Dragon's Tale 34 (Patreon)

“It must be a trap,” I murmured in shock as I watched the ward at the entrance melt away, providing me with access, even though it absolutely made no sense. Considering the location of the city, and the function it served, a trap like this made no sense, but I wanted to believe it to be true. 

Because, the alternative possibility was even crazier. The ward melting away like this meant that I was authorized to pass through the wards, which made no sense at all. How could I be registered to a ward that was constructed centuries ago? 

I didn’t walk through the doorway immediately, instead of focusing my attention on the wards. They stayed inert under my magical touch, giving me the opportunity to examine them carefully, making my task much easier, not that it meant I could decipher all the secrets it held easily. 

The identification structure of the ward was easy enough to understand, not to exact specifics, but I was able to recognize a section focusing on identifying the heritage of the visitor, while simultaneously measuring the power as well, however it was also wrought with many time-tracking additions. 

“Maybe it’s because I’m a Scipio,” I murmured after spending half an hour without discovering anything useful, and deciding to take the plunge. I passed through the doorway without dying, so my gamble paid off, but the questions remained. 

Because, even as I said it, I knew that my Scipio heritage was unlikely to be the reason for my passage. Yes, my ancestors worked alongside both Caesar and Augustus during their rebellions, but in neither time, they had a strength that would justify being granted direct access to such an important section like this. 

“Maybe…” I murmured, before I shook my head, dispelling those thoughts for a moment. The reason I could access this section didn’t matter, not when I finally had the access to the information I desperately needed. 

I could finally crack my problematic Ascension. 

Excitement dispelling my need to sleep, I started reading vigorously anything fundamentally related to Sorcerer ascension. 

Only to find out that by any rational measure, I should be dead already. From what I could find out, my Ascension wasn’t just a botched version of a normal Ascension. Not even close. 

According to the books, being a Sorcerer meant going against the natural order of the world, therefore, it needed to be conducted in an area that was completely isolated from the four elements of the natural order, namely, Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. If one tried to Ascend without isolation, the combined backlash from the four elements was supposed to destroy the mage that dared to defy the order. 

There wasn’t anything about the rejection I was receiving from the four elements as well, but considering the fates of the others that failed to Ascend, I wasn’t really torn up about that particular advantage. 

And, there was nothing at all relating to the lightning, the dominant element of the Sky. 

In all the books I read, there was not even direct mention of it in relation to the Ascension process. Like the possibility didn’t exist at all. The closest thing was able to find was the descriptions of the God-kings in the ancient city cities, before the Great Collapse of the Bronze Age, but considering the timeline it referred was about three millenniums ago, before the great collapse had destroyed the ancient city-states so thoroughly that even finding written records of them become near-impossible, I wasn’t going to take it as reliable information. 

Still, the mention of the God-Kings, bathing under the rain of lightning interesting. Pity that I didn’t have time to delve into such an unrelated academic pursuit. 

In the end, I shifted my research focus away from the Ascension, trying to understand how to improve my own power. Luckily, on that aspect, the library was far more fruitful. Even though most of the tempering exercises and the spells were based on the four elements, the library also included a huge section on the non-elemental pursuits, from complicated and intricate runes impossible to be powered by normal mages, to the forging techniques on how to craft deadly weapons. 

The only disappointing aspect was the lightning-based spells and tempering exercises. After spending four hours, I was barely able to find a handful of lightning spells, and only one tempering Technique, which was called the Wrath of the Heavens. Not exactly the friendliest name. 

Though, as I read the tempering technique, I could understand why. The essence of the technique lied on summoning lightning directly to one’s body while staying in a specially-designed room. The room was supposed to reduce the impact of the lightning multiple times to ensure the survival of the Sorcerer, who then needed to use his magic to absorb the remaining lightning across his body in a fixed pattern, forcing the lightning to burn his core. 

The result was a smaller, yet purer core with stronger output and more flexible magic. 

I doubted it would work as described for me considering my weird yet beneficial relationship with the Lightning element. Still, it was worth a try. Maybe I could modify something for my preference. 

Still, rather than leaving the room immediately, I continued searching for more. This time, the search wasn’t for myself, but for the girls. 

This time, the research was far more fruitful. I had found many techniques that could quickly strengthen the mages toward the threshold. 

