Headed by a Snake

By the time Elder Kakui was able to stand, he watched on as Guild Invictus (and Kimura Taree) slashed and pummeled the massive red dragon to a veritable death, even going as far as to completely sever its head from its body.

Every single combatant was soaked in blood. The blood splatter had gotten so bad that even Kakui and Young Master Tamaki had traces of blood on their clothing. The cool, hard-packed earth had transformed into a mess of hot, soggy mud from the dragon's spilled life essence.

Tycon let out a loud and contended sigh and he clapped his hands together.

"Guild Invictus! The integrity of our cave has been protected! Now, who's ready to soak in the hot springs?"

Guild Invictus and Tamaki cheered. Taree, covered in blood and dragon offal looked back to Elder Kakui in helplessness. Kakui took a deep sigh and silently accompanied the grisly group towards the waters.

...

The hot springs were nice.

Tycon had plenty of towels and extra clothes in his spatial ring, so everyone was able to relax for a while. It took nearly an entire bell for the party to clean their bodies and scrub their armors free of blood and lizardy viscera.

It took another half-bell for Guild Invictus to defeat a Fire Slime that Wroe "accidentally" summoned from another world. Wroe was harshly reprimanded.

Though, it could have been worse. Tycon recounted a tale about a former Irvhir associate named Zing Lee, who undertook a quest to lay a dragon. At the time, the general consensus was that the quest posting had a glaring and unfortunate error. In the past, Zing Lee was most insistent. In the present, Wroe was just as insistent. Wroe was harshly reprimanded.

Tycon advised Elder Kakui to salvage the large lizard's leather. It would be supple and naturally resistant to cuts, moreso than normal animal hide, and could be used for high-quality armor.

After a pleasant afternoon, Tycon and Korr hiked towards Old Fool's cave, while everyone else returned to the sect.

Tycon was hoping to secure a drop of blood essence from the aged serpent, hopefully securing a class-change for Korr from Berserk Knight to Flood Dragon Berserker. It would be the least he could do. Invictus was instrumental, after all, in resolving Old Fool's mana issues. And they'd even exterminated an arrogant red lizard, a potential threat to his sect.

...

Tycon led Korr by hand through the spacious, humid cavern, their way lit by a paper lantern.

"Hey, Old Fool. It's (Little White). We've come to visit."

With a great roil and toil of bubbles, Old Fool's big, stupid head emerged from the underground lake.

"(LITTLE WHITE!! IT WARMS MY HEART TO--)"

With a solid smack from Korr's fist, Old Fool's azure-white head reared back and splashed into the lake, sending large waves crashing upon the cavern shore. Tycon had to guard the flimsly lantern in order to keep it lit, but the two were otherwise wholly drenched.

Tycon grimaced at Korr with narrowed eyes. Her white shirt stuck to her skin, revealing her athletic figure and her underclothes. She was likely very pretty. Tycon didn't particularly care.

After enough glowering, she finally responded, "Wh-what? It's a dragon. I punched it."

"Don't be silly, girl. Dragons don't exist. Old Fool is a Koryu, a flood dragon."

Korr nodded with her mouth open. Did she really understand?

Old Fool peeked the top of his head out of the lake.

"(Little White, why hath thee arrived?)" The overgrown eel asked in a pained and piteous voice.

"This is Seldin Korr, and I'm here to--"

Old Fool's head surged out of the waters, "(Oho! Is this your mate?!)"

"Well... Uh... No," Tycon hesitated.

"(Then thou hast finally brought me a virgin! Is she a virgin?)" the serpent babbled.

"Will you shut up and let me speak, Old Pervert!!"

Old Fool retreated back into the water, only revealing his eyes, "(This humble one would prefer the other form of address, Little White.)"

Korr tugged on Tycon's cloak, "L-leader, what's he saying? Should I punch him again?"

"Not yet, Korr."

Tycon released the tension in his shoulders with a disgusted sigh, "Fine. I would have you grant a boon to this young lady."

A white mist enveloped Old Fool's form, too thick to see through. When the clouds began to clear, a wise old man calmly approached, his hands hidden by his robed sleeves. His deep-set wrinkles painted him as a gentle sage, a stark white ponytail and a long beard that fell down to his waist only added to his mystique.

"A mere boon, you say? 'Tis a simple matter, my child."

The old human fool grasped Korr's hand and placed two fingers upon her wrist, "Thou art fertile, young lady. My blessing upon thee! Thou hast permission to join with my son, Little White, in an Eternal Bond."

Tycon sprang up into the air and smashed both of his boots into the old man's head.

"NOT WHAT I'M HERE FOR!!" Tycon yelled indignantly.

"It's not good to hit your father," Korr frowned with a reddened face.

Tycon held his palms out, trying to explain. "He's not my dad!!"

Old fool laid on the floor, holding his cheek, "Little White, when hast thou been so aggrieved with thy father?"

Tycon drew his sword.

Old Fool had stood up rigidly, his hands sagaciously behind his back, "Ahem. So, how can this humble one help thee?"

Tycon resheathed his weapon, "Transformation. And you can speak the common tongue."

Old Fool gave an embarrassed smile, "This Old Fool must remain mysterious to the White Scale sect."

"Right. I want a drop of your Life Essence to instill into Korr."

Old Fool looked troubled, "That..."

Korr crackled her knuckles, but Tycon motioned for her to wait.

"What's the issue, Old Fool? Have we not done enough for your sect?"

"This Old Fool is still weakened from the Unsealing Ceremony. If I were to grant you my Blood Essence, I would weaken further still, and be unable to protect the sect. I'm sorry, but I must refuse, Little White."

Tycon crossed his arms. According to the System, Old Fool trusted Tycon completely. He had no reason to lie, "Is there no way, then?"

The old man looked up, remembering something, "The Kimura patriarch has a drop of my blood. How about this Old Fool accompany thee to reclaim it from him?"

"I'm not in the business of making incompetent losers into useless ones," Tycon grimaced.

"Perhaps I can interest thee in a treasure?" The elder smiled hopefully.

Tycon groaned. Sect treasures were valued highly by Martialsts and their subclasses but tended to have limited use outside of them.

A protective treasure or an aesthetically pleasing bracelet, even if Korr could only use a fraction of its potential, it would be a better gift than nothing. Tycon wanted to appease the woman before he ordered her to resume her duties in Nice as Sorina Capulet's bodyguard.

​ "Fine. What kind of treasure is it? A talisman? A box of spirit herbs? A 'high ranked' mana rock?"

The old man chuckled as he swept his robes and turned towards the lake. With a flick of his hands, an ivory-stoned walkway emerged from the depths. Stairs were revealed leading downward, while water streamed down the sides of its flanking white walls.

"Follow me, children," Old Fool smiled as he descended down the watery steps.