Xavier’s mind raced.

  He stood at the topmost peak of the Elemental Dragon’s mountain, at the threshold of the beast’s cave. Inside, he knew he would find what he was after—the dragon’s egg. An egg that would serve as a vessel for the dragon spirit Volkarin.

  He would finally be able to summon the beast into this world.

  But there was something about the C Grade Elemental Dragon that the Hunt Quest notice, along with anyone he’d ever spoken to on this floor, had left out.

  There wasn’t only one dragon on this mountain.

  No wonder no one ever returned from this place alive!

  Suddenly, all of the signs of death that he had seen made more sense. The Elemental Dragon remained in the cave, protecting its egg.

  And the Elemental Dragon’s mate left this place to hunt. A dragon, Xavier knew, required a lot of food.

  His mind racing, Xavier considered his options, but he came to the same conclusion—this didn’t change anything. He had come here to perform a task, and he wasn’t about to leave without having done that.

  Before Xavier laid his eyes on either dragon, their roars still sounding in the air, he cast Summon Otherworldly Spirit.

  He had been waiting for this moment.

  The three different options appeared before him—to summon the Spirit of Vengeance, the Spirit of Protection, or the Spirit of Time.

  More than six months had passed for this floor’s local universe since Xavier had summoned the Spirit of Time. Now, he would have his chance to use the spell once more. It was, he knew, the most powerful spell that he possessed in his entire arsenal—not because it was able to deal damage to his enemies, but because of what it allowed him to learn.

  Even if it could potentially cost other versions of him their lives.

  I know the cost. I’m willing to pay it.

  Xavier chose the Spirit of Time.

  The world dimmed of all colours, though there wasn’t much colour in this place to begin with, so the change was barely noticeable. The change that he did notice was the complete silence that engulfed him the moment he’d chosen which aspect of the spell he wished to use.

  A near-blinding light flashed in front of him. The light slowly dimmed to reveal the beautiful woman now standing there.

  The Spirit of Time.

  The woman looked just as resplendent as she had the first time he had used this spell. There was a smile on her face as she looked upon him. She glanced around the area and gave a knowing nod, as though she knew exactly where they were—perhaps she did.

  I thought it wouldn’t be long until I saw you again, Xavier Collins. What impossible task is it that you wish to perform this time?

  The Spirit of Time’s voice sounded within his mind. He raised his chin as he took her in.

  I have a dragon to slay, Xaver replied. He paused. Two dragons, actually.

  She took a step forward and gave him an appraising look, taking in his wings.

  I sense you have changed a great deal in the short time since you summoned me. The Spirit of Time tilted her head to the side. I enjoy seeing those who summon me improve.

  Xavier spread his black wings behind him, causing the woman to raise her eyebrows. You are right. I have changed a great deal.

  He nodded toward the inside of the cave. A dragon protects its egg within that cave. He turned and gazed behind him. Another comes. Its mate. Ready to defend it.

  Xavier had seen no sign of this second dragon as he’d soared up the mountain, nor had he heard its roar. It wasn’t until he’d stepped over the cave’s threshold that it had sounded.

  There must have been some sort of spell. One that alerted the dragons of his presence.

  Or maybe they were powerful enough that they could simply sense when one was in their domain.

  And you wish to steal this egg, do you not. The spirit did not wait for a response. Interesting. There was a knowing look in her eyes. The Spirit of Time no doubt knew Volkarin—as Volkarin was one of the seven rulers of the Otherworld—and so she likely knew that he was the Spirit of Vengeance that Xavier was so fond of summoning. I see why the dragon did what he did.

  Xavier swallowed as he remembered the dragon fighting until the end for him. If not for those actions, Xavier might not have made it out alive. The dragon had stalled his enemy long enough for him to learn how to adapt. To learn how to change.

  He wasn’t sure he would have survived his battle with The Nightmare if not for Volkarin.

  Time must move forward, the Spirit of Time said. The first unfolding must begin.

  Xavier felt the change. The shift in the very universe as the time stream was altered. He stood exactly where he had a moment ago, only this time he was no longer in control.

  An entirely separate time stream had been created—meaning an entire alternate universe had come into existence as this version of himself diverged.

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  Xavier was inside his own body, able to see what was going, but there was nothing that he could do to influence it.

  It was a very strange feeling.

  I hope this version of me doesn’t have to die for this.

  “Looks like I drew the short straw,” the other version of him muttered. He tilted his head from one side to the other, eliciting a satisfying crack. “I suppose I was looking for a challenge.”

  The other version of him leapt into the air and soared high on powerful wings. Xavier, observing, wasn’t sure that was the first choice he would have made.

  Which was strange, because this was him.

  He’s not trying to flee, is he?

  Xavier couldn’t help but wonder if that happened sometimes. The moment the time streams diverged, the version of him that emerged was essentially a completely different person to himself.

  That fact always served to boggle his mind.

  There could be people out there who used this spell, but the other version of themselves simply… ran from whatever impossible task was set before them.

  That would only be fair, Xavier supposed. The other version wouldn’t be able to summon the Spirit of Time—they weren’t able to use Summon Otherworldly Spirit again at all.

  But this version of Xavier didn’t flee. His eyes darted left and right as he tried to look for the dragon that had roared out here. The two dragon roars had sounded distinctly different to Xavier’s ears. One of the dragons was much older than the other—and that dragon was the one he was stuck with outside of the cave.

