Tsumuji/Stories

General Stories Misc

Quotes

Dragon Story Episodes
Nameless-Mountain Master

Long ago, a lizard, an eagle, and a

bat lived on a nameless mountain,

where the three beasts quarreled

without end over who was the

greatest among them.

A dragon lived on the mountain as

well, but the three beasts never

bothered with her, for she was just a

small child.

Secretly, however, the young dragon

thought she was the greatest on the

mountain, and she resolved to make

the others see that.

One day, rumor reached them that

an official from the Kingdom of

Alberia was coming to see who ruled

over the mountain.

This was the beasts' chance to prove

to the world who was the master of

the mountain once and for all.

But how would they do it?

"What if you each sculpt a big

statue?" the young dragon said

to the three beasts. "That way,

even humans can tell at a glance

who the master of this mountain is."

Each of the beasts felt this to be a

fine idea, and ordered the animals

under their charge to make a statue

in their likeness.

The beasts adored the final products,

and each boasted of their statue to

the others. ...But that was a mistake.

"The others seem proud of their

works," grumbled the lizard. "If all

three of us have equally fine statues,

how is the human to know which of

us truly rules the mountain?"

The lizard snuck out in the middle of

the night and destroyed the eagle's

statue. But others had the same idea,

for the eagle ruined the bat's statue,

and the bat smashed the lizard's.

It was horrible. The statues of all

three beasts were destroyed, and the

kingdom official was due to arrive

the very next day...

The three beasts awoke that morning

to find their beloved statues ruined

beyond all hope of repair.

They had no time to make their

statues anew, and bemoaned how

they had quarreled in the first place.

It was at this point that the young

dragon came upon them.

"I have an idea," she said with a grin.

"Take the parts of your statues that

are still intact and combine them

into a single figure—then all will know

this mountain has THREE masters."

The three beasts heartily approved

of this plan, and spent all night

creating the new statue.

The next day, the official arrived.

When he saw the statue, he said,

"The scales of a lizard, the wings of

a bat, and the claws of an eagle?

Surely this must be a dragon!"

"So a great dragon rules over the

beasts of this mountain, does it?

Well, it would upset the balance of

nature for a human to set foot upon

this sacred land."

He marked the nameless mountain

on his map with four words: HERE

THERE BE DRAGONS. And while the

beasts knew they had been tricked,

they could do nothing about it.

Thus did the young dragon settle for

good and all the question of who

was the greatest on the mountain.