# Chapter 17: The Dragon's Heart and the Leper Legend

  ## 1. The Escape and the Silent Care

  Kerchack, in Hiroshi's body, fled Morro Agudo. He did not run to the Moon Mountains, but to the dense, dark forest surrounding the city. He knew he could not face Kabil, Yuzuki, and the King's army in his current condition.

  Hiroshi's body, now a Hybrid Dragon, was powerful, but it was wounded, and the total symbiosis was unstable.

  Luna, with the help of **Beaky**, found a safe shelter in a hidden cave. Kerchack, in his scaly form, watched Luna.

  She did not flinch. She cared for Hiroshi's body with a devotion that Kerchack could not understand. She applied ointments made from hastily gathered herbs, bandaged the areas where the scales met the skin, and gave him medicine, even knowing that the Dragon was in control. She covered him with a cloak while he "slept," an act of tenderness that struck Kerchack in a strange way.

  "**Why do you do this, girl?**" Kerchack asked, his voice guttural. "**The host is suppressed. I am what remains.**"

  Luna looked at him, her blue eyes steady. "I take care of Hiroshi. You are in his body. And if you are in his body, you need care. Besides," she smiled sadly, "I know that somewhere in there, he is still listening."

  With every act of kindness, Kerchack felt a pang of something he did not recognize. It was the human value of loving someone, of caring for something that was not his. Hiroshi's humanity, filtered through Luna, was slowly eroding the Dragon's coldness.

  ## 2. Kerchack's Story

  Kerchack felt the need to speak. He needed Luna to understand what was at stake.

  "**Do you want to know why I hate humans so much?**"

  He began to tell the story, an ancient legend that had been erased from the books.

  "**Thousands of years ago, Dragons ruled the world. Not with tyranny, but with balance. Our magic was the anchor of the world. Humans, led by various kings from each continent, envied our power. They knew their military power was weak, so they waged a silent war.**"

  Kerchack paused, the pain in his voice palpable.

  "**We lost. Dragons sought balance, not violence. We didn't know how to fight much. Violence was not part of my race. We were massacred. The first kings shared our blood, creating the first magic users. They ate the hearts of Dragons and became the strongest among all in magic. My family was killed in the process and became an offering for thousands of people. It was common practice to hunt Dragons to increase magic.**"

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  The Hybrid Dragon looked at Luna, his red eyes full of hatred.

  "**They couldn't kill me. Of all the Dragons of that time, I was always against humans. I was always against the Dragons' lifestyle. I said we had to be violent, show our strength, and forget balance, focusing on power. I was treated as crazy, a psychopath, a genocidal, a racist. Well, who is the racist now? Humans wiped out our race, destroyed us.**"

  Kerchack took a deep breath, smoke coming out of his nostrils.

  "**I never said to exterminate humans. I just wanted to protect my people. But humans always wanted to kill us for power, not for revenge or anger at the Dragons. The Leper King, the ancestor of the current King, was the worst of all.**"

  ## 3. The Vengeance Bond

  Luna, instead of backing away, hugged Hiroshi's scaly body.

  "It's okay now," she whispered. "Hiroshi and I will avenge your family. And we will help you."

  Luna's hug was a shock to Kerchack. He felt the warmth of Hiroshi's humanity, the affection he so despised.

  Kerchack smiled, a cold and calculating smile. He knew he needed Luna's help.

  "**You are useful, girl. But vengeance needs power. And the power is in the Karius Sword.**"

  ## 4. The Shortest Path

  Kerchack knew that the journey to the Moon Mountains would be long and dangerous. He needed a quick solution.

  "**I know where the sword is and how to get there quickly. The Dungeon where Hiroshi first found me... it has a portal. A portal to the location of the Karius Sword.**"

  He explained that the portal was a shortcut that the King did not know about. It was the only way to stop the total symbiosis before Hiroshi's body disintegrated.

  "**I don't want to dominate Hiroshi's body. I want revenge. And the Karius Sword is essential for Hiroshi to master the Eclipse Dragon's abilities and understand his entire history. He needs to be in control to fight the King.**"

  Kerchack smiled again, a smile that promised pain and destruction. He had a plan. He had an anchor. And he had a path.

  ***

  **END OF CHAPTER 17**