Chapter 224: Devoted Priest

"Different?"

Sora was slightly stunned when she heard this. Was there really a difference between the oaths of different beast races?

Wasn’t it simply an oath of loyalty?

She couldn’t see anything wrong with that.

Sora tilted her head in confusion. "What difference is there?"

Her expression was so innocent that it genuinely looked as though she knew nothing about the matter.

Lucas’s expression improved slightly, though he still looked displeased.

"You really don’t know?" he asked, approaching step by step.

Sora shook her head. "I really don’t know. Drake acted too quickly. Before I could even react, he had already completed the oath."

Lucas stared at her for a moment before explaining, "Once a dragon makes an oath, it means that the person he swears to becomes the only one in his heart."

"That’s all?"

Sora had thought he was about to reveal some shocking secret.

So the difference was simply that once they swore an oath, they devoted themselves completely to the person they had chosen.

Since Drake had already sworn the oath, wasn’t it normal for him to behave this way?

Lucas was making too much of it.

Sora shrugged helplessly. "Well, there’s nothing I can do about it now. He has already sworn the oath."

In truth, there was another part Lucas hadn’t told her.

He deliberately kept it to himself.

The oaths of dragon were fundamentally different from those of ordinary beastmen. They generally swore such oaths only to a Female.

It was practically a vow of lifelong fidelity.

Once a dragon made such an oath, he would have only that Female for the rest of his life.

Lucas didn’t believe for a second that Drake had done this without ulterior motives.

After establishing that covenant, Drake had effectively secured his place beside Sora.

What a cunning man.

In less than three days, he had not only managed to remain in the Tribe but had also gained Sora’s complete trust.

Lucas suddenly felt that Lukan, who occasionally played little tricks openly, seemed much more straightforward by comparison.

The man before them was the true master of subtle manipulation.

He had carefully earned Sora’s trust one step at a time.

As expected, the rumors about dragons weren’t completely baseless. They were famous for knowing how to win over Females and making themselves indispensable to them.

But since Sora didn’t understand Drake’s intentions, why should Lucas help expose them?

Let Drake struggle on his own.

Seeing Sora’s calm reaction, Lucas secretly felt satisfied.

He nodded along with her words. "I was overthinking it. It’s nothing."

Then, as though casually remembering something, he asked, "By the way, I saw him suddenly disappear earlier. Where did he go?"

Sora’s heart skipped a beat.

For a moment, she wondered whether Lucas had overheard her conversation with Drake.

However, Lucas’s expression didn’t suggest that he knew anything.

Sora’s eyes flickered before she calmly replied, "It’s nothing. I just asked him to look for places where there are more Flower Rats. We’re almost out of Pox Scab."

"Looking for Flower Rats?"

Lucas immediately became interested.

"Why didn’t you ask me? I’m very good at catching rats."

Sora glanced at him.

"I have to give him something to do. Otherwise, how am I supposed to trust him?"

Hearing that Sora had assigned Drake such a simple task, Lucas suddenly felt much better.

No matter how clever that man was, he was still being sent out to catch rats.

Thinking about this, Lucas felt considerably more at ease.

Sora looked at the man who had descended from the sky earlier and wondered how much of her conversation he had actually heard.

"Why are you here?"

Normally, after breakfast, her Beast Husbands would scatter and attend to their own affairs.

Sometimes they worked on tasks Sora assigned them.

Other times, she had no idea what they were doing.

She suspected that some of them spent their free time practicing their abilities.

Hadn’t Xavier’s ability to fly developed through exactly this kind of practice?

Lucas rubbed his nose somewhat sheepishly.

"I found a magical treasure and wanted to show it to you."

"What treasure?"

Sora immediately became curious.

Lucas nodded and handed the objects to her.

"Look. These two stones can stick together. No matter how far apart I pull them, they always cling to each other, as though one is drawn toward the other."

As he spoke, his ears slowly turned red.

"I want to give one of them to you."

His voice became softer.

"It represents my heart for you. Consider it a token of my love."

Sora was stunned by Lucas’s straightforward confession.

However, after looking at him for a moment, she couldn’t help finding his behavior somewhat innocent.

She lowered her gaze and examined the two stones.

After playing with them for a while, she quickly figured out what was happening.

The stone on the left was a lodestone.

The other probably contained iron.

With the two placed together, naturally they would attract each other.

Although Lucas’s reasoning was rather peculiar, Sora was secretly delighted.

She hadn’t expected to discover iron ore and naturally occurring magnets in this place.

With these materials, she could make many useful things.

She weighed one of the stones in her hand and asked, "Where did you find this?"

Lucas pointed toward the distance.

"On the Mountain."

Sora nodded thoughtfully.

"Lucas, this is a very good gift."

Lucas’s ears became even redder.

"I’m glad you like it, Sora."

Sora nodded.

She took the iron-containing stone and placed it inside her animal-skin pouch.

"Yes, I like it very much. But I have something to take care of right now. We’ll talk another time."

"O-Okay."

Lucas’s heart fluttered.

It seemed he really had chosen the right token of love.

After saying goodbye to Lucas, Sora walked toward the place where the dragons had settled.

Since she had already agreed to become their leader, she needed to see how they were doing.

It was still morning, and the members of the Tribe were busy.

From a distance, Sora could see them adding another layer of thatch to their newly constructed houses.

