My way excels at solving complicated problems, but more often than not, it just creates even more complicated ones.
Like when I grabbed a thug passing by and punched him in the face, only to find out he was the Count’s House Prodigal.
Or when I turned the Evil Merchant Lord into a eunuch, only to discover the Duke’s House was pulling the strings behind him.
Even summoning the Temple of All Gods and executing a Dragon in front of the Supreme Deities to erase the deeply rooted Perfectionism and Unity Ideology among the Dragons—such drastic measures fell into the same category.
As a result, the Dragons had no choice but to obey me. Yet, by denying the Perfectionism and Unity Ideology, I left them with nothing to fill the void of what they had always believed in, and that could only become a problem.
“…Ha. Seriously, these people are out of their minds.”
Still, even considering that, I was certain that what I did wasn’t wrong.
That certainty only solidified further as I cleaned up the ‘poison’ of the Unity Ideology.
They called torture—which could kill their own offspring—’correction.’ There was no reason to think they wouldn’t do even worse.
“Well, look at this. To make a physically disabled Dragon perfect, they transplant organs from another Dragon?”
The blood-soaked magical chamber was filled with makeshift beds and various magical instruments.
Among them, some medical devices had clearly been crafted directly by Dwarves.
The problem was, most of these so-called medical devices were actually tools for cutting and stitching together Dragon bodies.
This was proof they’d been experimenting on their own bodies—no, their own Dragon bodies—in pursuit of making a perfect Dragon.
And, digging further into the blood-drenched magic chamber, I saw rotting, abandoned Dragon corpses.
“Ha.”
Looking closer, the state of the corpses was truly grotesque.
Missing limbs were the least of it.
Some Dragons had their bellies split open, with traces showing their organs had been ripped out.
Dragon vitality is tenacious, so I could imagine the horror of them dying slowly, feeling every bit of that pain.
The Dragons used here must have been those deemed ‘below standard.’
No need to see more; it was obvious.
“OF.”
“Y-Yes!”
One of the Dragons following behind me quickly stepped forward.
Judging by how refreshed his face looked, even after seeing me decapitate a Dragon who refused to give up the Unity Ideology to the end, he must have originally harbored resentment toward the ideology.
I judged him the most reliable here and gave a direct order.
“You’ll take responsibility as the overseer and clean everything up. I don’t want to see a single drop of blood left in my sight. And those Dragons abandoned back there—hold a proper funeral. If you don’t appease their souls and those corpses rise as Demon Dragons, it’ll be your problem to handle.”
“U-Understood!”
Having realized I had already brought out the Temple of All Gods and received the Supreme Deities’ acknowledgment, the Dragons were acting far more deferential than I remembered.
Well, after all, they’d seen me gain the full support and recognition of their creators and inherit the authority to execute Dragons.
If they didn’t humble themselves now, that would be another kind of problem.
It’s not like I could go around bashing the head of every single one I disliked.
Anyway, it took about three hours to handle these remaining little ‘poisons’ as well.
If this ideology had sparked some political system among the Dragons like in human history, things wouldn’t have ended so easily.
Luckily, these Dragons lived just fine without that kind of thing, so it could be resolved without complicated procedures.
‘Now the only thing left is how to restore the self-esteem of the fallen Dragons.’
I already knew the answer to that part.
And perhaps the Throne Lord, who could observe all of the Heavenly Palace, knew it to some extent as well.
But whether the other Dragons could come to realize that answer depended entirely on the Lord’s will.
I returned at once to the plains where the Lord resided.
When I beckoned, the obedient Thrall, who’d been quietly waiting inside, scurried over to my side.
“The poison has been mostly resolved, but one big problem remains.”
As I took the Thrall’s hand and spoke, the Lord nodded.
“Is there a solution?”
“You might already know, Lord, but in the end, we’ll have to find a way to restore the Dragons’ self-esteem. And unlike removing the poison, this won’t be a simple fix.”
“…That’s true. The way to restore self-esteem must be found by oneself.”
Exactly. That’s the problem.
Dragons, compared to Humans, live for almost an eternity.
But their mental maturation takes proportionally as long.
No one could know how long it would take them to find a way to rebuild their broken self-esteem.
To begin with, among countless people, some never discover what it means to recover their self-esteem for their entire lives.
There was no reason to think Dragons, who live even longer, would be any different.
“But one thing is certain. Dragons were never born as Dragons by their own will. Just as we didn’t choose to be born as Humans.”
The hearts of people are fickle.
No, more precisely, the hearts of intelligent beings are fickle.
It’s only natural to envy in others what one lacks oneself.
“It’s no wonder there’s a saying that the grass is always greener on the other side.”
Moreover, now that they have a common enemy, it’s not the time to fill their self-esteem by disparaging others in barbaric ways.
That’s because we’re in a cooperative relationship.
So, for an Elf to envy a Dwarf’s craftsmanship, or for a Human to envy an Elf’s beautiful appearance, is not strange, but a natural thing.
“So, then, why do Dragons—who are born with all those things, and who can surpass every so-called inferior race with effort—lack self-esteem? Lord, how would you answer?”
The Lord replied with a bitter smile.
“You could pin any reason on it, but the core issue is probably the lack of freedom.”
Dragons, from the moment of their birth to their deaths, are confined to the Heavenly Palace to fulfill their duties as guardians.
