The Raft

Dragon scales are extremely tough and durable; in ancient times, legendary heroes even crafted sturdy shields from them. With a bit of remaining magic, Lilith calmed her flaming dragon while Freyr boldly plucked off two scales.

They spent another day at the seaside, finding a large rock to sharpen the palm-sized dragon scales into somewhat sharp edges. The trio then worked for two more days.

Freyr and Naya chopped down several trees, while Lilith used vines to bind the trunks together. Freyr also made a few paddles from the logs. He went out and found large, gourd-like objects that could not only hold fresh water but also be tied to the raft to increase its buoyancy. Finally, Naya sacrificed her white cloak to make a sail.

When almost everything was ready, Lilith suddenly remembered a crucial issue.

"What about my dragon?" The poor girl suddenly realized this important problem. The raft couldn't accommodate a dragon!

Actually, Freyr and Naya had thought about this issue long ago but found it hard to bring up with Lilith. Normally, Lilith could use a sealing spell to carry her dragon around and summon it when needed. Unfortunately, without her magic, she couldn't seal the dragon to take it along.

Freyr and Naya exchanged glances, feeling awkward about answering Lilith's pitiable question. Lilith immediately understood, tears streaming down her face. "No! No! I can't leave my Radiance! My Radiance!"

She ran over, hugging the sleeping dragon tightly and refusing to let go. Freyr sighed, feeling a pang of guilt for the innocent girl. But what else could they do? They couldn't take such a large dragon with them.

Moreover, deep inside, Freyr didn't see dragons as powerful, noble creatures like the people of this world did. To him, whether it was a dragon or a snake, they were just animals. Human lives were most important. Sacrificing human lives for an animal was incomprehensible foolishness to Freyr.

Deep down, Freyr even considered slaughtering the "big animal" for meat, though he knew Lilith would be devastated. Despite her reluctance, Freyr and Naya forcibly brought Lilith onto the raft.

To Freyr's slight surprise, the fierce woman, Naya, showed rare tenderness toward her sister.

"Don't be surprised," Naya, familiar with Freyr's thoughts, explained, "I just lost my dragon too. I understand how this little one feels."

Freyr noticed a deep sorrow in Naya's eyes. As the two girls sat on the raft, Freyr pushed it into the sea and then jumped on. Naya managed the sail while Freyr paddled vigorously.

Lilith, forcibly brought on board, sat silently, tears streaming as she gazed back at the island where her pet dragon remained. Fortunately, the waves were small, but Freyr and Naya both looked tense, silently praying they wouldn't encounter the monster that could easily overturn their raft.

Freyr hoped they could quietly get far enough from the island for the two wizards to regain their powers and fly away.

"God, please protect us..." Naya muttered.

For Freyr, rowing hard was physically exhausting, but the desire to survive kept him going. Though his arms were sore, he pushed on. They had moved at least 200 meters from the shore.

"How do you feel?" Freyr shouted to Naya.

"Not yet, still nothing," Naya tried to summon a wind spell to enhance the sail but to no avail.

"Keep going," Freyr gritted his teeth.

However, it seemed fate wasn't on Freyr's side. About 100 meters further out, a huge wave suddenly rose from the calm sea, accompanied by a terrifying roar. In their horrified eyes, a wave about four to five meters high surged towards their small raft, smashing it apart in one hit. The vines snapped, and the raft shattered, throwing all three into the water.

As Freyr plunged into the sea, he felt a force binding him, rendering him immobile. Opening his mouth, seawater rushed in. Thinking he was about to die, Freyr's vision darkened as a whirlpool dragged him down...

When Freyr woke, his head was resting on something soft. His whole body ached as if it had been torn apart by a powerful force, with every muscle and joint throbbing in pain.