Vankel hadn't seen so many dragons gathered in one place for a long time. This rally made his brag day look like a small family gathering!
Everywhere he looked, dragons from every corner of Ortmund were feasting like a swarm of scales; not just the majestic true dragons, but those of their smaller kin as well. Troops such as savage flying dragons, baby dragons, zemmies, and even wingless thread dragons.
A living dragon and a poisonous dragon talk, the former brings life to the grass, the latter corrupts the grass as soon as it appears; a group of flying dragons and chiefs of staff of different species are playing some kind of board game; ge
Alissime and his extended family, from his spouse Blightswamp to their children, listened to Julie's story of protecting El Dorado from knight poachers; even the Wise Jade Master came to the party to pay tribute to the Dragons Teach him the cultivation techniques.
Hundreds of dragons in one place can destroy a countryside, but thousands of dragons can destroy Winkle's empire overnight. Fortunately, a harvest of Talador and whiskey cocktails satiated the guests' hunger; although the Emperor felt pity for the minions who had to pick up the pieces afterwards.
However, the sooner the secret meeting ends, the better.
"Where is Gorinich?" asked Winkel, unable to see his close servant. Not that he would care about zmey's safety, but he might attract the wrong kind of attention at this party.
"Humpbacking in the woods out west," his cousin explained with a sneer of disgust. "It turns out that the female zmey and he are brothers and sisters. This is the law of nature."
"Oh." Good for him, Fankel thought.
Grandfather cleared his throat and let out a loud roar that silenced the assembled crowd and brought him thousands of looks.
"Young maggots, it is a pleasure to see you at the fifth Dragon Conclave!" G
a
d
ake declares. "Indeed, the last time was over five thousand years ago. Few of you were alive and awake then! I'm so proud of us humans, who have stood the test of time and ruled with justice, magnanimity and enlightened greed Of Orremund!"
The dragons present roared in response, the noise so deafening that Vank swore he was hurt by [the sound].
"As the eldest maggot present, I, the Archdemon, will arbitrate the debate," the famous [Hunter Princess] announced, and no one objected. "Although young Wink called this meeting to discuss a new pre-dragon war, according to the rules of the conclave, any participant can advance a topic. The matter is left to be discussed by the congregation until everything is settled, The congregation may be dissolved. If you wish to make a motion, say so now, or remain silent forever."
Winkle sighed, knowing that his request would be taken care of eventually, despite the urgency of the matter. But the Conclave is an institution that dates back to the days when the old demon maggots flew among them, and its traditions must be observed.
"I guarantee that we, Qi Mei, Fei Long, Dragon Beast, and all dragon clans have the right to vote!" A snake said with poor grammar, followed by some smaller dragons. "All types of dragons are equal! Defeat those crazy guys!"
"Never!" shouted Genilisim, his roar growing louder.
"No!" cried all the true dragons in unison. "No!"
"No!" Winkle replied in horror. That would be anarchy and blur the line between real dragons and dragons!
"The motion was unanimously defeated," Grandlack said, hanging his head three times in disappointment at the overwhelming negative response. "But you can still make suggestions and participate in debates."
"Me, me!" Julie raised her hands. "pick me up!"
"What's the matter, little Julie?"
"We should be talking about minion rights!" Julie bluntly stated, even though everyone who knew her immediately accused Winkle's niece of being a cattle fan. "Yes, minions have feelings, and it's wrong to eat them for no reason!"
"I agree," Fankle said, surprising everyone. He immediately assured them of his eating habits. "I'm not a vegetarian, although I will still eat them when I need to, but minions have souls and therefore rights."
"All servants?" asked Grandrac, startled by this vision of progress.
"Except the elves, who eat grass like cattle," Wankel clarified, and most of the dragons nodded in agreement.
However, many remain skeptical. A fire dragon argued: "The rights of minions are subjective and depend on the personal wishes of their dragon lord." "The purpose of the Conclave is not to deprive us of the rights granted to us by the old monster maggot!"
"I strongly object," ge
Alissime replied, his human chief of staff hiding in his shadow. "In my travels with Manlyn Henry, I've encountered a lot of dragons who use this as an excuse to abuse their minions. Hell, I've seen a life demon beat his troll chief of staff with a golf club! No. Eat, beat! My poor son is almost traumatized."
