Rael g the heart in his hands. "How did creating a new at lead me here?" he muttered, shaking his head. Taking a breath, he focused and gave the system and. "Accept skill."

  The world around him blurred as the heart began to disie, dissolving into tless shimmering particles. They swirled like a miniature gaxy before flowing into his chest, sending a faint warmth through his body.

  [Skill Learned: Dragonrite]

  [New Ability Gained: Abyssal Maw]

  Rael bli the notifications. "Wait…?" He quickly opened his status menu, eyes sing the ries:

  [Skill: Dragonrite]

  Allows the user to gain a random ability upon ing a dragon's heart. Each ability is unique and ot be repced.

  [Ability: Abyssal Maw]

  Summons a spectral dragon head wreathed in purplish fmes to bite enemies. Scales with character level.

  Rael read through both descriptions twice. "So that's what he meant by choice," he muttered under his breath. Testing the ability was tempting, but the sharp gaze he felt from behind reminded him of Weyrn's presence.

  Turning back, he found the elf watg him with his usual unreadable expression. Rael closed the menu with a flick of his hand. "…Now what?"

  Weyrn's gaze lingered on him, something resembling approval flickering in his eyes. "You've joihe feable of wielding a Dragonrite. Don't squa."

  Rael shifted, still feeling the lingering warmth of the heart's absorption. "Why me?" he asked. "Why e back at the caves?"

  Weyrn adjusted his cloak. "For the Dragoo take root, the user must have never walked another path. No flig powers." His eyes flicked to Rael. "You met the prerequisite."

  Rael frowned, sidering the implication. So I wouldn't be here if I'd been level 2her?

  "Dragonrite is simple in principle," Weyrn tinued. "When a user es a dragon's heart, they gain a fragment of its strength. Each heart bestows a different ability, determined by the dragon's nature. But…" His gaze shifted toward the distant peaks. "Dragons are noble creatures. Their might is not freely given, and their hearts are not easily cimed."

  He tapped the side of his greatbow with a faint k of metal. "For hunters like us, growing stronger without challenging dragons is… difficult. Our path is one of trial and blood." His voice grew quieter, though his firaced the b with unmistakable reverence.

  Then, as if remembering something, Weyrn gnced back at Rael. "But you… You're the first Blessed to i a Dragonrite."

  Rael's brow furrowed. "First? Out of all the blessed?"

  "Blessed grow stronger far faster than mortals," Weyrn replied, uned by the question's nuance. "Your kind's growth is… accelerated. What takes us years be achieved by you in mere weeks. With a Dragohat advantage bees eveer. Use it wisely."

  Rael exhaled slowly, processing the information. So even the NPotice the differen progression. Makes sense, I guess. Aloud, he said, "Thanks for the opportunity… and the lesson."

  Weyrn offered a single nod before turning toward the thunderbird. Without another word, he mounted Foren, and the thunderbird spread its wings. Rael climbed up as well, brag against the surge of wind as they asded into the skies once more.

  The journey back to the fishing vilge was shorter than Rael expected, likely due to Foren's incredible speed. A while ter, the faint outline of the coast appeared below—rocky shores and wooden docks stretg into calm blue waters. Foren circled ohen desded he vilge outskirts, nding with a graceful sweep of its wings.

  Rael dismounted first, boots g against the gravel road. "See you around, I guess," he said, looking up at Weyrn.

  The elf nodded, his golden eyes gleaming faintly. "Survive long enough, and perhaps we'll meet again." With that, he tapped Foren's neck. The thunderbird unched into the sky, leaving behind a gust of wind and a scattering of leaves in its wake.

  Rael stood there for a moment, watg the fading silhouette until it vanished beyond the clouds. The out a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck. "First Blessed Dragonrite user, huh…" His gaze drifted toward the distant sea, waves refleg the midday sun.

  What are the odds? First, I get this weird sealed css that probably takes forever to unloow, I've got some rare dragon ability that sounds cool but will probably amount to jack all in the long run. He huffed out a quiet ugh. Is there some entity out there enjoying my misery?

  Shaking his head, Rael adjusted his bow and turoward the vilge. It was time to figure out what to do .

  * * *

  Turns out I didn't have to wait long to figure out what to do .

  First on the list: a certain on vendor.

  Rael's footsteps echoed against the cobblestone as he approached the small shop he vilge square, where racks of basic swords and spears stood on dispy. The wooden sign above the entrance swayed slightly in the breeze, as if taunting him.

  Five mier, he stepped back outside, shaking his head as the door swung shut behind him. At least I gave him a piey mind about those fish alcohol bottles… Whether the vendor actually cared was debatable, but Rael sidered the matter settled.

  , Sabrina.

  He opened his interfad scrolled to his pending friend requests. Sabrina's name hovered at the top of the list, marked by a small silver iext to her username: Artemis. With a quick tap, he accepted.

  Ding!

  Before he could even close the interface, three messages popped up in rapid succession.

  [Artemis]: Finally?

