The Long Journey After Becoming an Ancient Dragon

Aino walked along the road, her emotions complex.
She had somewhat expected this—after all, Parker had randomly brought up Tananorn earlier, glancing at her with a meaningful look. But he hadn’t said anything outright.

Now, with him giving her this item, his intentions were more than clear.
Gently stroking the precious gemstone in her hand, Aino could feel the Star Spirit Jade resonating with the wounds within her body. It recognized the injuries and instinctively seeped into her, trying to heal them. The moment she let her guard down, it would automatically begin the restoration process.
The wound left behind by the hero all those years ago was bizarre—neither on the surface nor deep within, but seemingly reaching all the way to her very essence. The original owner of this body had perished due to the gradual decay of their life force.

That wound had disappeared along with Tananorn’s "death," but the damaged life force remained unrestored. Perhaps only time could mend it.
If—if it were truly repaired, then her strength might…
Aino’s eyes gleamed with sharp light. Beneath her calm exterior, her heart pounded violently, barely able to suppress the excitement rising within her.

She would become a complete dragon.
Parker was actually willing to part with something like this—and so casually, too. As if it were nothing more than a parting “gift.”
Could he not treat something with the potential to shift the balance of the world so lightly?

The Founder of Human Magic, in private, gifting one of humanity’s forbidden artifacts to the walking calamity, allowing it to regain its full power—Parker was truly something else.
Having already traveled for some time before reaching the Peruvian Great Forest, Aino decided to use the jade before proceeding further. Power was the most important thing, no matter the circumstances.
Without further delay, she started looking for a secluded place to undergo her transformation.

Shifting into her dragon form, she soared high into the sky, taking in the vast expanse of the continent at a single glance. Cities, rivers—everything was visible with exceptional clarity. She scanned the land for the most desolate spot before diving downward.
“Look! What is that?”
“You’re kidding, right? I don’t see anything.”

“No, really! A huge monster just flew past!”
In her haste, Aino hadn’t thought it through—flying so openly near the Peruvian Great Forest had inevitably drawn attention.
The locals turned pale as ghosts, never having imagined that such a terrifying creature could exist so close to where they lived.

“…I should’ve walked to a more secluded place before transforming.”
Still in flight, Aino sighed inwardly. She had spent so much time in her dragon form that she was unconsciously becoming more reckless—acting without caution.
She hadn’t even done anything wrong. Surely no one would go out of their way to hunt her down just for this?
She soon arrived at the wasteland. The land here was dry and cracked, with sparse vegetation. Just ahead, the terrain transitioned into a vast desert.

It was a wretched place. Aino liked it.
After confirming that the surroundings were suitably barren, she reverted to her humanoid form and used her magic to interact with the Star Spirit Jade. Then, without hesitation, she pressed it firmly against her chest.
The emerald stone gradually dissolved into strands of spiritual energy, merging into Aino’s body. An indescribable sensation spread from deep within her soul, filling her with unparalleled comfort.

Time lost all meaning.
Half a month later, Aino finally opened her eyes. She had remained completely still the entire time, like a statue.
Power. A surge of immense power coursed through her body. The so-called Demon Kings and Heroes of the world—at this point, they were probably only on par with her.

At least, by her own estimation, her internal magical reserves were no weaker than they had once been.
Walking across the cracked earth, Aino found herself facing the familiar dilemma: Where to go next? What to do?
She turned westward. Beyond lay an endless desert. At first, there were patches of sparse grass, but further ahead, only golden dunes stretched as far as the eye could see.

It seemed like a fine choice—Aino had never seen a desert before.
To most people, the word desert evoked thoughts of dryness, decay, and death. Hardly a place suited for life. But for someone with the strength to ignore ninety-nine percent of the world’s dangers, a land associated with death was nothing more than a new place to explore.
After a brief moment of consideration, Aino adjusted her course and walked toward the shifting sands.

The deeper she went, the more granular the ground beneath her feet became. The rising temperature soon made itself known—she could feel the heat of the sand even through her boots.
She crouched down and plunged her hand into the ground. Even for an ordinary human wearing shoes, this temperature would be unbearable—it was impossible for normal creatures to live here.
But as everyone knows, life finds a way. In extreme environments, unique creatures always manage to adapt.

Using magic to scan her surroundings, Aino discovered that what seemed like an empty wasteland was actually full of life.
Buried beneath the sand, countless beings lurked. Perhaps because Aino was too dangerous, none of them dared to make a move.
In truth, this desert was far more lively than it appeared.

“Sigh… being alone really is boring. If you won’t come out, then I’ll come find you myself.”
Using her perception to pinpoint the densest concentration of magical energy, Aino shifted her position and came to a stop not far ahead.
At first glance, this place looked no different from anywhere else—just a flat expanse of sand.

Aino swallowed, cautiously taking a few steps back to ensure that once she brought it out, she wouldn’t be too close.
It wasn’t that the creature lurking underground was particularly powerful or posed any real danger to her.
It was just… disgusting.

Her magic scan revealed a dense cluster of grotesquely shaped creatures burrowing beneath the sand. Some were long and worm-like, writhing through the underground. Others had countless legs, constantly digging deeper. And then there were the spherical ones, their features unidentifiable.
There was no need to think too hard about it—each and every one of them was absurdly ugly. The kind of creatures that would make any adventurer with a weak stomach hesitate to strike.
But Aino was no ordinary person.

She picked the biggest, fattest, and longest one from the bunch and positioned herself directly above it.
Nope.
Nope, still can’t do it. Too close—absolutely unacceptable. But if she moved too far, she’d end up near another one of these abominations.

In the end, Aino had a flash of inspiration. Instead of staying on the ground, she simply hovered in midair, rising about seven or eight meters above the sand.
Perfect.
With a satisfied nod, she pointed a finger downward. The sand beneath began to tremble and then swirled into a vortex, rapidly sinking inward. In just moments, that section of the desert collapsed, exposing the creature hiding below.

A massive worm, coated in yellow sand, was suddenly revealed. It twisted and flailed in confusion, its bloated body writhing helplessly as it desperately tried to burrow back underground.
Good god, that’s ugly…
Hovering in the air, Aino stared at it in stunned disbelief.

If she had been reincarnated as that, she would have refused to eat from day one and just starved to death.
Inspired by her success, she decided to repeat the process—like opening a series of mystery boxes, each revealing a new horror.
Every time she exposed another underground creature, she was met with increasingly creative and disturbing designs. It was impressive how nature—or perhaps some malevolent force—had managed to create things so visually offensive.

By the time she was done, Aino had made up her mind: she would never walk on sand again.
Just thinking about what was lurking beneath her feet made her skin crawl.
Still, after dragging all these creatures out, Aino had no intention of attacking them.

After all, they had been peacefully minding their own business underground. It was she who had disturbed them out of sheer curiosity—killing them on top of that would be truly unreasonable.
“My bad for bothering you all. Hurry up and get back home,” she said with a chuckle, covering her mouth as she watched the grotesque monsters scramble to dig their way back underground.
They looked almost… silly in their rush to retreat.

But Aino knew better. If she were just an ordinary person—or even an adventurer without sufficient strength—she would have been ambushed and torn apart the moment she set foot here.
This seemingly lifeless desert was, in reality, teeming with danger. One careless step, and it could easily become someone’s unmarked grave.