said succinctly.
Bang!
Samantha, the red dragon, landed on the ground at the same time, her eyes sweeping menacingly over the bears, and dazzling flames brewing between the crisscrossing sharp teeth in her dragon mouth.
Mobel shouted at the opportune moment.
"Choose! Will you turn to ashes like old Gore and this foolish bear, or will you follow me and enjoy the Dragon Lord's blessings?!"
The bears became agitated.
Under duress and enticement, the first bear quickly prostrated itself on the ground.
The creatures in this wilderness pursue nothing more than two things.
Survival, continuation.
Better survival, better continuation.
If what Mobel said is true, then submitting to the dragons would be better than living under old Gore's dictatorship.
After the first bear, the second, the third, and finally all the bears lowered their heads. Under the moonlight, the entire bear clan knelt down in waves, submitting to the dragon shadow in mid-air.
The next day.
The sun shines brightly, casting golden sunlight on and around the coniferous valley.
Galos beckoned several sub-adult male bears, each between six and seven meters tall, to follow him to an open area.
"Dragon Lord, what are your orders?"
A raging bear asked cautiously.
Having just submitted, they were still unfamiliar with Galos's temperament, and the way Galos had burned disobedient individuals to death without a second thought had left a shadow in their hearts. Therefore, they appeared awkward and cautious in front of Galos.
Galos made several bears form a circle around him.
"Come on, hit me."
He said.
Upon hearing this, the bears widened their eyes, as if they hadn't heard Garus's words clearly.
"What...what did you say?"
A bear scratched its head, wondering if it had misheard, and asked in confusion.
Galos patiently repeated himself, adding, "I said, attack me, attack me by any means you can. Whatever makes me feel pain or threatened, I will grant you priority mating rights."
The bears looked at each other in bewilderment.
After hesitating for a few seconds, seeing that Galos's expression was gradually becoming impatient, one of the bears reluctantly stretched out its paw and patted Galos on the body.
More accurately, it felt like I touched it.
It wasn't using any strength at all.
(End of this chapter)
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