"Plan?" Rhode casually asked, "Is it to train you guys?"
Gajeel denied, "How could it be? He's talking about a plan from over 400 years ago. We're not 400 years old."
"That's true."
Rhode mused that since Jilconis could immediately identify Wendy as a Dragon Slayer Mage, training them must not be a secret plan.
"But..." Natsu suddenly wore a serious expression but then burst out laughing, "You actually talk to food!"
Jilconis angrily replied, "That's why humans are such hateful creatures!"
Rhode felt that Natsu's remark had a touch of Lucy's style.
"So, what happened with the war?" Wendy timidly asked, "All these bones here, were they from the war...?"
Jilconis did not refuse to answer the question despite Natsu's remark. He wore a vivid look of reminiscence on his face, "More or less, though it wasn't like how you imagine.
"A war between dragons, setting the sky ablaze and tearing the earth apart, but our powers were roughly equal, so the war dragged on.
"However, from the perspective of the coexistence faction, they were at a disadvantage because they had to protect humans, while we only needed to cause destruction."
Natsu wanted to comment "villain, rogue," but Rhode gave him a nudge, so he kept quiet.
Jilconis said, "To regain the 'upper hand', to end the fight early, or perhaps to give humans the ability to defend themselves,
"those fools devised the most foolish strategy—giving humans the power to fight dragons, which they called Dragon Slayer Magic."
Is this the origin of Dragon Slayer Magic?
This was different from what Rhode had previously understood.
The books he had read only vaguely stated that 'Dragon Slayer Magic was created to battle dragons'.
As for who created it and how, there was no mention.
He had thought it was human wisdom, but it turned out the source was dragons?
Jilconis's tone became somewhat mocking, "In a sense, they succeeded, I suppose. The emergence of Dragon Slayer Mages changed the course of the war, bringing victory for the coexistence faction within reach.
"However, as their power grew, the Dragon Slayer Mages began relentlessly hunting dragons, sparing neither side.
"And among them, the strongest man, having slain so many dragons and bathed in dragon blood, saw his skin gradually transform into scales, his teeth into fangs, his hands and feet into dragon claws... until he completely became a dragon!"
Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy all gaped in shock—they could barely handle a single dragon among the three of them, how strong was this man who kept slaying dragons?
Seeing their seemingly oblivious expressions, Jilconis reminded them, "You guys are Dragon Slayer Mages, right? Becoming a dragon is the end of the path of Dragon Slayer Magic."
"!" The three simultaneously looked down at their hands, wondering if continuing to practice Dragon Slayer Magic would turn them into dragons.
"The dragons slumbering here were all slain by that man, though by then, he was no longer human, but the Dragon King. The battle where the Dragon King emerged was also called the Dragon King Festival."
"Hiss..." Rhode was taken aback.
For he had seen the name Dragon King Festival before.
He had encountered it while studying history, and just a while ago while researching the Great Demon Fighting Martial Arts.
It was described in ancient times as a festival once widespread, a 'feast of humans, dragons, and magic'.
'Magic' referred not to demons but to magic itself.
In essence, it was a nationwide grand magic festival—though its content might differ, its form and influence were akin to today's Great Demon Fighting Martial Arts!
Although the Great Demon Fighting Martial Arts only rose in popularity in recent years, the organizers mentioned it had an inconspicuous alias—the Dragon King Festival!
In the Dragon's Cemetery—or rather, near the original site of the Dragon King Festival—hosting a modern version of the Dragon King Festival,
what exactly was the Fiore Kingdom trying to achieve?
Was it a coincidence, intentional, or perhaps just the royal family's whim due to an age-old name?
Meanwhile, there was something even more concerning.
Dragons have long lifespans, and if someone transformed into a dragon 400 years ago and became so powerful no dragon could defeat him, did he still live today?
Reflecting on such possibilities, Rhode thought of one name: "Acronologia, have you heard of this name?"
"Eh?" The other three were taken aback, the name left a deep impression on them.
Jilconis's eyes also changed subtly, showing a hint of fear:
"It's him! He survived until now? Those black wings, both dragon-like and not… The name of the king born at that Dragon King Festival is Acronologia!"
It was really him!
Rhode knew he was powerful, but not to this extent.
One person hunting dragons and wiping out all dragons...
Now it made sense that even the Celestial Wolf Group, along with Purgatory, Mountain Range, and Cloud Realm, couldn't defeat him.
Gajeel exclaimed in shock, "You must be joking, right? That monster was a Dragon Slayer Mage transformed?"
Natsu and Wendy also struggled to maintain their composure.
Jilconis, who had just said he enjoyed humans' frightened expressions, now found himself unable to smile:
"The vast majority of dragons were eradicated by him alone; we were probably the last batch. Ridiculously, even with a desperate fight, we couldn't escape being slaughtered one-sidedly."
The group silently digested this shocking revelation.
Wendy suddenly reminded, "Time is running out, Jilconis's soul power won't sustain much longer."
"Really?" Jilconis smiled, "I don't know why, although humans are annoying, you guys aren't that annoying.
"So, one last thing for you... The prophecy within the Dragon Race states that the 'king' won't always stay rational. When he has no dragons left to slay, maybe the Dragon Slayer Mages will become the dragons he needs to slay.
"And then when the Dragon Slayer Mages disappear too... the world... he..."
The last sentence was fragmented, and then Jilconis's soul flickered like a TV with static and completely vanished.
A few small bubble-like residual souls remained in the air, then also vanished completely.
Wendy tried sensing for a moment, shook her head, and said gently, "Jilconis has completely left this place."
Gajeel scratched his head, "Seems like we've learned something incredible."
Natsu clenched his fists, "Does he mean that guy will come for us too?"
Rhode shook his head, "He'll probably go after your dragons first, if... let's hope that 'if' never comes."