CHAPTER 30: CHAPTER 28 : ISPHYRIELA’S DOMAIN

The white serpent sped through the forest, weaving with such precision that there was barely a chance to take in the scenery.

Lin, however, couldn’t help but stare at the breathtaking landscape—cascading waterfalls, vibrant trees shimmering in the light. Despite everything, it was beautiful.

He eventually leaned back and fell asleep on the serpent’s smooth back.

Oriliana, who had been resting beside him, gently pulled him closer, wrapped her arms around him, rested her cheek on his shoulder, and began whispering.

“Honey...”

Startled, Lin jolted awake, nearly falling off the serpent’s back. But Oriliana caught him just in time, easing him back into a seated position.

This time, she hugged him even tighter.

“Why are you so jumpy?” she asked sweetly. “Did you miss me?”

In a barely audible voice, Lin muttered, “No.”

In response, Oriliana pinched his side—hard—right near his ribs.

Lin clenched his jaw, biting back the pain and rising anger.

“Hey, Lin, relax. I know you miss my sister... but wait until her pregnancy is over. Then you’ll get your chance.”

Motherfucker... Lin thought bitterly. I don’t want you or your damn sister. If I could kill you both right now, I would.

His mind began racing.

What if I attacked the serpent’s eyes, forced it to flip, and used the chaos to leap at Oriliana midair and kill her? Then I could turn on the rest and finish them off...

But... would the others even join in?

No—this serpent’s too fast. I’d never pull it off. I’d die before I even moved.

And even if I could—she’s holding me too tightly to break free. On top of that, she said the curse she placed on my heart would kill me if she dies.

It’s a bad gamble. A total failure waiting to happen.

Lin closed his eyes, calling out silently: Azareen... do you know how to break a queen’s curse?

Azareen’s voice answered,

"If I did, I would die. It’s bound by the contract between my ancestors and the First Serpent Queen."

Damn it, Lin thought. A golden opportunity... wasted.

Before he could dwell on it further, a sudden blow slammed into him.

Oriliana had kicked him off the serpent.

He landed hard in the snow, his face swelling from the impact. A second later, Oriliana dropped down and landed squarely on his head with a soft thud.

Snow clung to Lin’s face as he clenched his fists, doing everything he could to suppress the rage bubbling inside.

The others dismounted the serpent, stepping onto the snow.

Oriliana turned to the massive white serpent. “Shrink.”

At her command, the serpent shrank in size and coiled protectively around her.

Elenius extended a hand toward Lin and helped him to his feet.

“Let’s go,” he said. “We will enter now.

A mocking voice rang out from the edge of the clearing.

“Well, well, well... look who we have here. Oriliana herself. And the Serpent Clan.”

From the shadows emerged a tall, sharp-clawed woman, her white hair flowing in the wind, and blood-red eyes gleaming with sadistic delight. A deep scar split her face diagonally, and her long black robe fluttered like smoke.

“I heard you got married... and pregnant. Hah.”

Oriliana’s hand clenched at her side.

This wasn’t their territory—and any show of weakness would cost her.

Her eyes flicked toward 3 princesses.

One of them had betrayed her or maybe all of them . That much was clear.

The ghoul queen’s blood-red eyes focused on him suddenly.

“And what’s this? The serpent boy? You smell like impurity.”

Before her chuckle fully faded,

Lin’s smile turned razor-sharp.

“Careful, Queen... your breath smells like it’s been marinating in a coffin for centuries!

Do you rinse with swamp water, or is that just a royal thing?”

Oriliana burst into laughter—sharp and genuine.

She leaned slightly on Lin’s shoulder, wiping a tear from her eye.

"I’ve truly missed this," she said quietly, with gratitude in her voice.

The queen snarled, but didn’t reply.

Behind her, the two ghoul youths watched him.

One was blindfolded, smiling, with shark-like teeth, and the other’s white, wavy hair covered his eyes.

The smiling one tilted his head.

“Your venom is so weak I can’t even smell it, snake.”

Lin scoffed:

“Cute. One’s a mime and the other’s a failed barber shop ghost.

Your clan is collecting horror props now, or did you two sneak out of a haunted circus?”

The blindfolded ghoul took a step forward, fury rising—

but the queen raised her hand with a flick, stopping him.

Then came the sound of heavy footsteps crushing the snow.

The Queen of the White Wolves stepped into view.

Emerald-green eyes. Silver fur robe. Regal and deadly.

Two towering half-man, half-wolf guards flanked her.

Behind them, the massive white wolf glided forward like a specter.

