Heroes and Dragons

5

Inside, I found a neatly arranged large room with a hefty dragon sitting in the center. Its entire body was pure white, and it was slurping noodles from a big bowl with its short arms. Caught off guard by my sudden intrusion, the dragon stopped eating, leaving half a strand of noodle dangling from its mouth, unsure whether to swallow or spit it out. It just stared at me, clearly embarrassed.

After a while, it managed to say weakly, "I'm off duty today."

"I'm not a hero," I quickly clarified, "I'm not here to fight you."

Heroes who challenge dragons must pass a certification exam and wear a badge on their chest. The badge, made of solid gold and about the size of a coin, shines brightly, signifying the bearer's right to challenge the dragon. As for me, well, I had no such thing.

"Then you are...?" The dragon looked puzzled but soon became panicky. It threw its bowl of noodles aside, grabbed a piece of furniture to cover itself, and turned its back to me, saying, "Sorry, I need to put on some clothes first."

I was confused until I saw its scales shift from pure white to dark gray.

This was more in line with the dragon I had seen from afar before.

So, the dragon's "clothes" were just the color patterns on its scales. Fascinated by this new knowledge, I watched as the dragon turned back to face me, frowning, "May I ask what brings you here?"

"I'm just dropping by," I replied casually. "I'm your neighbor, living in the small cave next door."

This dragon didn't seem fierce at all; instead, it appeared somewhat dim-witted, making it hard to feel intimidated. Realizing I had come empty-handed, I felt a bit awkward, but I offered the small lamp I had brought as a gift: "Look, I even brought you a present."

"Oh? Thank you." The dragon picked up the spilled bowl, looking surprised yet bashful, and somewhat clumsy. "Are you hungry? I can make you a bowl of noodles."

Though it was hard to believe, I must have been the first person in the world to share a bowl of noodles with a dragon.

During our meal, we chatted, and I learned that it was a very young dragon, about my age, and had only recently started its post here. Dragons, it turns out, have an organized system similar to heroes. Like heroes undergoing certification, every newborn dragon undergoes rigorous training from a young age. Only after passing an assessment are they assigned to a lair in a Dark Mountain to play the antagonist, all in hopes of someday earning the title of a true "villain."