In the meadow near a sparkling stream of water, a rather young Wood Mouse wandered from grass to grass, searching for any fresh seeds to feast upon.

Sniff...Sniff

Aha!

There, on the soil ground covered by a dry leaf, were a dozen tasty-looking tree seeds.

For a Wood Mouse, this could be called a feast fitting for a Lord.

And feast did the little Vermin did.

The Mouse's attention was so fully enraptured by the seeds that it could never sense the Serpentine Predator approaching from behind.

Strike!

The Predator leaped from the brambles with striking speed and lunged at the Little Mouse.

"Screech!~" The Mouse let out its last wail of resistance as it died in the Serpent's maw.

You Have Slain Level 2 - Wood Mouse (Juvenile) +4 Experience Awarded

Uncharacteristic of a Reptile, the Serpent grinned maliciously as it admired the Notification.

Beautiful... The chime of a Slaying Notification was truly a wondrous melody. It was a gift from Mother herself, a reward for the mighty act of Hunting.

As for the Experience... It flowed through the Serpent's body like a stream of pure essence, filling the Serpent's form with plundered might.

The feeling was truly addicting.

After thoroughly enjoying his victory for a few more minutes, the Serpent dragged its dinner deep into the green forest, eventually stopping near a quite sizeable oak tree.

A fool might ask how the Serpent would be able to drag the corpse into the tree top, but they were clearly blind as the Serpent possessed a very obvious pair of... Wings!

Yes, the Mighty Hunter King who managed to hunt down and slay the Great Vermin Lord was in fact not a Snake-Nay, he was a genuine and verifiable Dragonet, uncomparable to the simple belly-crawling Serpents who dwelled in this Earth

Yes, he was a Great Dragon!

Correction: You Do Not Belong To The Elder Dragon Classification, You Are A Dragonet

Ah, Yes... He still had a long way to go... Instinctively, he knew that a full Century was needed for him to grow and be called "Dragon" and then add some more centuries to later be called "Great".

He was still 2 years old now... But the Little Dragonet shall never wane in his determination for he will survive and thrive!

At least... He hoped so...

Growl...

His stomach made a distinct sound of hunger as it demanded that the Dragonet stop dreaming and start consuming.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

He was not reluctant to delay the feast any further and chomped down on the oily morsel, enjoying the taste of iron as blood streamed down his scaly chin.

While Dragonets vaguely resembled Snakes in their body shape, their heads were very akin to actual Dragons, their mouths were filled with a sea of fangs capable of tearing through hard shells, let alone some soft Mice meat.

He then spent the entire rest of the afternoon enjoying his feast as he continued planning for his eventual Draconic Ascension.

After he finished up the corpse, he slithered into an opening in the tree and curled into a sleeping position.

May he have good dreams.

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Inside one of the classrooms of the Academia Arcana, a middle-aged Dwarven Wizard with a spectacular mustache walked up to the teacher's desk and sat at the chair with a large image of what seemed to be a Dragon behind him.

"Good morning, Class!" Professor McFlemor joyfully greeted his students. 

"Good morning, Sir..." The students greeted back, albeit with noticeably less enthusiasm

"Right, can anyone guess what we'll be learning today?" He asked with a cheeky tone.

"Ooh, Ooh, I know!" A student excitedly said as he raised his arm.

"Okay, Alvin! What's your guess?" He asked.

"Will we be learning about your mustache, sir?" Alvin questioned excitedly.

A few snickers resounded through the classroom as Alvin's remark clicked in every student's head.

"Sadly, no..." The Professor announced with a grim expression.

"But I'm sure Dragons ought to live up to my spectacular mustache's hype, no?" He joked.

No one laughed.

"Well, let's get on to the lesson... First I need someone to participate... Shaela, how about you?" The Professor stated as he requested for an Elven student to join in on the lesson.

The student was taking a nap though, so the Professor lightly walked up to her and gave her one sweet gift...

A KNUCKLE SANDWICH!

"GET THE FUCK UP, ACOLYTE!" The Professor shouted angrily as resembled a military drill sergeant more than a scholarly grandpa.

"Uh... I'm up, I'm up!" The Girl got up as quickly as possible.

"Good... Now, Acolyte, TELL ME EVERYTHING YOU KNOW ABOUT DRAGONS!" Professor McFlemor demanded.

"Oh... Uh... Really, Really big Lizards which can Fly, breathe Fire, control Storms, spit Acid, and have some of the deadliest Toxins in the known World?" She nervously said.

"Well said, you can sit now" The Professor stated calmly.

Shaela let out a breath of relief as she glared at her snickering friends who didn't help her one bit.

"Now that's probably what the word Dragon conjures up in your mind, right?" The Professor asked.

"But there's a lot more than that... Like a lot more. First, let me explain their biology"

"Dragons gain their signature ability of Fire Breath when they Dracomorph from Wyverns to Drakes, then the ability to call upon the Lightning of Dyeus becomes available when they achieve True Dragonhood" The Professor explained.

"Those that were born as True Dragonlings all simply possess the abilities of the Lesser Draconic Races without having to Dracomorph" He explained.

Professor McFlemor paused as he observed his students before continuing his explanation.

"You're all probably a tad confused about the terms that I have been using thus far... Well, let me explain the so-called life cycle of a Dragon" The Professor said.

"I'm sure you're all familiar with the term 'Lesser Dragon', no? well, these Lesser Dragons are actually just younger Dragons" He revealed.

"Dragonet, Wyvern, Drake, Dragon... These are all arbitrary terms for the certain stages of a Dragon's life cycle" He explained.

"Though they're all actually different Species, some Dragons were born as Dragonet Pups, some as Wyvern Chicks, some as Drakelets, and some as Dragonlings" He stated.

"Though they could all be called different Species, they are all walkers of the same path... That is the path of True Dragonhood. Some were just born with an easier time than others" He said.

The Professor paused as he scratched his mustache before continuing with his lecture.

"When Dragonets reach the age of 5 they become proper Wyverns, after the age of 30 they become Drakes, and after a full century they are finally called Dragon"

The Professor looked over the class and was rather surprised that most of his students were actually paying attention today... Though it should be expected as he was talking about Dragons here.

Dragons had always been the cultural epicenter of discussion when it came to the subject of Monstrous beasts... Especially so after the Great Razing from back then...

"Those that were born as more advanced Species take longer to become adults... Actually, the exact same time that the Lesser Species reach their stage is also the amount of time that it takes for them to reach maturity" He stated.

The Professor paused as one of the students raised his hand.

"Yes, Clark, What is your question?" He asked the student.

"Sir... I once heard of the term 'Wyrm' when exploring the library, but I do not really understand what it means..." Clark questioned.

The Professor hummed as he considered the question.

"Truthfully... I do not know either"