[Analyzing genetic structure...]
[Demonic-Draconic Hybrid Detected]
[Bloodline Compatibility: 63%]
[Tier F Demon Dragon Boss Monster Essence Absorbed]
[Corrupted essence partially synchronized. Minor stat boost granted.]
[Draconic affinity slightly enhanced. Instability risk: Low]
Drahon saw his stats in front of him.
• Class: Golden Dragon
• Dragon Bond Slots: 2 / 5
• Draconic Essence: 318 / 1000 [+76]
• Intelligence: 64 [+6]
– SSS: Barbarian Dragon
• Draconic Blade – Active – Tier: A
• Scaled Guard – Passive – Tier: A
• Draconic Leap – Active – Tier: A
• Draconic Sense – Passive – Tier: A
• Golden Iron Sword (SSS)
• Draconic Shield (S)
It seemed like the normal leveling stuff. But he was a bit surprised with the increase in his Draconic essence.
When he had faced the demon monsters earlier, the increase had been many, surpassing the norms.
EXP ought to be something you gained not so much at once, but at that point, he gained over six hundred like it was nothing.
All he had to do was kill a small group of monsters.
Now, with this massive horde of monsters, he just gained 78.
That meant that encounter wasn’t ordinary and he left it as another mystery to solve.
Meanwhile, Ayvira paused, laying flat on the ground as she looked at the skies. Seems she must be seeing her stats too, as everyone in this world had systems.
They remained silent for a while, Ayvira looking at the skies so intently it seemed like she forgot to blink.
Drahon occasionally looked in her direction, wondering what was wrong with her. He too looked at the skies, laying flat on the ground.
They were supposed to continue their journey, going through the large expanse of land filled with demon dragon monsters.
He sighed. He ought to be taking precaution by being alert to his surroundings, as he didn’t know when the next wave of demon dragon monsters might attack again. But he decided to let it be.
He had totally forgotten he had Draconic Sense, and that allowed him to sense any incoming danger.
He had gotten to use the skill not until some minutes ago when he took on the Tier F Demon Dragon Monster.
Ayvira also could scan incoming danger, so she had probably done so and was assured that they were safe, if not, why would she lay on the ground so comfortably, wanting to rest?
Silence followed as the two gazed at the clouds. Drahon felt the urge to tell Ayvira that they should perhaps continue their journey. But the way she was looking at the clouds made him have second thoughts.
After a whole minute of laying on the ground and staring blankly at the sky, Drahon decided to ask.
"Nice clouds, huh," he said, trying to smile. "Too bad this world doesn’t seem to have a sun. And so the sky is just blank. I wonder what gives it light."
Ayvira didn’t speak at first, and Drahon stared at her, a bit worried now.
Why stare at the clouds so much.
It definitely was kinky.
"I hate the clouds," Ayvira finally said softly.
Drahon stared at her, grimacing.
She hated the clouds?
That was actually the first time he was hearing that.
Despite the not-so-pleasant childhood he had, he liked staring at the clouds, seeing what was up there. It was pleasurable actually, as he would imagine dragons flying in it.
He would even try to create creatures in his mind from what the clouds were shaped like.
’Oh, that cloud is a dinosaur!’
’That cloud is a fire dragon.’
’Oh, that one is a knight.’
Drahon had a pretty messed-up time growing up and so this was what he did to pass time. He would look at the clouds for hours, immersing himself in it and imagining that knights were riding dragons across it.
It was quite fun actually.
And Ayvira didn’t like it.
"I’ve hated the clouds since I was a kid."
Drahon blinked twice, fast, out of surprise.
"Why..." he asked. "Why do you hate the clouds."
"I mean, I know the clouds are inanimate objects, but my young self did not know that and it kind of impacted me growing up."
Again, Drahon asked, "Why?"
"I lost my dad to an airplane crash."
Drahon made a face of slight shock.
"Oh, I’m..., I’m so sorry for that."
"No need to pity me, I know you had a rough childhood too somehow."
Drahon gazed at her fixedly.
"All players in the Dragon Game come from broken families, orphans or stuff like that. Any player in the Dragon Game had a rough childhood."
Drahon was surprised and so he asked again:
"That’s a ’known’ secret of the game and what I want to discover is why."
Drahon turned his gaze back to the clouds.
"There’s so many secrets in this world to uncover. One of my main aim is to know more about this world, and if you’re also like that, then perhaps we are more than a player, we’re detectives."
He smiled, turning to Ayvira to see if she did the same, but then, she wasn’t smiling, her eyes were still at the clouds.
"So..., why did you really hate the clouds? I mean, a plane isn’t a cloud," Drahon said, trying to shift the conversation back to why she did not like clouds.
"That was a main reason but not why I hate the clouds so much," she said.
’Some psychopathic stuff?’
Ayvira sighed deeply now.
"My mum abandoned me after my dad died. She didn’t actually abandon me directly, but I know she did. She sent me to live with my father’s brother and his wife..."
’At least you lived among people who treated you like family, like parents should?’
"They had children whom I played with. I was only eight at that time. The father was an electrician, and one day while fixing a power line outside during a storm, it was raining then and streaks of thunder were flashing across the sky, lightning struck the pole and electrocuted him."
Drahon was befuddled.
"Your uncle?" he asked.
"Yes," Ayvira replied.
"The wife became a shadow of herself, and three years later she died of stress-induced cardiomyopathy."
"Ohhh," Drahon said slowly. "That was.., anticlimactic?"
"It was in the state of despair and hopelessness that I found a dragon egg."