  [Artemis]: It's been three days. What were you even doing?

  [Artemis]: Thought you got lost or something.

  Rael rubbed the back of his neck, already regretting the decisioyped out a quick response.

  [EzPz4040]: I was in some marsh zone in the south. Got pulled into a quest or something.

  The reply came almost instantly.

  [Artemis]: Oh, nice. I'm in the south too. Want to meet somewhere?

  Rael hesitated, then opehe pyer-run wiki for the southern region. Sihe game had been out for over a month, pyers had already doted most of the known towns. After a quick scroll, he found ohat wasn't too far from his current location: Hun.

  [EzPz4040]: There's a town called Huhere?

  [Artemis]: Alright. Also, you're like level eleven huh.

  Rael blinked. What? Before he could reply, another wave of messages arrived, this time filled with random stickers—everything from a dang slime to a pixeted chi holding a knife.

  [Artemis]: You should probably ge your name soon. People are gonna hunt you down just to troll you.

  Rael exhaled through his nose, half amused, half exasperated. Yeah… probably a good idea.

  With a shake of his head, he closed the interfad turned south. Time to head to Hun.

  * * *

  The jouro Hun took Rael the better part of half a day. By the time he reached the outskirts, the sun was already dipping toward the horizon, casting long shadows across the golden pins. As he crossed the stone bridge leading into town, the distant hum of chatter and king tools drifted on the breeze, mingling with the faint creak of wooden carts rolling over cobblestone.

  Despite the sic ride, Rael found himself missing Foren's speed. pared to the thunderbird's exhirating flight, even the fastest nd mounts felt painfully slow.

  Hun itself was modest—cobbled streets windiween timber-framed buildings, their windows glowing faintly with ntern light. Stalls lihe marketpear the entrance, vendors calling out st-minute offers before pag up for the evening. Farther in, a tall clock tower loomed above the rooftops, its bells faintly eg the hour.

  As Rael approached the main square, a familiar figure caught his eye near a fountain. Sabrina leaned against the stone ledge with casual ease, arms crossed over her chest. Her silver hair, tied ba a loose ponytail, caught the fading sunlight like strands of moonlight. She wore a dark leather jacket over a fitted tunic, her bck boots tapping idly against the ground as she sed the crowd.

  Spotting Rael, she pushed off the fountain and approached with a slight smirk. "Took you long enough."

  "I wasly door," Rael replied ftly.

  "Excuses, excuses," she teased, stopping a few steps away. Her gaze flicked over him, as if appraising his equipment. "Still rog the default look, huh?"

  Rael shrugged, unfazed. "Haven't had time to care about fashion."

  "Still, Lunaris is a solid choice." Sabrina stepped around him in a slow circle, as if iing a rare spe. "Good racial bonuses, det appearance... You do your homework or just get lucky?"

  "Didn't like the idea of pying human," Rael replied. "Seemed b."

  The words slipped out without much thought, but in the back of his mind, he recalled how quickly he'd chosen human on his main at—ation, no sed-guessing.

  "Fair enough." Sabrina stopped in front of him again, her gaze briefly flig to his equipment before swiping her interface open. "Anyway, I owe you one, remember? So I'm here to return the favor. Let's go level you up, Mr. Newbie!"

  Rael raised an eyebrow. "Power leveling, huh?"

  "Of course. 't have you wandering around as a lowbie forever." She tilted her head with a smirk. "Besides, it's literally why I'm here. I'm level twenty-seven—it won't take long."

  Rael's gaze flicked over her equipment. Sleek leather armor designed for mobility, with reinforced pting around the shoulders and bracers. The bow slung across her back gleamed with faint silver etgs, and the quiver at her hip carried arrows tipped with obsidiag. Definitely not beginner gear. Her level tag firmed it: Level 27—impressive for the game's current stage. A raoo, from the look of it.

  "Alright," Rael sighed, accepting her party ihout further questions.

  "Good. Let's head out before it gets crowded." She turned and walked briskly dowreet, her steps fident and unhurried.

  Rael adjusted his bow and fell into step beside her. By the time they passed through Hun's southern gate and into the wilds beyond, night had fully settled over the ndscape. The faint glow of moonlight filtered through the dehickets of pine, casting silver patterns across frost-tipped shrubs. The air carried a crisp chill, each breath visible in the cool darkness.

  The first targets were ice trolls—hulking creatures with pale blue skin and jagged limbs that looked more like frozen boulders. They loomed twice as tall as Rael, their breath misting in the air as they lumbered forward with bone clubs raised high.

  "Focus their legs," Sabrina called, loosing an arrow that whistled through the air and embedded itself into a troll's kh a dull thunk. The beast roared, its bance faltering as frost splintered from the wound.

  Rael moved quickly, nog an arrow and aiming for the same joint. His shot struck true, causing the creature to stagger. Sabrina fi off with a rapid volley, her arrows blurring through the air.