"They are minions, they can't tell the difference between up and down!"
The comment was met with many boos, surprising Vaikl. "My new career as a dragon adventurer has taught me the value of good minions, and that they should not be taken for granted," shouted a frost dragon. “We send a terrible message to our bug monsters by condoning abuse! Think of those maggots!”
“As a [Paladin of Sierra Leone], I believe we should ratify a declaration of Minion Rights!” added a silver dragon. “Both to maintain my class privileges and because we must protect those who are weaker than us.” people. "
“Cattleta
ia
!"Someone threw a cow at him!"
"I don't condone cow throwing!" Grandlack interrupted the debate. "Everyone is in favor of censoring minion rights, says gold, and everyone is against, says lead."
With more gold than lead, Grandlack put the proposal on the agenda, which surprised Winkel. The adventurer lifestyle he promoted seems to have broadened the horizons of many of his relatives.
"What's next?"G
a
d
Ake asked.
"I also want to make a suggestion for the safety of future princesses." Black Dragon Withered Swamp said loudly. “New breakthroughs in the princess’ identity must be addressed, as well as the disruption of her native monarchical milieu by global democratization.”
"I support this proposal," Grandrak said, and many of the dragons roared "gold" in agreement. The motion was placed on the agenda.
"We should discuss gloss standards!" shouted a frost dragon. "As a member of the 'Silver First' movement, I believe gold should no longer be the standard for hoarding wealth."
"Leadership!" Fankle roared in response, and most of the southern dragons imitated it. "Lead, lead, lead!"
"The front-runners agreed, the motion was defeated," Grandlake said, the disagreements drowning in the maelstrom of "front-runners." "Is there anyone else?"
When no one suggests otherwise, the oldest maggot decides the agenda. "We will start by discussing the rights of the minions, then the princess's proposal, and finally young Winkle's declaration of war on his predecessor. Regarding the issue of minions, I think the first thing we should address is..."
Grandrack observed the gathering.
"Do all minions have souls?"
The resulting confusion, shouting and roaring made Winkle sigh.
This is going to be a long rally.
Six hours later and into the evening.
After countless debates, testimonies by chiefs of staff, secret oaths, compromises, duels of honor and ordeals, the Conclave is finally ready to review the final draft of the Minion Rights Declaration.
Winkle cleared her throat and swallowed the bucket of water offered by the kobold servant. After passionately defending his vision of Minions' rights, he needs a little pick-me-up.
"I'm sorry that your proposal to ban eating minions didn't pass, Julie," Ge
ialissime consoles his grieving niece. "But the world of dragons isn't ready for cattle farming. And I don't think it ever will be."
"They'll see it one day," she vowed, refusing to let disappointment break her. "one day".
In the end, Winkle thinks she should call it a victory. While cowherdism hasn't caught on yet, over the past year, many dragons have changed their minds about using minions as tools. enough to empathize with their natural weaknesses and thus grant them generous protection.
"Young Julie, please read the final draft of the Minion Rights Declaration," Grandrack said, handing his assistant a revised volume.
Winkle's niece cleared her throat and read the document gracefully. Article 1: All minions are born free in dignity and rights, but are inferior to dragons in the natural order. They all have souls (except elves). Article 2, all followers are entitled to their share of the treasure minus their lifetime tribute to the dragon lord. Even the dragon's ruler would not deny them their share, which was set at least one-tenth, but could be increased to one-tenth if the dragon's owner wished. There is no difference between minions (except for elves, who have no souls). "
Winkle nodded to himself, although he felt a little sad that the conclave had not fully embraced his one-tenth revolutionary proposal. The footsteps of a dragon, he thought. D
ago
li
g steps.
Still, he was proud to see his niece read the historic proclamation.
"Article 4, Slavery is an insult to the slave system, and all forms of servitude should be prohibited...Article 9, Slaves are not allowed to be eaten without justifiable reasons, except in times of famine. Article 10, All slaves have the right Receive a fair and open hearing from the impartial Dragon Lords, and if their master is absent, their Chief of Staff also has the authority...Article 14, Dragon Lords must provide loyalty and life tribute to their servants in return; this includes protection from outsiders violations, access to food, universal employment and slave health care...Article 16, all minions have the right to mate with any other minion without discrimination..."