It was already morning when I finally left the library, and stumbled toward the house. On the way, I first saw Astrid, who was only wearing her poorly-tailored underwear, the kind even a beggar would turn her nose, but somehow looking sexy in them. “Good morning,” I said exhaustedly. 

“Are you okay?” she said as she dashed toward me immediately, her generous assets shaking beautifully enough to dispel my exhaustion. After spending a long night parsing complicated texts, I wanted to relax. 

So, I grabbed her and pushed her against the wall. “No, but I’m about to be,” I whispered into her ear even as I ripped her ugly underwear off, leaving her pristine body naked once more. 

“You’re quite motivated-” Astrid managed to utter before she was interrupted by a moan when I slipped two fingers inside her, feeling her growing wetness. She didn’t resist as I pushed her toward the nearest wall, her tits pressing against the marble wall, clean thanks to their effort. 

“I spent all night trying to find the perfect tempering technique for you two,” I whispered even as I nibbled her neck, pushing my fingers even deeper inside her. “I earned a decent compensation.” 

“As you wish, my lord,” she gasped as she twisted her neck to face me, her green pupils dilated with excitement. I pulled her away from the wall for a moment, just enough to put my hand between her tits and the wall, squeezing to enjoy their firmness. 

Her legs parted open as I pushed my fingers deeper into her pussy, preparing for my invasion. Soon, her entrance was wet enough to allow my invasion, and I pulled my hand out, using it to remove my pants, which revealed my raging erection. 

“The monster is once again out,” she gasped in satisfaction as I pressed the head against her entrance, her wetness embracing the familiar presence immediately. 

“Yes. Let’s see whether the sacrifice would be enough to calm its rage, or whether it would search for more,” I added, making her tremble in excitement as I caressed her puckered hole, leaving no ambiguity about what I was referring to.  

“Maybe,” she gasped as slowly invaded her core, along with her moans. Considering she was a virgin just a week ago, not to mention a priestess forbidden to touch a man, she was showing amazing adaptability to my presence, like she was born to be mine. 

I was so lucky. 

“Faster,” she moaned as my shaft slowly invaded her entrance. Normally, I would have used it as an invitation to slow down even further, teasing her slowly, but this time, I was tapped out after an exhausting night in the library, and was looking for a quick release, so the moment the word left her mouth, I pushed deeper, extracting a loud moan of her. 

Her entrance stretched to embrace my presence easier, along with her wordless moans, worshipping my presence. Even as I pushed deep, however, she pushed her hips out, quickening the process even further. 

Being inside her was a divine experience, as usual. Silky and snug, she hugged my presence hard, trying to extract my essence. Unfortunately, that was not something that could be achieved immediately, so I continued to slam inside her, the sound of colliding flesh mixing with her cries. 

Once I was completely inside her, I decided to change the pace. I stopped for a moment, then slowly withdrawing it almost all the way out, only to reverse direction and mercilessly slam the full length in one merciless push. 

Then, Lillian walked in. “It’s the most interesting wake-up call I had ever heard,” she said mockingly as she sauntered toward us, her naked body glistening under the morning sun, her blonde hair almost golden with the reflection. When she came closer, she leaned to steal a kiss, something I was more than happy to accommodate. 

“How was the library?” she asked after she pulled back, her hands already on my arm, delivering a gentle massage to resolve my tenseness. I was more than happy to respond in kind. “Any discoveries?” she continued after a long kiss, while I continued to slam into Astrid. 

“Better than I expected,” I said. “I have found several useful spells, more importantly, tempering techniques to help you girls to get stronger faster. Along with the environment, I’m really hopeful. It shouldn’t take more than a few years to Ascend.” 

“That’s incredible,” she cried, her eyes wide. Her excitement was understandable. While there were many Sorcerers younger than thirty in the Republic, it wasn’t a coincidence that all of them came from Rome or the surrounding countryside. Essentially, any family with reliable tempering techniques to enable ascension could also afford to live in the capital as a middle-rank family. And being a middle-rank family was much better than being a top-dog anywhere else. 

Ultimately, Rome was the heart of the Republic. 

“You deserve a reward,” Lillian moaned as she gave another kiss before kneeling down, and pressed her lips against the base of my cock, assisting the treatment. I switched my assault on Astrid, going short yet rapid strokes instead of long ones, but Lillian’s lips and tongue proved to be a great addition. 

As I exploded inside Astrid, there was one thought in my mind. 

Sometimes, studying paid its dividends.