  They fell into a rhythm—Rael crippling their targets while Sabrina delivered precise, lethal shots. Each kill sent faint golden motes drifting toward him as experieifications flickered at the edge of his vision.

  By the time they moved on from the frost-covered hills, Rael had gained a couple of levels. His breathing was steady, but his stamina bar hovered dangerously low after hours of stant movement. Yet Sabrina showed no signs of slowing.

  "Hope you're not tired yet," she said with a grin.

  Rael exhaled through his nose. "I keep going."

  They desded into a dripping caver, its walls slick with densation. The air smelled faintly of salt and algae, and shallow pools of water covered the uone floor. Shadows shifted within the pools—slithering shapes that rose into humanoid forms with translut bodies and glowing sapphire eyes. Water elementals.

  "Great…" Rael muttered.

  The elementals moved faster tharolls, their bodies flowing effortlessly through the waterlogged terrain. Arrows slowed as they struck liquid flesh, redug their impact. Rael quickly found himself dodging more than attag, spshes soaking his boots as he darted around casg jets of pressurized water.

  A burst of liquid shot past his shoulder, narrowly missing his head. Another elemental lunged forward, its form shifting into a serpentine coil as it whipped toward him. Rael twisted aside, barely avoiding the strike as he drew another arrow. His stamina dipped further.

  The temptation to use Abyssal Maw fred in the back of his mind. Orike, and he could finish the creature instantly. But the thought of Sabrina witnessing a low-level ranger casually summoning a dragon's head to p his enemies in half was… less than ideal.

  Yeah, that'd be a little hard to expin.

  He gritted his teeth a running, fog on nding quick shots while Sabrina took down the elementals with practiced efficy. Each kill brought a surge of experience, pushing him steadily toward his goal.

  "Hey, try not to run so much!" Sabrina called between shots. "You're making them chase you all over the cave."

  "Not all of us are built like maes," Rael shot back, loosing an arrow that clipped aal's shoulder.

  "Always with the excuses," she replied with a ugh, seamlessly switg targets as another elemental emerged from the depths.

  Rael only grunted in response, weaving through shallow pools as jets of pressurized water spshed against the cavern walls. Another elemental surged forward, f him to dive aside to avoid a watery tendril aimed at his chest. His boots skidded on the slick stone, nearly sending him sprawling.

  So this is what Elias feels like everytime, he thought dryly, narrowly dodging another bst of water. The stant pressure of being chased, knowing a single mistake could get you fttened… Yeah, he owed the guy some food after this.

  By the time the st elemental colpsed into a puddle of shimmering water, Rael stood pantihe cave wall, his bow still half-raised. His interface blinked with a familiar blue notification:

  [Level Up!]

  Rael exhaled slowly, rexing his grip on the b. Not bad for a few hours of work. A quice at his interface showed Level 17 glowing beside his name. He closed it and looked toward Sabrina, who was already hopping around.

  "You don't fight like a newbie," she called with a faint grin.

  "Yeah... thanks for the help, but—" He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "I should probably log out. My friends are waiting for me to grab food."

  "Ah, real-world obligations, huh?" Sabrina raised a brow.

  "Something like that." He opened his interface to log out, theated. "And, uh... You've already helped me a lot. It's fine if we don't go all the way to twenty."

  "Doesn't matter." She shrugged, turning toward the cave exit. "I'm in Hun anyway. I'll find something to do until you're back. Just don't take too long, or I might hit twe without you."

  Rael snorted. "Right. Be back ter."

  With that, he firmed the log-out option, and the world of Solmora dissolved into white.

  * * *

  Rael stepped out of the pod, rubbing his neck as he adjusted to the real world again. The faint hum of Elias's VR setup still echoed in the air, but his roommate was nowhere near his pod. Instead, Elias stood in the middle of the room, oretched behind him, arms raised overhead in a wobbly yoga pose.

  "Flexibility is key," Elias muttered to himself. "If the mind is flexible, nothing is impossible—"

  Rael cleared his throat.

  "Gah—!" Elias filed, lost his bance, and crashed face-first onto the carpet with an unceremonious thump. He rolled onto his back, rubbing his nose as he blinked up at Rael.

  "Hello, stranger," Elias greeted as if nothing had happened. "e here often?"

  Rael stared down at him, unimpressed.

  "I—uh, It's a joke, joke," Elias quickly amended, scrambling to his feet. "Anyway, how'd the date with Sabrina go?"

  Rael's expression remained perfectly bnk.

  "…Haha. Kidding. Definitely kidding," Elias added with a nervous chuckle, holding his hands up in surrender. "So, what happened?"

  Rael crossed his arms and crashed onto the couch, sinking into the cushions with a sigh. "Ran into an NPamed Weyrn while AFK farming. Somehow ended up sying a dragon and being a Dragonrite user or something. Then I spent a few hours mob-hunting with Sabrina and hit level 17."

  He said it with the same casual tone someone might use to mention buying groceries.

  Elias just stood there, staring. "…Wait—what?"