Singularity (Rimuru x Arifureta)

Chapter 11 | Silent Chat with the Dragon

"Father!"

The girl's, Tio's father was a giant of a man. Massive, scaled wings sprouted from either side of his back. This was the man Tio respected more than anyone, the king of the dragonmen, Kharga Klarus.

Kharga was in bad shape. The massive gash across his stomach was still bleeding. He was the sturdiest black dragon in existence. Even attacks capable of piercing his kimono would still be stopped by his impenetrable scales. And so, Tio was shocked speechless when she saw how wounded he was. Kharga smiled bitterly and knelt in front of his daughter.

"Tio. As you can see, we have lost. Though we tried everything we could, we were unable to fight against the changing times. I am sorry I could not at least leave you behind a home to live in."

"That, that cannot be. How could you say that, Father! For the dragonmen to perish at the hands of something so insignificant... It cannot be! Tell me it can't!"

"We have become the enemies of the entire world... Tio, do you remember what I told you? The one thing you can never do is avert your eyes from reality."

"Father."

That one word was filled with unimaginable pain and sorrow. Tio hugged her father, heedless of the grime and blood that smeared onto her kimono.

It just couldn't be. Dragonmen were supposed to be the guardians of this world. They had built a place where people of any nationality, any race were accepted. A place where people helped each other and worked together. A place of peace. Every country, every species, had been indebted to the dragonmen in some way.

And yet, in just a few years it had all fallen apart. In the span of a few seasons, everything changed.

Dragonmen were monsters. Dragonmen were oppressing the different races. Dragonmen were prone to going berserk. Dragonmen had turned against the gods. Dragonmen were... heretics. How did it come to this? Tio thought.

Dragonmen's ability to transform certainly was fearsome. It was magic no other creature, sentient or monster, possessed. But that was precisely why Dragonmen had strove to be nobler than anyone else. To turn that fear into awe, and then into respect.

They had disciplined themselves rigorously. At all times they were ready to help others, a paragon of bravery, and both the sword and the shield of all people.

As a result, they had managed to create a mortal paradise. Though it had taken centuries, they had created a kingdom where all races were accepted. Not only that, but they had created a global alliance, so that all people, everywhere, would help each other in times of need.

—Guardians of the world. —Protectors of peace. —Kings among kings. That was how the people had seen dragonmen. But now those same people were killing her countrymen, spewing vile insults at them as they destroyed her home.

It felt unreal, like a nightmare. Over the course of a few years, everyone had come to despise and fear dragonmen. And now an alliance composed of every other race was burning her city. She still couldn't believe it. This couldn't be real, it had to be a dream. All she wanted was to wake up from this nightmare.

Wake up and go back to a world where her friends and family were still alive. Where the lush trees and sparkling rivers of her hometown were still there. Where people still lived happily together, regardless of race or nationality.

"Tio! Get a hold of yourself! The future of the Klarus dynasty rests with you!"

"Father..."

Her father's stern voice brought her back to reality. She wiped away her tears and looked up at her father. She couldn't just cry forever, and wallowing in pleasant daydreams would achieve nothing.