  Ah, Xavier realised. The other version of him had launched himself in the air rather than stepping into the cave where the Elemental Dragon was protecting its egg because the Elemental Dragon wouldn’t leave its egg unprotected.

  Out here, he could deal with this dragon before dealing with the other one. Besides, they needed to get a good look at it, and that was far easier at height.

  Xavier felt something strange happen then.

  He… Detached himself from the fight. As he looked through the eyes of another version of him, he took on the role of observer and nothing more. He had felt this same thing before, back when he had first summoned the Spirit of Time, when he’d been facing the C Grade Fetid Forest Troll as a lowly E Grade.

  Xavier didn’t need to act, all he need do was watch.

  The other version of Xavier spotted the second dragon far off in the distance. It had been hunting in the mists beyond the mountain, something Xavier marvelled at. The distance from here to there—the roar must have been incredibly loud.

  Xavier examined the dragon as it pumped its wings and soared straight for him. It was still a fair distance away, but it was eating that distance incredibly fast.

  Right now, it was too far away for him to use his Identify skill on, but that would soon change.

  The dragon wasn’t what Xavier had expected. It looked nothing like any dragon he had seen in the flesh—it also looked nothing like the dragon spirit Volkarin.

  This beast was something altogether different.

  It was a skeletal dragon. There was no flesh anywhere on its bones. No muscle. Nothing. It looked like some mad creation of a necromancer, but Xavier could see the life in it. This was no mere undead minion.

  This was an undead creature with a soul of its own.

  The beast looked terrifying as it flew through the air, and that aura of fear—of dread—that permeated this place only grew the closer the dragon came to reaching the mountain.

  The other Xavier kept glancing down at the cave’s entrance below, as though he expected the Elemental Dragon inside to make an appearance.

  She’s not going to come, Xavier thought—and intuitively, he knew the Elemental Dragon inside was the mother of that egg.

  There was a sudden glow about the skeletal dragon, just as it came within range of Xavier’s ability to scan it.

  {Skeletal Dragon - Level 385}

  A true skeletal beast is a creature that has come back to the world of the living through sheer force of will. Something in this world makes them cling harder to the Mortal Realm than others, something that it cannot let go of.

  Though a soul resides within a true skeletal beast and they are able to grow in power, they are not fully alive—always they have one foot in life and one foot in death.

  A Skeletal Dragon is one of the most powerful skeletal creatures that exists.

  Though Skeletal Dragons possess souls, they are immune to soul damage. They are, however, weak to holy damage.

  If you don’t have a cleric in your party, perhaps it is time you run.

  Level 385. That’s even stronger than The Nightmare. And immune to soul damage.

  That was definitely useful knowledge.

  Why do all these damned C Grade beasts need to be immune to soul damage?

  Xavier was heartened by the fact that even in this detached state as an observer, he could still feel the different energy channels moving around in his body—or rather, in the body of the other version of him.

  So he could feel his Body Cultivation spell at work.

  Xavier watched in mute fascination as the other version of himself launched at the dragon.

  The other version of him soared through a portal and appeared at the Skeletal Dragon’s back. He ran a clawed hand along the beast’s flank, striking with an explosive Body Cultivation attack.

  Xavier examined the wound that was left behind by the attack—Telekinetic Enhanced Strike had been used to further strengthen the Body Cultivation attack.

  And yet the damage to the dragon’s bones was minimal.

  The glow about the Skeletal Dragon intensified. A wave of energy shot out from it. Xavier could feel that energy. There was something wretched and wrong about it that he simply couldn’t place.

  The other version of him soared back through the portal, managing to avoid being hit by the wave of energy that emanated from the Skeletal Dragon in wild pulses like ripples in a pool.

  Five scratches. That’s all that attack did to this damned beast.

  Soul Strike, of course, would be useless against this thing.

  The other version of himself shot forward the moment the pulse of wild energy had ceased. Another type of energy infused his body. This time, it wasn’t just Celestial Energy that cycled through his channels—it was Soul Energy.

  This dragon might not be susceptible to Soul Damage, but neither had The Nightmare, yet Xavier had still been able to harm the beast when he used Soul Energy to infuse his Body Cultivation attacks.

  Xavier was still trying to puzzle out exactly why that was. He hadn’t come to a conclusion yet, but right now he didn’t need to.

  The second slash did considerably more damage than the first. Xavier heard a crack as his strike impacted the skeletal beast’s bone. The crack reverberated outward and was so strong it caused an avalanche somewhere lower down the mountain.

  Xavier felt the other version of himself smile in grim satisfaction.

  Then another wave of energy pulsed from the Skeletal Dragon. This one, he hadn’t been able to get out of the way from. The energy engulfed his entire body.

  The sensation was incredibly strange. Xavier had felt versions of himself die in the past. That was something he didn’t wish to go through again, but knew that if he continued to summon the Spirit of Time, that was likely happen a lot in his future.

  What he thought he felt in that moment was similar to the deaths of the other versions of himself he’d felt in the past.

  Except… This version of him didn’t die.

  His spirit simply left his body.

  Although there was nothing entirely simple about that.

  What the hell did that spell just do?

  A fraction of a second after Xavier asked the question, a notification appeared in his vision.

  Your spirit has been ejected from your body.

  You have 5 minutes to return to your body before your soul is forced to depart from this world.

  You may only return to your body if it remains alive.

  Accidental Champion!

  my patreon has 29 ADVANCED CHAPTERS to enjoy!

  https://www.patreon.com/posts/free-tier-book-4-116513628

  https://discord.gg/nsgnbpWJ7S