“What are you doing here?” Zane growled as his former teacher appeared next to him.

The kobold set two steaming hot bowls of soup down on the table, then took a seat. “Can't I just pay a visit to an old friend?”

Zane's eyes narrowed. “I don't know, can you?”

“Don't tell me you're still sore about the-”

“Decade I spent stuck down in the warren, dying again and again?” The young man balled his hands into fists. “You lied to me, asshole.”

“That's fair,” Kiel admitted, raising his hands in mock surrender, “I saw an opportunity, and I took it. But that wasn't fair to you, and I'm sorry.”

Zane silently glared across the table at the kobold.

“Are you at least going to eat your food before it gets cold?” Kiel asked.

“I don't know,” the young man replied, “My class has this weird restriction where if I eat with someone, I'm not allowed to kill them.”

“You can't kill me, kiddo. I'll just come back.”

“Maybe,” said Zane with a shrug, “Or maybe I'll stick you in a temple with no exit and let you bash your head against the walls for the rest of eternity.”

The kobold froze, then recovered and started drinking his soup. Gotcha, Zane thought as he watched Kiel shift uncomfortably, It's not so fun when someone’s talking about trapping you, is it?

But eventually hunger won out over anger, and the young man took a sip of his soup. It was annoyingly delicious. Everything from the saltiness of chicken broth, to how the vegetables were sliced, was absolutely perfect.

“When the hell did you learn to cook?” Zane asked.

Kiel laughed. “Kiddo, I've worked on so many safaris that I know this mountain like the back of my hand. And most of them were spent cooking, which beats the shit out of hauling. You can trust me on that.”

“Where are the others?”

“They went to gather ingredients for the competition,” the kobold said with a shake of his head, “That big guy, Eric, was preparing to go in your place if you didn't show up in time. But Pinky said you would be back. I guess she was right.”

Kiel’s expression grew strained. “Look, kiddo, there's something we have to talk about. And I know we're not exactly on good terms, but I would be a pretty shitty mentor if I didn't at least give you a heads up.”

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The young man sat back and crossed his arms. “Oh, I can't wait to hear this.”

“You may regret that statement when I tell you,” Kiel said, “It's about what we are. As the dragon’s chosen, each time we die we're reborn. And that means we don't age, but that cute little kitsune of yours will. Do you see what I'm getting at?”

Zane frowned. “You're saying that I'll outlive her.”

“Not just her, but your children and grandchildren as well. I figured I'd warn you before you decide to settle down and start a family.” Kiel shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anyone.”

“I might not live long enough for that to be a problem.” Zane rolled up his sleeves to show the black veins running down his arms. “Apparently I'm suffering from low purity.”

“Son of an egg breaker…” Kiel swore, “What in the seven hells happened to you?”

“I killed a bunch of people, then got possessed by a god. But I think it's mostly from killing other cultivators.” The young man shrugged. “Lady Foxglove told me that if I was a human I'd have already turned into a core fiend. Apparently being classified as a kobold has its advantages.”

“Hah!” Kiel let out a bitter laugh. “Kiddo, if this corruption progresses any further you're gonna wish you turned into a core fiend.”

When Kiel saw the blank look on Zane's face, he elaborated. “There's a little bit of dragon blood in every kobold. Let your purity get too low, and it can lead to what we call draconic corruption. Normally it's fatal, but the chosen are strong enough to live through it.”

“So you're telling me that I'm going to become a dragon?” the young man asked, “How is that a bad thing?”

“No, not a dragon,” the kobold clarified, “You will become like a dragon. All the worst qualities of our ancestors will become present in you. And trust me, it isn't pretty.”

Zane tried to process this new information, and failed. “I still can't wrap my head around it, sorry.”

Kiel let out a sigh. “Alright, let me put things in simpler terms. If you allow the corruption to progress, and if you don't seek out the shrine of the great celestial dragon, you will murder everyone you love and become a cannibalistic fire breathing asshole.”

Zane blinked. “What does the shrine of the celestial dragon have to do with any of this?”

“It's a shrine. They can cleanse you and raise your purity,” the kobold explained.

“Can any shrine do that?” Zane asked, thinking about the temple he had just cleared.

“No. Draconic corruption is surprisingly resilient. Otherwise your friend Lady Foxglove would have already taken care of it.”

“That makes sense,” Zane said with a sigh. Why did things always have to be so fucking difficult?

Kiel rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Kiddo, this is the part where you ask me how to find the shrine.”

“Alright,” Zane said, “How do I find the shrine?”

The kobold grinned. “It’s super easy. All you have to do is climb to the top of the mountain.”

“So you're saying that I'm fucked,” Zane said bitterly, before cracking a grin of his own.

He knew the situation wasn't supposed to be funny, but he couldn't help laughing at the absurdity of it. He was going to suffer a fate worse than death, and there was nothing he could do about it.

Zane embraced the feeling, and laughed until he cried. Why the fuck couldn't anything be easy for once?

“Yeah, kiddo,” Kiel said as he patted his former student on the shoulder, “I know exactly how you feel.”