Being inside a dragon's body while still retaining a human mind created a strange contradiction. He could think. He could remember. Yet those thoughts were now pressed beneath a colossal chest, drowned by the rhythm of an ancient heart.
"Back…" he murmured.
The word was meaningless. Dragons did not go back. They either were, or they were not. Transformation was not a choice; it was a reality.
When Areth realized this, a faint unease settled in him for the first time.
That was the problem.
Even thinking about stopping being a dragon went against a dragon's nature. That was why he could not do it. His mind itself was resisting the idea of "remaining human."
Areth closed his eyes again.
This time, he did not focus on the dragon.
He focused on himself.
On the limits of a human body. On weight. On moments when breath ran short. On weakness. On pain. On doubt. Things a dragon had never known, but things Areth knew all too well.
Being a dragon was acceptance.
But being human was a choice.
The heartbeat faltered. The steady, ancient rhythm broke apart, replaced by a faster, uneven, but familiar tempo. The heat began to recede. The pressure beneath the scales eased.
At the center of the arena, the massive body trembled.
The wings spread instinctively, a reflex meant to maintain balance during the painful moment of transformation. The instant they opened, the mana barriers above the arena flared as if screaming. The invisible dome bent inward as though struck by a colossal blow.
Then the dragon began to shrink.
Bones drew back. The body narrowed. Scales scattered through the air like black ash. As the heat faded, the arena floor cooled in jagged patterns. In some places, stone that had melted solidified again.
And after a few breaths…
Areth collapsed to his knees.
The stone floor was still warm. When he pressed his palms against it, it burned slightly. But that burn was real. Familiar. Human.
He was breathing hard.
"So…" he murmured, his voice now emerging from a single throat. "It is possible."
He stood up. His clothes were ruined and he was completely naked, but he did not care. What mattered was that his mind still belonged to him.
This time, Areth did not close his eyes.
"All right," he said to himself, calmly but with resolve. "Once more."
He planted his feet at the center of the arena. Even before anything happened, the stone beneath him began to crack, as if the space itself sensed his decision.
The transformation began abruptly.
The heat did not explode outward; it condensed. The air grew heavy. The flow of mana became unstable.
Areth's spine elongated again.
Wings unfolded.
The dragon had returned.
But this time, it was calmer.
In dragon form, Areth lifted his head with ease and inhaled.
Heat, mana, and pressure within the arena flowed toward him. A focal point formed deep within his chest. His lungs filled. Then a deep, thick voice emerged, one that could terrify even powerful beings.
"Let's see…"
Areth consciously guided his awareness to the focus in his chest. This was a center the dragon knew instinctively, but which he was now using with understanding. Flame did not come from the throat. It did not mix with breath. It was born there first. Mana, heat, and will fused into a single knot.
Pressure built deep within his chest.
The runes carved into the arena floor flared all at once. Divine seals, as if sensing what was coming, hastily reconfigured their defensive formations. The dome-shaped barrier thickened as mana surged upward. Normally, it was a structure capable of withstanding even divine interference for minutes.
Areth inhaled.
It wasn't just air filling his lungs. The surrounding heat, mana, and emptiness were drawn in with a single motion. For an instant, the fiery air inside the arena cooled, then everything reversed.
The dragon slowly lowered its head.
And exhaled.
The flame did not explode.
It flowed.
A thick, dense mass of fire poured from the dragon's mouth, moving almost like liquid. Its color was not ordinary red. Near the core it was close to white, while the edges shimmered with gold and black tones, layered with light. This fire was not merely burning. It was crushing.
The moment it struck the arena floor, a sound rang out.
Not an explosion, but a deep, heavy crack.
At first, the stone did not melt. It resisted. Divine enchantments tried to disperse the heat and deflect the flame upward. The dome trembled. Mana barriers strained. Runes darkened one by one, as if overloaded.
Then part of the floor collapsed.
