The cavern shook as Kael pressed forward, the clash of Sovereign and beast echoing like thunder trapped underground. His body blurred with speed far surpassing any human limit, the abyss-dragon's core coursing power into every strike.
The mutated fire lizard reared up on its hind legs, flames boiling from its maw. Its claws, each the length of a man's arm, came crashing down with the force of boulders hurled by giants.
Kael caught them.
The shockwave cratered the floor, heat rolling like a tidal wave. Yet Kael's arms did not buckle. The dragon-blood running in him roared awake, his Strength and Endurance swelling to monstrous levels. He twisted his grip and slammed the lizard sideways into the cavern wall, shattering stone into molten shards.
So this is what those stats mean in practice… I'm not fighting at full, and still—
The fire lizard bellowed in rage, scales glowing brighter as runes along its body pulsed. A surge of flame erupted, forming a spiraling inferno that swept through the chamber. Kael braced, Spirit flaring into a barrier of shadows that split the blaze in two.
But then—something odd.
Mid-roar, the fire sputtered.
The torrent of heat guttered like a candle caught in wind, cutting off with a jagged crack of sound. The glow in the lizard's scales dimmed abruptly, leaving Kael's sharp eyes narrowing.
That wasn't natural. Why would a Legendary beast falter?
The lizard staggered, shaking its head violently, before charging again. Its claws slashed, but the rhythm was broken, its movements half-wild, half-sluggish. Kael parried with ease, each counter sending tremors through the cavern.
He frowned. Something is wrong with this creature…
Far from the cavern's battle, the sisters' work spread like wildfire.
In noble salons and dim-lit taverns, whispers turned to murmurs, murmurs into shouts.
"The Prince siphons coin to pay bandits—""They say he even feeds them prisoners to appease his allies—""And the King lies dying while his son sells us out—"
The younger sister moved like a shadow, ensuring every rumor found the right ear. The second-eldest, regal yet composed, presented herself as the calm alternative—the savior who could hold the empire together.
What had begun as rumor now became "truth" in the minds of men who desired stability.
Arlen, standing in Greyspire, caught fragments of the unrest. His jaw tightened. "Who dares plant these lies? Whoever it is, they move against us with precision…"
But the sisters only smiled behind closed doors, watching the cracks spread.
Kael ducked beneath a flaming swipe, his counterpunch cracking against the lizard's jaw. The beast reeled, coughing sparks instead of fire.
It's not weakening from me alone. Something is… draining it.
He flicked his wrist, calling forth shadows to probe the lizard's scales. The aura there was fractured, like threads being tugged in opposite directions. Glyphs etched into the beast's flesh glimmered faintly—unnatural, force-fed power unraveling mid-battle.
Kael's lips curved into a cold smile.
"So, you're not a natural mutation. You were… altered."
The girl behind him gasped softly, clutching her gown as the ground trembled from the beast's frustrated roar.
Kael's aura deepened, the abyss-dragon's core thrumming like a second heart within him.
"If someone made you… I'll drag the truth out of your corpse."
With that, he surged forward, Sovereign and dragon's heir colliding with the faltering fire lizard in a storm of shadow and flame.
The cavern was chaos made flesh—heat, smoke, and shattered stone colliding with every blow. Kael's aura had long since drowned the chamber, pressing against the fire lizard's faltering resistance.
The beast lunged, jaw unhinged, fire swelling in its throat.
Kael's hand snapped up, wreathed in abyssal shadow, and he thrust it forward. "Fall."
The strike pierced scales thicker than steel, burrowing into the beast's chest. A thunderclap rang out as Sovereign strength and dragon's inheritance shattered the lizard's core from within. Its roar broke into a choking wheeze before the massive body crashed to the cavern floor, sending tremors through the cave.
Silence followed—except for the girl's frightened breathing.
Kael stood over the fallen beast, shadow tendrils coiling like living smoke. He whispered the word that had rewritten his destiny.
"Necromancy."
Darkness surged, sinking into the corpse. The lizard's once-fiery eyes reignited in dull abyssal flame. But instead of rising in full vigor, the corpse shuddered, spasms wracking its massive body.
It raised its head—not in defiance, but in warning. Its abyss-lit gaze locked onto Kael, then slid toward the far corner of the lair.
Kael followed. His eyes narrowed.
Nestled in the stone lay an egg. Not a normal one—a monstrous egg, the size of an average human body, its shell glowing faintly with molten veins. Heat rippled from it, alive with restrained fury.
So that's why your power faltered. You were not dying… you were protecting.
The girl gasped, slipping past Kael before he could stop her. She stumbled to the egg, placing her small hands upon its blazing surface. Instead of burning, the molten veins pulsed in response—like a heartbeat syncing with hers.
The egg glowed brighter.
Kael's breath caught. His instincts whispered of something ancient, something greater than even a Legendary beast's bloodline.
Without hesitation, Kael's eyes glowed as he cast his gaze upon the girl. Her status flickered before him—runes of the system aligning.
What he read froze him in place.
[Status Detected: Summoner (Titan-Class)]
The words burned like fire in his vision. A child—barely five years old—bearing a summoner's class so rare it was whispered only in myths. Titan-Class, the domain of those who could one day summon beings that rivaled gods themselves.
Kael's hand clenched unconsciously.
The Prince… Arlen… the Empire. Did they know? Or did they cast her aside blind to what she carried?
The egg pulsed again, stronger this time, and the girl's innocent smile bloomed. "It likes me."
Kael's expression hardened, shadows coiling around him in thought.
No. It chose you.
The cavern trembled as though echoing the truth.
And in that moment, Kael realized—the girl was not the sacrifice. She was the future.