"The flames these died from… They're strange." Aegir said, analyzing some of the corpses. "They possess the divine power of the Red Orb, Drake."
"What?" I asked in surprise. "Are you sure? I can feel a faint power within their corpses, the blazing flames that burned them were certainly strong, perhaps in the divine level but…"
"Whoever did this atrocity is using my brother's fragments for it…" Aegir gritted her teeth, her blue eyes growing furious. "I won't forgive them…"
She became really serious out of the blue. It made me wonder if she was really as old as she says. Or perhaps, even if she was quite old, she lacks enough experience in life to be able to… well, react less to these kind of things.
"Yeah, I won't either." I nodded. "Though we have little clues who could had done it, there's a way to find out a bit more. But for that, we need to first offer these people a proper burial so they can pass away peacefully."
"Right…" Aegir sighed. "I had forgotten such an important thing…"
"Papa… These people…" Benladra sighed, looking at me.
"They're dead…" Kate sighed.
My daughters, for being so young, are already quite accustomed to life and death. It honestly, deep down, makes me quite sad, to take away such an innocence they deserved.
It makes me frustrated; I wish… things could be better. I wish we didn't had to constantly fight, nor to face so many atrocities. I wish… they could live without having to see such horrible things.
But this is the world we live in, the world I love so much, is also the world that brings so much pain…
"Yeah." I sighed, looking at my two daughters. "They're dead. What do you feel about seeing these things, my daughters?"
Benladra and Kate remained in silence as they looked at the expansive hellscape. I could tell that they feel empathy for these people, that they feel their pain, even after their deaths.
"I feel sad…" Benladra sighed. "I don't think these people… were baddies."
"It makes me angry…" Kate furrowed her eyebrows. "I want revenge for them."
A faint smile surged in my lips, as Benladann and Miranda walked to my side.
"It does seems that we've taught them well." Benladann sighed.
"Empathy is an important thing, it seems the two have learned it well enough." Miranda nodded.
"Yeah… Very well then, Benladra, Kate." I said, giving them head pats. "For now, shall we bury these people? So they can rest in peace."
"Nn." Kate nodded. "I'll help."
"M-Me too!" Benladra nodded.
"Alright." I sighed. "Let's begin. Everyone, I'll need your help for this."
Like that, we began to gently carry every single corpse outside of the village, and then, using Earth Magic, we buried them deep down into the soil, so they wouldn't get picked up by any scavengers.
"Phew… We're done, is it?" Yuki wondered, cleaning the sweat off her forehead. "That was… over 150 people… Gods, so many…"
"May they rest in peace." Kraxka sighed.
"May Valhalla welcome these valiant warriors." Larzak smiled.
"Now…" I said, channeling my Death Attribute Powers. "[Divine Death Magic]: [Call of Souls]"
FLAAAAASSSHH!!!
A wave of phantasmal energy emerged out of my body, covering everywhere. The souls of the dead slowly gathered and became visible for everyone. They looked grateful, some even at peace.
"W-Woah… These are… souls?" Asked Hector.
"Impressive, so Lord Drake can even communicate with those long dead." Kraxka said with admiration.
"Ah, it is a power I've possessed for a long while." I sighed. "I can use it for a variety of things, but lately, I tend to deactivate it because there's so many souls everywhere. But this is a special occasion."
"The souls of the dead…" Benladra said in surprise.
"Are they here with us?" Kate asked.
"Yeah, your papa has brought them here, so we can communicate with the before they completely pass away." Said Benladann.
"Though, they do seem rather… weak." Said Miranda.
"The flames that burned them also burned their souls." I sighed. "As pure souls, they do seem very weakened, barely any of them can talk, sadly. Hello, is there any of you that knows what happened here in detail?" I asked politely.
The souls wandered around, some were just fading away, others glanced at me with curiosity, but then flew away anyways. However, between the many souls, there was a single, big soul resting over his own grave, looking down.
"You… Who are you people?" He wondered, with an old man's voice. "I've never seen such generosity from outsiders before. You… have our thanks, in regard of our entire tribe. I am… Well, I used to be the chief of this village."
"The chief?" I asked. "I did what I had to do; you don't need to thank me. We've recently arrived in this continent, welcome from Jotunheim. I am… the Dragon King Drake, despite my appearance not telling that straight away. I am going on a journey to gather the Elemental Orbs that once belonged to Yggdrasil, and also, I'm here to find a Fire Dragon, son of Muspel."
The old man's soul glanced at me for a few seconds, in surprise.
"I've looked into your soul yet I can tell you're saying the truth… A Dragon King from all things?" He wondered. "Such things never surfaced on my grandson's oracle… Very well, I shall tell you, before I pass away… But you have to promise something to this old, pathetic man."
"What is it?" I asked.
"Please… protect my grandkids…" He cried.
"Sure." I nodded, without hesitating.
"N-No hesitation?" He wondered.
"I was taught by my parents that we Dragons are the guardians of this world." I smiled. "It is our duty to protect innocents in this world, and hunt down the wicked wrongdoers. As you can see, I am with my daughters right now too, I simply cannot falter in front of them, I have to be a good model."
"Heh…" The chief sighed. "It is an honor to finally meet a Dragon before completely passing away… Very well, lord Dragon King, I shall tell you everything that happened here, and the true name of our enemy."