She looked at Lin in disdain.

“I can smell weakness in your blood.”

Lin raised a brow, voice dry:

“Really? I smell a wet dog. But I guess we all have our talents.”

He glanced at the two hulking guards.

“Nice heads, by the way. Did you lose a bet, or did your mom actually sleep in a kennel?”

The queen’s jaw tensed, her eye twitching, a rare crack in her regal mask.

“You dare......”

But before she could finish, Oriliana chuckled again, louder this time.

“Oh Lin,” she said, fanning herself. “I forgot how entertaining you can be.”

Yeh entertaining, I will send everyone here to hell with me, just wait everyone here will taste my madness he scoffed.

And then, from behind, light shimmered across the clearing.

The elves arrived.

Calm. Regal. Watchful.

Their leader, a woman with blue hair and golden eyes, wore gold-adorned garments. The curve of her bare shoulder reflected elegance. She was one of a kind. Her beauty alone could shatter the will of anyone present, yet she stood still and unmoved."

"The elf man with long blue hair offered a faint smile.

With sharp green eyes and dressed in elegant green-black garments, he radiated a mature, wise presence as the light danced softly off him."

The girl with twin ponytails covered her mouth, barely suppressing laughter.

Even the eldest daughter smirked in amusement, exchanging a glance with her mother.

Lin remained still.

No smirk. No sarcasm.

“You know... you all look like Smurfs,” he said flatly, then added with a faint shrug, “Not that you’d even know what that is.”

No one reacted, as if they didn’t even understand what “Smurfs” meant.

“At least someone here knows how to keep their mouth shut.”

Just then, a powerful voice echoed from the mist—a woman’s voice, sharp and commanding.

The ground quaked violently. A deep rumble tore through the earth as a hidden road split open before them.

At its end stood a massive palace gate, carved into the mountain’s face, the stone shaped into a dragon’s head with its mouth open.

Before the gate, five magnificent head beings stood frozen in time:

A white serpent, coiled mid-strike.

A hulking white ghoul, claws outstretched.

A majestic white wolf, teeth bared.

An Sapphire Moon elf, eyes wide with fading magic.

All of them trapped in crystal-clear ice, as if sealed in their final moments.

An ominous chill lingered in the air, as if the place they had entered was a dead end.

Everyone surrounding Lin felt a mix of hatred and sorrow.

They stepped into the long, echoing cave—its walls gleaming with ancient frost, every breath turning to mist in the cold air.

At the far end, upon a throne carved from glacial stone, sat a woman draped in a

flowing, semi-transparent robe that shimmered like falling snow.

Her long white hair cascaded down her back like silk, and her eyes—completely white, devoid of pupils—glowed with an eerie stillness. A radiant mark pulsed on her

forehead, ancient and unreadable.

She didn’t speak.

She simply tilted her head... and looked at Lin.

A slow, unsettling smile formed as she tilted her head.

It made Lin’s blood run colder than the cave around him. Then he gave a short chuckle, tilting his neck as if swallowing something.

Lin hadn’t realized he was facing a dragon, not a knight or a serpent.

"This place is not to be messed with.

It wasn’t ordinary combat like with knights—it was absolute destruction.

He realized she was Isphyriela, the White Dragon Queen.

It wasn’t something he could handle.

But he still had a hidden trump card, one that would bring chaos to everyone here.

That was what gave him some hope and calm; fear would only bring death to him.

—----------------------

The Readers’ Archive

Dragons in the Magic World:

Dragons see themselves as the highest of all creatures — supreme in power, legacy, and pride.

They divide themselves based on strength, blood purity, and the lineage of their ancestry.

Most of the strongest dragons avoid interfering in politics or territorial disputes. Instead, they follow personal paths:

Some protect the world from catastrophic threats, others seek ancient knowledge, and a few simply fall into slumber or laziness.

However, after the retirement of the previous Dragon King, a new ruler rose with a different philosophy.

He believed that centuries of passivity and isolation had caused dragons to lose their aura of majesty and fearsome presence.

Under his rule, dragons began to claim specific regions among the world’s territories.

He declared that the age of slumber was over — that dragons must rise once more, not as watchers, but as rulers.

His philosophy reignited the pride of the dragon race, and the dragon clans began to rise again with power beyond imagination.

Some of the strongest dragons supported him. Others disagreed but chose not to interfere, observing from the shadows.

Among those who acted was Isphyriela — the White Dragon Queen.

Though considered of mid-tier power, she took control of the Gate of the Eternal Ice Abyss (Nivara) — a realm long left untouched by dragonkind.