In the office of the Ash Town Church.

I sat on the sofa in the office, looking at the tense Mayor Zoe and Bishop Manpha in front of me, and softly asked, “I’d like to ask, why did the volcano erupt here? Has it not erupted for a long time?”

Steel, sitting beside me, tugged on my sleeve and said, “It last erupted fifteen years ago.” Then he transmitted a thought to me: ‘That was the time we were separated, my parents were there too.’

‘I was there too?’ I thought in my mind.

‘Yes.’

“Well, since Steel brought it up, I trust it’s correct,” I said, staring at Mayor Zoe.

Zoe remained uneasy but spoke up, “Yes, according to the kingdom’s records, the last eruption was fifteen years ago. At that time, Ash Town wasn’t located here, but much closer to the volcano. Everything in the town was destroyed by the eruption…” Zoe paused for a moment. “The town you see now was rebuilt afterward.”

“If it was destroyed, why rebuild it?” I immediately caught on to the key point and asked.

Zoe didn’t answer, only casting a glance at Bishop Manpha, clearly unwilling to respond.

Manpha, however, calmly explained, “Though the town was destroyed, this place itself is a gathering point. There were several villages nearby, so we moved the villagers here and rebuilt the town.”

Steel’s voice echoed in my mind: ‘They’re lying.’

‘How do you know?’

‘I used mind-reading!’ Steel said matter-of-factly.

… I was speechless. But since they weren’t willing to reveal the truth, I didn’t press further. After all, Steel had already read their minds.

‘There are vast veins of fire magic stones below—several, in fact.’ Steel shared the information he had gleaned.

‘Alright, got it.’

I then said, “I see. So, Zoe and Manpha, are you the first mayor and bishop of this town?”

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Zoe shook his head. “No, the first mayor has returned to the Mage Guild. I’m the second, the successor.”

I quickly seized on another question, “You? Not only are you a junior mage, but you’re also from the Mage Guild? And Bishop Manpha too?”

It’s rare for a town to have two official mages from the Mage Guild, especially in such a small place. This confirmed what Steel had discovered: there must indeed be vast magical resources below. Only such significant magical interests could prompt the Mage Guild to intervene here.

Zoe hadn’t expected me to latch onto this point so quickly and had no choice but to glance again at Bishop Manpha. Manpha, old and cunning, replied calmly, “Yes, both Mayor Zoe and I were appointed by the Mage Guild. This is quite rare in the kingdom’s domain, but since the town’s construction was led by the Mage Guild from the start, it makes sense that both the mayor and bishop were appointed by them.”

This explanation was flawless, but I was already aware that the Mage Guild’s involvement had to be due to the fire magic stone veins below. However, since no one was willing to break the silence, I let it go. I moved on and asked, “Then do you know the reason for the volcanic eruption?”

This time, Zoe and Manpha didn’t avoid the question. After exchanging a glance, Zoe spoke up, “The eruption came without warning, and we truly don’t know the reason… but…”

My eyes lit up. There was more to it?

“Two dragons flew by?! What did they look like?” Steel had already used his mind-reading ability and blurted out, excitedly jumping off the sofa and rushing forward to ask. I calmly pulled Steel back, my eyes sharp but my voice steady: “Is what Steel said true?”

Zoe and Manpha suddenly realized that Steel was a dragon, and not just any dragon, but one that could use magic. Fear instantly gripped them, and I could see thoughts of their possible demise flashing through their minds.

With a thought, I used mind-reading myself and, in an even calmer tone, said, “Don’t worry, we won’t harm you. We just want to know what those two dragons looked like.”

After my reassurance, Zoe and Manpha calmed down. Zoe then spoke again, “We couldn’t clearly see the two dragons. They flew over our heads, very high up… but we think they were black dragons.”

Upon hearing this, Steel’s eyes widened, almost turning into dragon eyes. I patted him gently, calming him down, and then asked, “If they were black dragons, could you confirm if they were long-tailed black dragons?”

Zoe shook his head, “They were too far away, and we couldn’t see clearly. Plus, they were flying incredibly fast. Their destination seemed to be the volcano, not here.”

Without hesitation, Steel dashed out of the room, moving so fast that I didn’t even have time to react. I saw him leap into the air, transforming into his dragon form mid-jump, and then flying towards the volcano.

I turned to the wide-eyed Zoe and Manpha, whose jaws had practically dropped, and apologized, “Sorry, I’ll go check on him.”

Before I could step outside, I saw Steel flap his wings hard, piercing through the thin protective barrier I had placed over the town. I muttered under my breath, You silly dragon, and cast a levitation spell to chase after him.

By the time I passed through the barrier, Steel was already out of sight. I quickly mended the broken section of the barrier and then flew towards the volcano.

The eruption had mostly stopped by now. There were no more large lava rocks or heavy magma flows, and the ash in the air was thinning out, though the temperature was still high. But for Steel, a black dragon, this environment was ideal. After all, black dragons loved to nest near volcanoes.

Though I was beginning to feel uncomfortable, just as I was about to cast a protective shield, my body instinctively started absorbing the heat from the air. I began to feel better, flying faster as I approached the volcano.

The ash still filled the sky, so I reached out to Steel with my thoughts: ‘Steel, where are you?’

‘I’m at the crater.’

‘I can’t see you. What’s going on at the crater?’

‘The eruption has wiped away all traces, but I can still sense it—my parents were here.’

‘What? You mean Yin and Yang…?’

‘Yes, and I can feel it: it was my mother, Yin, who fired a fireball into the base of the volcano, triggering the eruption.’

‘Can you sense where they are now? Could they be hiding from the eruption?’

‘I don’t know what happened, but…’

‘But what?’

‘I think it’s better if you come see for yourself.’

‘Alright, I’ll come over after the volcano fully cools. Do you want to come down now?’

‘Yes…’ Though he didn’t speak, I could sense Steel’s mood had dropped.

What had happened to Yin and Yang? This question now echoed in my mind.

(To be continued)