Earlier, she had only seen the general outline of the settlement and had already been amazed by how quickly they had built everything.

Now that she was closer, she discovered that the houses were even more orderly than she had expected.

Unlike the scattered Wooden Huts of the Wolf Tribe, the houses here had been constructed in neat rows.

Every household seemed to follow the same layout.

Beautiful wildflowers and green plants had also been placed outside many of the houses, giving the settlement a refined and peaceful appearance.

A sharp-eyed Little Female noticed Sora approaching.

Her face immediately brightened.

"The Leader! The Leader is here!"

Another dragon beastman turned around excitedly.

"Is the Leader here to visit us?"

Before Sora could even answer, an elderly beastman beside him reached over and lightly smacked him on the head.

"What kind of question is that?"

The old beastman shook his head.

"Does that even need to be asked? Of course the Leader came to see us."

He immediately turned toward Sora.

"Isn’t that right, Leader?"

Sora had initially been wondering how she should interact with these dragons.

But seeing how friendly and familiar they were, she immediately felt more comfortable.

She nodded with a smile.

"That’s right. I came to see everyone. If there’s anything inconvenient or anything you need, just let me know."

The elderly beastman waved his hand.

"No need for the Leader to worry. We’ve already settled in. Everything is quite good here. Thank you for allowing us to stay."

Sora glanced at the beastmen gathering around her.

"Don’t be so polite, everyone. If you encounter any difficulties, just tell me."

She had promised Drake that she would take care of his people.

Therefore, she intended to keep her word.

"Leader, don’t worry. We’re doing fine."

"Yes, Leader. Thanks to you, we’re living very well here."

"That’s right. Everything is good."

The beastmen answered one after another.

Their expressions were optimistic, and none of them complained.

However, Sora didn’t believe they truly had no problems.

It was more likely that they were holding back because of something.

She decided to stay and observe the situation herself.

Sora nodded as though satisfied.

"That’s good, then. You can continue with your work. I’ll take a look around your houses."

Some of the beastmen still seemed hesitant.

However, the elderly beastman who appeared to be leading them waved his hand.

"Go on. Since the Leader wants to look around, let her."

The others immediately dispersed.

The elderly beastman then turned toward Sora.

"This way, Leader. Would you like to see inside one of the houses?"

Sora followed him.

As they walked, she glanced at the neat rows of houses.

"Your houses are built very well," she said honestly. "They’re delicate and comfortable to look at."

The elderly beastman smiled.

"Thank you for the praise, Leader."

Sora looked around thoughtfully.

The more she observed this Tribe, the more curious she became.

Everything was orderly.

The people were polite.

The houses were beautifully constructed.

Even their daily work seemed well organized.

They didn’t appear like a Tribe that desperately needed an outsider to lead them.

So why had Drake insisted on making her their Leader?

And why had he gone as far as swearing a Sky Oath?

Sora couldn’t figure it out.

She followed the elderly beastman into one of the houses.

The interior was surprisingly clean.

The sleeping area had been carefully arranged, and the walls had been reinforced with woven branches and layers of grass.

There were even simple decorations made from flowers and polished stones.

Sora’s eyes widened slightly.

"You built all of this in only a few days?"

The elderly beastman smiled proudly.

"Yes. We dragons are accustomed to taking care of our homes. A Female should always have a comfortable place to live."

Sora paused.

There it was again.

Everything centered around Females.

She suddenly remembered what the System had told her.

Dragons were famous throughout the Beast World for revering Females.

They were exceptionally attentive and obedient.

Most importantly, their leaders were often Females.

No wonder Drake had accepted her so naturally.

Still, something didn’t feel quite right.

Sora looked at the elderly beastman.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Leader."

"Why did Drake choose me?"

The elderly beastman froze for a brief moment.

Then he smiled.

"Our Priest has his reasons."

"That’s not an answer."

Sora narrowed her eyes.

The old beastman chuckled.

"Leader, you saved the lives of our entire Tribe. To us, that is already enough."

Sora remained silent.

She wasn’t entirely convinced.

Saving them was one thing.

Making her their Leader was another.

And Drake had acted far too quickly.

There had to be more behind it.

Before she could continue questioning him, a familiar voice suddenly came from outside.

"Leader!"

Sora turned toward the entrance.

A young dragon Female rushed over.

"Leader, Priest Drake has returned!"

Sora’s eyes immediately narrowed.

"Already?"

"Yes. He brought back many Flower Rats."

The young Female looked excited.

"He said the Leader needed them."

Sora’s expression changed.

She suddenly understood.

Drake had actually taken her request seriously.

He had already gone out to find the materials she needed.

She couldn’t help sighing.

This man was becoming more troublesome by the minute.

Just as she was about to step outside, the elderly beastman suddenly said quietly,

"Leader, there’s one more thing you should know."

Sora stopped.

"What is it?"

The old beastman’s expression became slightly serious.

"Once our Priest gives his loyalty to someone, he doesn’t easily change his mind."

Sora’s heart sank.

She slowly turned around.

The old beastman continued,

"So, Leader, if you intend to send us away..."

He smiled faintly.

"You may want to reconsider."

Sora stared at him.

For some reason, she suddenly felt that becoming the Leader of the dragons might be far more troublesome than she had originally imagined.