STORIES OF BROKEN MIRRORS

The adventurer had heard a lot about that dragon. In fact, rumors were abundant throughout the kingdom.

It was said to be as evil as a demon and more terrifying than a ghost under the bed. It was said to be the size of a mountain and its voice was so powerful that it could be heard from a great distance. Additionally, it was said to have magical powers that the demon himself gave him, such as healing and summoning the dead. It was a monster that dwelled on a mountain near a town called Singing Throat.

"So does that dragon kill everyone who goes there?" asked the frightened adventurer.

"Yes, yes, yes. If you go there, I recommend you do it stealthily because there...," he pointed to the top of the mountain, "no one can save you, man."

The adventurer nodded.

"Oh, and... Uh... One more thing, someone like you was just there recently, so if you survive and find the corpse, please bring it here. Although, in fact, several of the villagers have decided to attack it this afternoon. It's time to end that demon once and for all. Do you want to come with us?"

The adventurer shook his head, deciding that he was going to kill the dragon alone; he had already killed similar beasts before and wouldn't need help now. He thanked the man and started walking towards the summit.

Along the way, he saw the remains of many like him, people with the goal of killing the dragon. Many seemed to have been burned alive; others, eaten.

Upon reaching the summit, he noticed a cave where the dragon must be hiding. He entered without the need for a torch, as the cave itself had many cracks that caused good lighting. He walked a few meters until he saw what he thought he would find, the corpse of a fully burned muscular man and a dragon.

The dragon wasn't that impressive. Its skin looked like Prussian blue scales, red eyes, four legs, and a long tail. Its two wings also had scales, and claws probably longer than a child's arms. It looked furious but with a slight disappointed look. Smoke was coming out of its nose and both corners of its mouth with sharp fangs.

The adventurer slowly drew his sword, and with a slight squeak it caused, the dragon turned its gaze to the man. He, of course, opened his eyes wide and held the sword tightly in his hands.

The dragon narrowed his eyes, sighed, and curled up with his back to the adventurer. This surprised the man, so he approached the dragon. The beast did nothing. The adventurer checked if the other human in the cave was indeed dead... He was... The dragon still did nothing.

"Is everything okay?" asked the bewildered adventurer.

"Did you come here for that?" asked the dragon.

"For what?"

"To ask if everything is okay."

"Well..." before he could answer, he was interrupted by the dragon.

"Did you come here to kill me or not?"

"Yes, but I thought you would attack first," said the man, lowering his sword, not disappointed, just confused.

"Honestly, I have to admit that I have lost interest. Actually, I don't harm anyone. They come to harm me," he said, raising a paw and pointing one of his claws at the dead adventurer.

"I see... I understand..." replied the man, looking at the corpse. "I'm sorry..."

"Sorry? Why are you apologizing?"

"W-Well, I didn't think this would happen, usually you... Well... You know... Like to kill."

"Have you ever wondered why we live in caves in the mountains instead of being close to towns?"

"Because you like high places?"

"No...!" the dragon made a small pause and said, "Actually, yes, but that's just my case. Most of us do it to stay away from you."

"Stay away?"

"Exactly. You humans have this strange belief that we are the embodiment of evil itself. We're not! We're just a species that happens to be a little larger than you and just because of that, you hate us," he replied, getting upset and standing up. The adventurer took three steps back reflexively. The dragon noticed this and sighed again.

"I'm sorry... It's just that... I'm tired of all this..."

"I... I imagine you are..." the adventurer observed the floor thoughtfully and remembered something. "Don't you want to go to a place where there are only dragons? I heard there's a place like that to the east."

"Really? That would be good. I think that way I'll leave you alone..." he responded more calmly.

"And if you like this place, I could tell the village that you're not a threat."

The dragon opened his eyes wider than he ever had.

"I... I don't think..."

"We should try, shouldn't we?"

Before the dragon could answer, they started to hear several voices. They were several villagers with one goal: to kill the dragon. They were proudly singing the kingdom's anthem, which mainly dealt with the killing of dragons.

"Oh no..." said the adventurer, looking at the entrance of the cave.

The dragon bared his teeth, and more smoke started to come out of his nose.

"No, wait! I'll talk to them, you'll see they'll leave you alone," he quickly exclaimed, dropping his sword. The dragon looked at him suspiciously; however, he sighed once more and nodded.

The adventurer smiled and left the cave. There were many residents of Singing Throat there.

"You've come to kill the dragon."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Unless you've already done it, if you have, we'll definitely have a big celebration in your name," replied the man who had given him the information about the dragon at the beginning of his adventure.

"No, I haven't done it."

"Why not?"

"Because that dragon is innocent!"

"What?"

"That dragon just wants to live here in peace. Adventurers like me have come and wanted to hurt him, he only defends himself... If you stop attacking him, he won't..." the adventurer stopped speaking as he felt something sharp in his chest. It was a sword.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's obvious... It's obvious that this dragon also controls people's minds with his magic powers! That's why he's so dangerous. Look what they did to this poor man," said the villager pointing to the adventurer already on the ground dying. All the people nodded, determined to kill a monster that day.

They started to approach the cave when suddenly fire started to come out of the cave, burning many alive and scaring the others; however, the dragon made sure not to harm the adventurer. He quickly took him with both of his hind legs, being careful not to hurt him with his claws, and flew east, away from that cursed village.

They arrived at a small cave. The dragon placed the adventurer on a rock to rest.

"It hurts... A lot..." he said, pressing his hands to his wound. "I've heard you have healing magic powers... Is that true? Can you help me?"

The dragon looked at the man and lowered his head. "Is that another one of the rumors you humans have about me...? No, I'm sorry."

The adventurer, now very pale from losing so much blood, sighed defeatedly. "No, it was me who thought that humans would be good..."

The dragon looked into the adventurer's eyes. "Actually, I used to think that all of you were demons that had come out of Hell..." The creature paused and continued. "But now I know that there are people like you. Despite the fact that you came to kill me, you saw that there was something different about me."

"Heh..." The adventurer was already losing consciousness. "I guess you're right..." And so, the adventurer closed his eyes for the last time. The dragon followed the adventurer's advice, flying eastward toward a better future.