As the wave of fire advanced, a massive crater formed at the center of the arena. Its edges were uneven. The stone had bent and frozen as if kneaded by a giant. The rising heat licked the inner surface of the dome.
Areth cut off the flame.
When the fire receded, silence remained. Mana still flowed erratically. The inner surface of the dome was covered in spiderweb cracks, and in some areas the divine seals had completely gone dark. The ground had collapsed inward, molten stone solidifying into a black crater.
The dragon tilted its head slightly.
The focus in its chest was still warm, but contained. That was important. The flame had not taken control of him.
"I did it," Areth rumbled.
Then he returned to human form once more. He surveyed the arena and the destruction he had caused in several places. With this level of power, survival would never be a concern.
"Dragons are truly terrifyingly powerful…"
As Areth left the arena, the first thing he noticed was that he felt no fatigue at all. He wondered how many times he could change forms in a single day. As he was thinking, he saw a woman approaching him at the entrance of the arena. She was one of the servants he had created. If he remembered correctly, her name was Mia.
Because he had purchased the flying island, he could create up to thirty servants, and he had wanted each of them to look different. Mia was one of the last NPCs he had created, so her appearance was somewhat distinct.
She was short. Truly short, almost to a comical degree. But her proportions were balanced. She had a slender build, narrow shoulders, and proper posture. Her hair was golden blonde, but it shone with a heavenly glow. Her eyes, however, were deep black. The wings emerging from her back were not noticeable at first glance, because even when fully extended, they were small. Their feathers were not white, but a pale gold, gleaming as if touched by light.
"An angel," Areth murmured. "But not quite."
Mia lifted her head. Her eyes were slightly larger than those of a normal human, and around her irises was a faint, nearly invisible ring of light.
"Half-angel, my lord," she said honestly. "I am derived from a lower-tier hierarchy. I am not a pure divine being. More… compatible."
She chose the word without hesitation. That, too, was part of her design. Areth smiled unconsciously.
"Did I push the 'cuteness' parameter a bit too far?" he thought, but did not say it aloud.
Mia clasped her hands in front of her. Her wings trembled faintly, involuntarily.
"Why did you come here? I said I wanted to be alone," Areth said.
His tone was neither harsh nor angry, but Mia's small body trembled. She squeezed her eyes shut and dropped to her knees.
"I am sorry, my lord…!" Her thin voice sounded as if she were on the verge of tears. "Lady Rina said she wished to speak with you about an important matter."
"Open your eyes," he said.
He did not raise his voice. He did not give an order. He simply spoke.
Mia hesitated for a few seconds, then slowly opened her eyes. She did not lift her gaze. Her head remained bowed, but her trembling had eased.
"I am not angry… it is just my voice," Areth said. "Now tell me why Rinawants to speak with me."
Mia took a deep breath. Her small chest rose and fell noticeably. Areth's words had not erased her fear completely, but they had loosened the panic that had paralyzed her. Still on her knees, she straightened her posture slightly, hands still clasped.
"Lady Rinareported that during her exploration, she discovered two blue-colored elves speaking a language she had never heard before, and that they were extremely weak. She is requesting permission to bring them to the flying island for further investigation."
Areth paused for a moment.
"Blue elves…" he repeated quietly.
In the game, there were many types of elves: forest, moon, high elves, even the rare dark ones. But blue elves, as far as Areth knew, were undocumented. They did not exist in the main game, the source material, or the lore.
"She said they were weak?" he asked.
Mia nodded.
"Yes, my lord. She found them hunting in the forest."
That information strengthened Areth's belief that his theory was correct. His reincarnation into this body may have altered something. This could mean they were now in a world they did not fully understand. And if that was the case, it meant they could face the unknown at any moment. He needed to stay alert.
"Tell Rina to release a beast strong enough to pressure them, but not kill them. First, she should observe their full strength. If she is confident she can bring them here without forcing them, then do so. And just in case, prepare several support teams."
Mia nodded immediately.
"At once, my lord," she said, then hurried away at a speed that did not match her short legs.