When Dennis was young, his homeroom teacher told him he would be a failure and would never amount to anything in life.
Guess what?
He was right.
Dennis grew up to be a fat slob living in his mother's basement, playing video games all day. His parents had long lost hope in him, so they simply acted like he didn't exist. That was why it took them 128 hours to realize Dennis had slumped over his computer and died from cardiac arrest.
Since then, Dennis had been in a world of perpetual darkness and bliss. At first, it felt strange, but he soon got accustomed to the peace.
That was until—
"Argh… What the hell?"
Dennis felt a change in the darkness. It felt heavier and crushing, almost like a mountain had been placed on his back.
Suddenly, a ray of light pierced through the darkness, spreading wide and far, engulfing everything in its path.
Kur!
Dennis's eyes opened to a strange sight. Instead of his white ceiling, he saw stalactites. Instead of the smell of rotten pizza from a pack he hadn't disposed of for several weeks, there was the scent of damp earth and dust.
Where is this?
Kush! Kush!
Kush! Kush!
Kush what?
Dennis searched for the source of the sound and was stunned to see a strange yet familiar reptilian figure. It had a tiny body, dull green scaly skin that looked faded, with small cracks here and there. Even its horn was broken.
Dennis's initial reaction was sheer panic, causing him to scream—but what came out was a cry.
Wait, what? Am I crying?
Dennis tried to move, but strangely, he had no power over his body.
More reptilian faces emerged from the left and right, staring at him with delighted expressions.
Wow, wow, wow—pause now, this is just wrong!
Dennis shut his eyes tight and opened them again, hoping the nightmare would fade. Nothing changed.
As a dedicated pro gamer who had literally died in the field, Dennis had dabbled in several genres. Fantasy and strategy games had always been his favorites, so it wasn't surprising he could recognize a kobold at a glance.
Why the hell am I here?
Ding!
As if in response to his thoughts, a bell rang in his head, and a light-blue panel appeared before him, letters scribbling themselves into place. Strangely, no one else seemed to notice it.
{Greater Kobold System Loading…}
{Welcome, host. You have been selected by the Greater Kobold to lead the kobold race to prosperity.}
{Host is too weak. Authority Locked}
Eh?
Wait, hold on. Why is there no accept or decline button?
Why would I want to lead kobolds? At least give me elves or humans… I don't mind dwarves either!
Dennis protested, but there was no response.
Of all the races he could have been reborn into, it had to be one at the very bottom of the food chain. He would rather have been born a beggar as a human than the leader of a kobold clan.
"Kiawya Kusk kil!"
Suddenly, the dull green kobold lifted him into the air, and cheers erupted all around him.
And so began what could only be considered the worst time of his life.
As a baby kobold, Dennis was one of several hatchlings in a small clan of twenty. There were barely six adults; the rest were hatchlings. With that title came no responsibility—but that didn't mean luxury.
All the hatchlings were kept in one of several cave rooms and fed insects and bugs once a day. The food looked horrible, but to his surprise, it didn't taste that bad. He didn't have a choice anyway, nor could he refuse.
Each time Dennis was fed, he gained +1 experience point, yet he was never given a chance to use it or told how to do so.
In fact, during the first year of his life, the system outright ignored him, leaving him with no choice but to assimilate into kobold life and truly understand their culture.
Apart from daily feeding, the only consistent activity was their prayer sessions. At night, all kobolds gathered in the most decorated part of the cave. It was adorned with bones, skulls, and blood-painted symbols, but what caught Dennis's attention was the pitiful dragon head carved from wood and decorated with whatever scraps they could find.
The prayer sessions were always led by the dull green kobold who clearly held the highest standing in the clan. His name was Lu'k, pronounced as Lark.
Their names were always short and simple, like his own—Ki'l—which the system recognized as Kyle and addressed him as such.
Days turned into weeks, and weeks into months.
By the first month, Kyle had grown strong enough to crawl. Unlike the other hatchlings, he didn't bother playing. Instead, he crawled around the cave, observing how the adult kobolds lived.
Over time, he learned that kobold hierarchy wasn't based on strength like other races, but usefulness. Lu'k remained the undisputed leader as the clan's Dragon Speaker. In a world full of danger and uncertainty, faith and hope in a higher being were what kept them going.
Kyle slowly realized kobolds weren't as mindless or dumb as he once believed. Their culture and lifestyle revolved entirely around teamwork.
Hatchlings were raised together rather than individually to increase survival chances. This made it impossible to determine parentage, but survival mattered far more than bloodlines.
Tasks were shared among members. Some served as scouts and scavengers, watching for threats while gathering food and valuable items. Others remained inside the cave, building traps or digging new tunnels.
There was always one kobold tasked with overseeing everyone else. In their clan, it was a sand-colored kobold named Tu'Li. Meanwhile, Lu'k handled religious rites and educated the hatchlings about their dragon lineage.
Kyle learned that the reason kobolds lived in caves, secret lairs, and hoarded treasure was because they truly believed they were descendants of dragons—and therefore had to live like one.
To Kyle, this belief was the kobold race's greatest flaw.
Living among them for several months was enough for him to fully grasp their weaknesses.
Kobolds were smart compared to other lesser races, but nothing exceptional on a larger scale. They were cowards by nature, avoiding direct fights and relying on traps to weaken enemies first. Even then, they depended on numbers rather than skill or strength.
Compared to humans—who were physically weak by logic—kobolds were inferior, only able to compete with goblins.
How could a race at the bottom of the food chain survive while copying the mindset of dragons, a peak race?
Dragons hoarded treasure because they could defend it.
Kobolds couldn't.
Every time, it ended the same way—the entire colony slaughtered by a handful of adventurers. During Kyle's time with his clan, they encountered several lone, low-level adventurers. Even when the kobolds succeeded, it came at the cost of lives.
Time that should have been spent expanding and growing was wasted hoarding treasure that only attracted enemies.
Kyle watched this cycle repeat again and again.
By the time he turned one year old, every adult in the clan—except Lu'k—was dead.
If he was going to live up to the Greater Kobold's expectations and lead this race to prosperity, that was the first thing that had to change.