And within, they must live for far longer than any other race.
Able to do anything, they lose interest in everything.
Despite being superior to all others, all they can do is watch the outside world progress.
No matter how superior they are, unable to display it, unable even to reveal it, in such a restrictive environment, Dragons have gradually chosen to give up.
The Unity Ideology only sped up that process of ‘giving up.’
And what they gained was a self-hypnosis that they were perfect.
Because they are perfect, they need nothing from the outside.
Because they are perfect, there’s no need to show it off.
Such thinking gave rise to a uniquely Dragon society that considered this very restraint to be noble.
“Well then, it’s time to find a solution.”
But before discussing solutions, there was a necessary question.
“We cannot grant Dragons freedom. There’s the contract with the Supreme Deities.”
“That’s right. Because of the Sacred Contract of Genesis made at the beginning, most Dragons cannot leave the Heavenly Palace.”
“Yes. Most of them.”
If the contract with the Supreme Deities was perfect, then not a single Dragon could leave the Heavenly Palace.
But the Thrall, and the five Dragons who attacked the Elf Kingdom, were able to escape from the Heavenly Palace.
What did the Thrall and the five Dragons have in common?
“Unprepared, young Dragons. Such Dragons aren’t bound by the Supreme Deities’ contract?”
“The contract laid down at Genesis by the Supreme Deities set the standard as mature Dragons.”
Young Dragons were not included in the contract that had never changed.
“Because of the influence of the first Dragon Lord who created the Unity Ideology back at Genesis, young Dragons were practically forbidden from going out into the world. That custom has carried on as tradition until now.”
That five young Dragons were selected this time was an extraordinary measure.
It also indicated just how turbulent public opinion inside the Heavenly Palace had become regarding the Thrall.
‘Bringing out the Temple of All Gods turned out to be a blessing in disguise.’
If I hadn’t invoked the name of the Supreme Deities to claim the Thrall, I might still be fighting fiercely with the Dragons even now.
“Well, yes. In any case, I’ve learned something important.”
There was a way to circumvent the Sacred Contract of Genesis that bound the Dragons to the Heavenly Palace.
Through the young Dragons.
“Lord. I believe it’s time for Dragons to break their conventions and reveal themselves to the world. What do you think?”
“…Reveal ourselves?”
“To recover, Dragons must first recognize that they are not perfect beings. For that, the first thing they need is diverse experiences.”
What Dragons need is, in fact, ‘experience’ itself.
But within the environment of the Heavenly Palace, such experience is impossible.
Naturally, to all Dragons who can’t leave the Heavenly Palace, ‘experience’ is almost out of reach.
Of course, the Lord is an exception.
As the only Dragon who can observe the world through foresight, it’s not really fair to say he lacks experience.
Indirect experience is still experience, after all.
“That’s why, to gain experience, the Dragons need to show themselves.”
“…Are you suggesting we open the Heavenly Palace?”
“That’s right.”
I spoke aloud what I’d only ever imagined in my mind since deciding to resolve this situation.
“However, we shouldn’t just open it up. It’s best to use diplomatic exchange with other nations as the justification. By opening up for such purposes, it will be easier to interact with and experience the culture of other countries.”
The Lord calmly raised his head and asked,
“What benefit do we gain from this?”
“First, it’ll encourage lively exchanges with the outside, giving Dragons indirect experience. They’ll get to hear how so-called inferior beings struggle desperately to live, what they do for it, and what they live for.”
The Lord cocked his head slightly.
“Hearing such things is beneficial?”
“You may be able to learn anything just by closing your eyes and listening to the stars, Lord, but other Dragons aren’t like that.”
“The biggest problem for Dragons was that their eyes and ears were closed off. Worse, everyone was watching everyone else, making it nearly impossible to even share opinions. Frankly, they’ve just been growing older with no experience whatsoever. For such fledglings, hearing about the lives of inferior beings is the most suitable experience.”
“Even if their freedom of movement is restricted by their duty as guardians, their freedom of thought isn’t. By now, they should know how pointless it is to claim they are perfect. After spending centuries upon centuries sealed in their shells, it’s time to break out.”
“Hm.”
The Lord’s eyes sank deeply as he let out a positive hum at my words.
“Still, simply gaining experience isn’t enough to fill their self-esteem.”
“I know.”
Experience is only experience.
It’s a completely separate domain from self-esteem.
But to ask if there’s no overlap at all—well, that’s not quite true.
“Without experience, one cannot form a definition of oneself.”
Dragons are Dragons, no matter what.
They are guardians of the world and always will be.
But at the same time, being a guardian is nothing but a ‘duty.’
Filling their self-esteem with pride in duty alone was a futile struggle for Dragons obsessed with perfection.
Given how they’d been enchanted by the notion of a ‘true Dragon’—something even they themselves couldn’t imagine—it could never help.
“A definition of oneself?”
I nodded and replied to the Lord’s question.
“I am Owen the Hero.”
“I already knew that, though?”
“That’s right. But I never introduce myself as ‘Human.’”
At my words, the Lord’s eyes widened.
“Dragons say they are perfect and, since they can do everything, end up deceiving themselves into thinking they have no interest in anything.”
But my opinion differs.
“It’s not that they aren’t interested because they can do everything; it’s because there’s no one to show what they can do to, so all interest fades. What do you think, Lord?”