CHAPTER 1040: THE ICE DRAGON

Both of them slipped through the opening in the cliff wall, their wings folding as they landed inside the vast hollow space.

The air was colder here and filled with frost that clung to every stone surface.

Eccar’s eyes moved sharply across the dark, his brown scales still hardened and humming faintly with golden sparks. He expected another sudden wave of spears or a fresh swarm to rush them from the shadows.

Krono, however, walked forward with the same calmness as always.

His posture was loose and his gaze steady, as though he already knew no danger would come.

"Didn’t you hear what I said?" Krono’s voice was even, echoing against the frozen walls. "She won’t attack anymore."

"Yeah, well, caution’s never a bad thing," Eccar muttered, his voice a low rumble.

Krono sighed. "Do what you want then."

With that, he continued ahead, his steps carrying him deeper into the darkness of the cave.

The corridor stretched on. Its walls were made of rough stone like a normal cave at first but the deeper they went, the more the surface changed. The stone turned smooth and crystalline, transforming into an ice corridor that glittered faintly with a pale blue glow.

Its shape was unnaturally square, like a hall carved by deliberate hands. The walls sparkled with refracted light, sending tiny shivers of blue across their scales.

The temperature dropped further into bitter cold, but fortunately it did little against the hardened scales of the Dragonborn.

Still, both of them knew this was more than decoration. These walls and corridors were all another layer of defense, another warning for intruders to turn back before reaching her domain.

Krono stopped briefly, lifting his chin toward the darkness ahead.

"We came in peace," he called.

"Yeah!" Eccar added, his voice echoing off the glimmering walls. "No need to attack us again!"

"Get away from me!" The reply came swift and sharp, bouncing from the frozen corridor with enough weight to make the air vibrate.

It was a woman’s voice that was fierce with anger. It sounded young but there was no telling how old she truly was.

Eccar raised his voice, trying to steady his tone. "We just want to talk!"

"I don’t!" she shouted back, her tone biting cold.

"This is important," Eccar pressed.

"I don’t care!"

Eccar clenched his fists, his breath steaming harder in the cold as he fought to keep his temper from flaring.

But before he could snap back, Krono raised a hand, a simple gesture that told him to stay back.

Eccar exhaled hard through his nose, then nodded reluctantly.

Krono stepped forward, his voice carrying with calm gravity. "You already know, don’t you? That we are the same as you. Dragonborn."

The cave fell into silence. The icy walls seemed to absorb the words. No voice came this time.

Krono’s eyes narrowed slightly as he continued. "There’s a problem you need to know. This problem will come for you whether you want it or not. I am the Time Dragon. And I have seen one of our kin being manipulated by a strange and mysterious entity, driven to destroy a world and spread ruin and despair."

The silence stretched long. Too long. Even Eccar began to shift impatiently, his claws tapping against his scaled arms as he stared at Krono with a question in his eyes.

But Krono’s gaze didn’t waver from the darkness ahead.

"Just wait," he murmured without looking back.

So they waited.

At last, the voice returned. It was quieter this time, almost hesitant. "...Come in."

Eccar let out a heavy sigh of relief, his shoulders easing as the weight on his chest loosened.

Krono’s gaze softened slightly too, the faintest trace of ease passing over his calm expression.

Together, they walked deeper into the corridor.

The path curved slightly and after several long meters it opened into a vast chamber.

Every surface was sculpted from glittering blue ice and polished to a mirror shine that reflected their body as they entered.

At the far corner sat a table of pure ice with three chairs shaped alongside it. The air within shimmered faintly with the thick and biting cold aura of Magic, but stable.

From the far end of the chamber, there was a movement.

A figure emerged. She was slender and sharp, her body covered in glimmering ice-blue scales.

She was petite, her frame deceptively small, but her presence filled the chamber. Her silver hair fell in smooth locks that glowed faintly in the icy light, her eyes cutting sharp as blades of frost.

"It has been so long," she said, her voice quieter now, though laced with tension. "So long since I’ve seen one of my kind. But I’m not that happy actually."

She stepped closer, her gaze flicking between them in a studying and measuring manner.

Then she gestured faintly toward the table.

"Sit down. Sorry, I don’t have anything to serve."

Eccar and Krono exchanged a brief glance, then moved together.

They sat beside one another at the two nearest chairs.

Across from them, the Ice Dragon sat with her back straight, her cold eyes locked on them.

"If you’re lying to me, I will attack. You two are disturbing my peace right now," the Ice Dragon said, her voice flat but carrying a sharp edge that cut through the cold air.

Eccar’s jaw tightened. His fingers twitched against the armrest as irritation flared in him, but he clenched his teeth and forced himself to stay still.

Krono leaned forward slightly, his golden eyes steady and unblinking. He could see her impatience so he didn’t waste time.

"There are entities moving behind the veil," Krono said. "Strange beings that are able to twist fate. They are manipulating everything from the shadows. They’re doing it right now."

He paused just enough for his words to settle before continuing. "Even Dragonborn can be turned into their pawns. I’ve seen it. One of our kin was bent to their will and made into a weapon to destroy a world. It will happen again unless we stop it."

Her silver eyes narrowed, flicking between them. The tension in her frame grew sharper.

She sat back slightly, her claws tapping against the icy table.

"Work together with us," Krono continued. "That’s why we came. To stop this being before it reaches you too."

The chamber fell into silence, the weight of his words lingering in the frigid air.

The Ice Dragon’s body stiffened, her jaw setting as her sharp breath came out in a thin plume of frost.

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