The world was quiet.
Not the peaceful kind of quiet you get after snowfall or under a gentle rain. This silence was thick—ancient, unmoving. A place where time had long stopped bothering to tick.
Deep beneath the surface of a forgotten mountain, buried under centuries of moss and stone, a single egg rested in the shadows. Its shell was dark crimson, faintly translucent, with veins of glowing gold threading like cracks of molten fire beneath its surface.
Inside, I—Darian Flamehart—dreamed.
But not the dreams of a child yet to be born.
These were not sweet or innocent.
They were drenched in flame, betrayal, and the choking scream of divine fire.
They were memories.
Mine.
> "You're no hero, Darian. You're a traitor to mankind."
The voice echoed in my skull like a cracked bell—familiar and cruel. Sir Aldric, my old comrade. The one who thrust the holy dagger through my spine before watching me burn with that empty, zealous stare.
> I died. I remember dying.
I had expected nothingness, the void that followed judgment. But instead, I had awoken in this cage of shell and silence.
My mind was trapped, floating in the warmth of mana. My body had not yet formed.
I was reborn, not as a man, but as something… ancient.
Something terrifying.
And something hunted.
> "System," I called in the void of my thoughts, though my voice made no sound. "Why am I still alive?"
A moment later, the answer came—not in words, but in glowing runes that formed in my mind.
---
> [Draconic Evolution System Activated]
Status: Dormant Form (Egg Stage)
Soul: [Darian Flamehart — Bound by Vow of Flame]
Threat Level: Minimal
➤ Incubation Progress: 13%
➤ Evolution Path: Undecided
➤ Mana Source: Weak
☐ Unlock Minor Ability: [Mana Pulse – Echo]
☐ Energy Required to Hatch: 1000 Units
Current Mana Absorbed: 62 Units
---
Pathetic.
Even in rebirth, I was as helpless as a child. Trapped in a fragile shell, waiting to grow. But I was alive, and that meant only one thing: the gods hadn't forgotten me.
No… They wanted me to finish what had begun centuries ago.
The genocide of dragonkind wasn't the end.
> It was the spark.
---
Somewhere above me, the earth groaned. Stone shifted. Wind whistled through cracks in the mountainside.
Footsteps.
Light ones. Frantic. And coming closer.
I felt it like a vibration in my core. My senses were dull but growing clearer by the hour.
The tremble of boots skidding on gravel. Labored breathing. A panicked heartbeat. Human.
Then—
CRASH.
A body tumbled into the chamber. Dust swirled. Light filtered through a jagged gap in the rocks above—the first light this cave had seen in ages.
A figure coughed violently, struggling to stand. Female. Young. Her torn cloak clung to her small frame as she pressed her back against the wall, clutching a curved dagger to her chest.
> "Shit… shit, they saw me," she gasped.
I listened, still and silent.
A few moments later, distant shouting echoed above. Male voices barking orders. Metal boots on stone.
The girl shoved herself deeper into the shadows, eyes darting.
Then she saw me.
Her breath caught.
Slowly, she approached—step by cautious step.
> Don't touch me, I warned silently.
But of course, she couldn't hear my thoughts.
Her fingers brushed the surface of my shell.
Warm.
Gentle.
A flash of light erupted from my core.
Her eyes widened, mouth parting in shock.
> "Wh-what the hell was that…?"
My soul flared.
And for the first time in centuries, I felt a heartbeat.
My own.
---
> [Mana Surge Detected]
Source: Unnamed Human — Moderate Magical Affinity
System Upgrade Unlocked:
➤ [Hatch Timer Accelerated: +5%]
➤ [Soul Imprint Initiated – Unknown Link Established]
Alert: Hostile Presence Approaching. Risk Level: Medium.
---
So... she wasn't just any thief. She was a conduit.
A spark.
And now that spark had lit the fuse.
The girl stumbled back, trembling. "What are you?"
I couldn't answer.
Not yet.
But she didn't run.
Instead, she backed toward the shadows and drew her dagger, eyes fixed on the narrow opening she'd fallen through.
> "You'd better not be cursed," she muttered. "I've already got enough of those."
I almost laughed. Almost.
The echo of torchlight and gruff voices began to spill into the chamber.
The hunters had found her.
And me.
---
Above ground, four armored men forced their way through the crumbling cavern mouth.
"Tracks lead here," one grunted. "She's cornered."
"Use the flame scrolls. Smoke her out."
"No," a third growled. "Look at the markings… this cave is warded."
Even centuries later, the wards carved by dragonkind still lingered in the earth—veins of protective magic that shielded the resting places of their kind.
But the magic was weak. Dying. Like me.
The girl held her breath. So did I.
Then—
> A torch was thrown down.
Firelight bloomed in the dark.
One of the men began to chant.
> "By the flame of justice, I burn thee—"
The girl lunged. Blade flashing. Screams echoed.
Steel clashed. Blood sprayed.
One of the men fell, his throat opened.
But the others advanced, cornering her.
And she stumbled—falling again, this time right beside me.
Her blood smeared across my shell.
And that was the final spark.
---
> [Blood Offering Detected]
Energy Absorbed: +50 Mana
Evolution Progress: 20%
➤ Passive Skill Unlocked: [Flame Vein I – Mana Pulse Deterrence]
➤ Auto-Defense Triggered
---
My shell pulsed.
Fire rippled beneath it.
A roar—distant but real—rattled the stone.
The soldiers froze.
Then… the cavern wall exploded in fire.
A spectral dragon's silhouette surged from my shell, slamming into the nearest soldier. His body was hurled across the room, armor melting, screams short-lived.
The other man dropped his sword and fled.
Silence returned, broken only by the girl's ragged breathing.
She stared at me, eyes wide.
"…You're not just an egg."
I couldn't speak.
But if I could?
I'd have told her she was right.
I wasn't just an egg.
I was Darian Flamehart, reborn in scale and soul.
And when I hatched—
> The world would burn.
The cave was silent. Too silent.
Outside, the wind howled through the cracks of the shattered mountain. Inside, all that remained was the smell of scorched flesh and burnt iron. Kaela stood there, dagger in hand, trembling. Her breathing was ragged, lips cracked, and blood dripped slowly from the gash on her shoulder.