"Gold or lead?" Grandpa yelled after Julie finished reading.
At the end of the day, two of the three dragons voted to adopt a twenty-point proclamation dedicating the rights of slaves.
"Adopted," Grandrack said. "Next comes the love of my life, Princess Preservation!"
In contrast to previous heated debates, the canonization of the princesses as an endangered species was unanimously approved, along with restrictions on the poaching season so they can rebuild adequate populations. The many promises for Grandpa's shelter made the old demon very happy.
"Gold, gold, gold!"
"I am..." Grandpa didn't know what to say and almost cried. "I'm sorry for the outburst, but to see Generation Dragon embrace environmentalism so completely... it's a dream come true."
"Without your efforts, we wouldn't be able to make progress in society, Grandpa." Master Jade patted the old demon on the back. "You were a master to us all."
Grandpa took a moment to compose himself, then regained his attitude. "Finally," he turned to the organizers of the rally, "we will hear young Vankel's proposal for a new war against the former race."
As Winkel prepared to make his case, it occurred to him that he should introduce a motion to ban dwarfism. Too late, he thought.
The dragon was silent for a moment, knowing that silence could attract attention. When he was sure everyone's attention was on him, Winkle launched into his long-rehearsed speech.
"Many of you know me as Vyonc the Knight Bane, the great scourge of this age." "Some of you witnessed my Bragging Day last year, where I revealed the existence of the forgotten dragonmaking system."
Many people nodded in response, and to his delight, the emperor's behavior seemed to bring him the favor of many of his relatives.
"Today, I call upon you because, whether you like it or not, our race is at war," he said, extending his left arm toward the horizon and the Silent Grove. "When you came here, you saw one side of my beloved mountain transformed into a glowing wasteland. One arrow caused so much damage!"
"What?" "Impossible! An arrow? Real arrows? They bounced off our scales!"
"Young Winkle speaks the truth," Grandlack shouted, emphasizing the seriousness of the situation. "I saw it all with my own eyes. An arrow of light, with the power of an entire horde of dragons!"
"This is just one of the weapons the orcs use to hunt us," Winkle continued. "They cultivated huge metal minions, released plague among our minions, and even kidnapped monster maggots and stole their dragon nature!"
"I can testify," the silver dragon Snow Dragon spoke, her little brother Wendy beside her. The Emperor recognized him as one of the drakes he and Manlin Victor had rescued in the Winter Kingdom. "Had it not been for the intervention of Fankel and his chief of staff, my brother would have been killed and his blood harvested like milk!"
"I saved him, but I couldn't save everyone," Winkle admitted ruefully. "My opponent, Icefang, as well as his companions Magnifik and Safin Sant... were all killed in battle by the Fairy Queen Mel Aldeous."
"I always knew he had a disability." Ge
ialissime shrugged.
"He's not!" roared Fankle, startling his cousin. "Death is no obstacle!"
His words were met with a terrible silence.
"Death is no obstacle," Winkle said, voicing the terrible truth. "Death is a natural phenomenon. Every dragon has it."
Blightswamp immediately covered the children's ears as if she could protect their innocence. "Honey, say something!" she panicked. "He's your cousin!"
"I almost died, too," Julie blurts out, surprising everyone. However, despite admitting this shameful fact, she stood her ground. "I almost died, multiple times."
"But you didn't," the other dragon pointed out. "This proves you are a healthy dragon."
"Don't project your weakness onto our entire race!" growled a frostworm.
"All dragons will die!" Fankel turned left when he saw Golenich and his female compatriots coming back. Her hair was all a mess. "Oh my god, everyone knows this!"
"Yes, Big V must save Greenic!" Gorinic wanted to help, but it had the opposite effect.
"Vai
queue
, when a person agrees with you, you have to realize that you are saying something stupid,"ge
alissime argued.
"Many of you have forgotten, but sometimes we dragons are not the absolute masters of this world." G
a
d
ake surprised everyone by taking a stand. "When our ancestors fought against us for supremacy. We died as much as we killed. We often starved because we did not follow the hibernation system."
"Death is no obstacle," Winkle continued; having learned from Bingfeng, he decided to turn the truth into a call to arms rather than a shameful secret. "Death is a natural characteristic, given to us by ancient maggots, so we will not be complacent! Should we deny it? No. Should we be afraid? No! A true dragon will not ignore death, but despise it!"
