Dragon Keeper - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I found this weak Dragon while I was out on a mission.

At the time, I was rushing down the mountain, planning to finish my task and then represent the Beast Taming Sect at the grand competition held by the Sword Sect every fifty years.

I was just there to make up the numbers.

However, the appearance of this Dragon threw a wrench in my plans.

Upon inspection, I found no external injuries, yet it remained listless, its eyes half-closed.

It looked like its heart had died; the Dragon had lost the will to live.

I gave it a little nudge with my foot. It lazily lifted an eyelid and glanced at me.

Thinking it was blocking my path, it silently shuffled to the side before closing its eyes again.

“Are you trying to die?”

The Dragon answered despondently, “Pretty much. Mostly dead. About forty percent.”

It didn’t move an inch.

Ever since becoming a disciple of the Beast Taming Sect, I had majored in veterinary medicine and minored as a manicurist.

I specialized in grooming and cleaning beasts.

Seeing an animal lying there so dejected and spiritless, professional habit took over, and I instinctively placed my hand on the Dragon’s head.

Hmm… My probe revealed that the Dragon’s body was perfectly healthy; it was just suffering from a deep, internal melancholy.

The Dragon had a broken heart.

I hesitated for a moment before making a somewhat forward request.

“Uh… hey, before you die, could you follow me for a while?”

“Your scales are beautiful. Don’t let them go to waste.”

“I’d like to have a few of your scales after you pass away.”

I was lying to it.

What I was actually eyeing were the scales covering its entire body.

The Dragon let out a low hum, seemingly weighing the feasibility of the proposal.

In the end, the Dragon actually shrank itself down to the size of two fingers, making it easy for me to carry.

“At least you have good taste.”

“But my scales aren’t pretty anymore,” the Dragon muttered gloomily.

I curled the Dragon into a loop and wrapped it around my wrist.

Its tail dangled limply, tickling me, so I simply braided the little tufts at the end of its tail.

“It’s fine. Before you die, I’ll help you polish your scales until they’re glossy and bright, so you can go out with some dignity.”

After a short while, the somewhat coarse and dry scales rubbed my wrist raw.

Because the skin had broken, a tiny bit of blood seeped out.

I picked the Dragon up and sighed softly.

“How long has it been since you last groomed these scales? They’re way too rough.”

Dragons were usually fastidious about cleanliness; this one was being far too negligent.

This Black Dragon wasn’t violent or cold like others of its kind; its temperament could even be described as gentle.

I had barely finished that single sentence-which wasn’t even meant as a scolding-when the Dragon had a total breakdown…

It covered its head tightly with its tail, curled into a ball, and began sobbing uncontrollably.

“Awoo-hoo-hoo-no one helps me groom my scales! Every dragon in the tribe has their own little human to look after them, but I’m just an unwanted stray!”

As it cried, its emotions spiraled out of control, and the Dragon actually sobbed itself into a dead faint.

Me: “…”

I had never seen a Dragon so aggrieved that it actually cried itself unconscious.