[Hour] Activate! Charisma check successful!
"Those monsters want to bring death to us?" Fankel raised his fist. "I say we repay him with dragon fire!"
Although successful in containing his charisma, his words were met with disagreement. Some monsters seem willing to accept the idea that death is natural, but many others still vehemently deny it; even within Winkle's own family.
"I don't believe death is a natural feature," Ge
ialissime replied, and many dragons nodded in support. "But I agree the fairies need a long overdue spanking."
"The Precursor has caused a plague among my disciples," Master Jade declared in support of the motion. “Only those who paid for my seminars will survive, but the lack of healthy participants is costing me! Payback!”
"We must destroy the orcs!" An earth dragon suggested, and many people nodded in support. "They never honored our agreement and broke the truce. Let's burn their forests from orbit to ensure a third war doesn't happen."
"No," Fankle said. "We shouldn't have gotten to this point."
His answer elicited murmurs and murmurs from the crowd.
“I was the one who called this rally to start the war,” Winkel confirmed. “But recent events have taught me that, despite the difficulties, coexisting with elves may be within reach.”
"Peace?" "Is he serious?" "They don't understand peace at all!"
"My chief of staff taught me a great lesson in trying to use my parents' wisdom," Winkle said, standing by her stance. "Sometimes one can defeat one's enemies by making peace with them. A true peace, not a truce as we mistakenly thought. I have righted the gold-killer Freeburn and forgotten about him; a monster is now at peace The earth lives among my servants, and even Wotan Dragonclaw has decided to lay down his weapons and walk away."
Charisma check successful!
His words startled those present, who had already taken Wotan for a vicious dragon-slayer; the thought of him making peace with them was as shocking as knowing the moon's dark secret. Although Fribon's Oblivion is better known, its confirmation forced many dragons to reconsider things they took for granted.
While he can't yet convince his kind that death is inevitable, Winkle can teach them kindness.
"There will be no peace as long as the evil Mel Odius lives, for she wants nothing more than the total destruction of Overmonde; but perhaps for the first time since we started the war, ancestors and dragons can coexist. Although Unintentionally, we give the fairies souls, and therefore, the possibility of change. Although the road may be difficult, we must go down it. War, yes, but not a war of extermination; a just war, against May The Er clan and those who support them!”
Charisma check…
successful!
Just like that, his proposal was passed to thunderous applause.
"War!" the news spread throughout the party. "War! War! War!"
"Gold!" Julie shouted in support. "Gold! Gold!"
Congratulations! For running the Dragon Conclave and convincing your race to fight Meraldeus, you gained two levels in [Caesar]! You gained the [Excellent Dragon Breath] perk!
+20 sp, +2 st
, +2 vit, +2 ski, +1 agi, +2 i
t, +2 cha, +1 lack.
[Exalted Dragon Breath]: Skill, 100 SP. For one hour, you can change the base element of your breath, as long as your choice relates to a true dragon (for example, you can choose to breath [Frost] or [Poison] , but [Time] cannot be selected). If you want to replace components again, you have to pay the SP fee each time.
When you are in [Kaise
] When you reach level 20, your career has reached its limit! You can no longer level up, but you gain the capstone skill [Maggot Monarch].
[Maggot Lord]: Your dragon's majesty brings good luck to your allies. All allies within 120 feet of you gain +5 on any saving throw and save against critical strikes.
Your [Dragon's Pride] monster buff has evolved into a [Dragon's Glory] variant by turning your race's primary flaw into a virtue!
"My brothers and sisters, let us sing the old demon's song together!" Winkel roared, and then hummed to himself.
"shining!"
Under his leadership, all the dragons sang, from the lowest Wyvern to the greatest.
"Oh my shine!"
So shiny, my sparkle!
Gold to the core, our treasure!
So beautiful, so happy!”
A strange sound echoes across the globe, and panic spreads around Ortmund.
Sand in the Dead Sea desert moves as fossils crack from within.
Birds fly away from the swamp and huge shapes emerge from its depths.
The mountains shook as huge giants emerged from caves deep beneath the ice.
Everywhere the sky darkened with their numbers as they soared across the sky.
Because all the dragons woke up and flocked to Pladen.
