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Chapter 9 - Chapter 0009: A... A Dragon? Awakening/Celestial Descent!

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A line of shimmering golden words emerged in the sky, lingering for a few minutes before gradually fading. However, the tension it stirred was undeniable.

A few children, who appeared to be around five years old, looked up in awe. One of them, a small girl with wide, curious eyes, suddenly pointed upward and shouted toward the instructor nearby.

"Instructor, the number increased again!" Her voice rang with a mix of excitement and confusion.

Not far ahead stood a middle-aged man with neatly combed green hair tinged with lighter shades. He glanced upward and smiled faintly, his eyes reflecting the golden letters above.

"Indeed," he said softly. "Ninety-three years ago, mana descended upon this world, and with it came the great mutation. Trees, plants, animals, and even humans changed in ways no one could have foreseen. Alongside the descent of mana appeared the floating words in the sky. With every increase in that percentage, the mana saturation in the atmosphere grows even denser."

His tone was calm and steady as he explained, though a few of the children wore puzzled expressions. While some nodded in vague understanding, others seemed visibly confused by his words.

Among them was a boy whose face was serious beyond his years. He looked to be five, with silvery-blue hair that shimmered faintly beneath the gentle sunlight streaming through the classroom window.

His eyes, though youthful and playful on the surface, held a strange depth. There was maturity in his gaze, a quiet sharpness that didn't belong to a child.

His name was Modret.

Modret watched the fading golden numbers with a furrowed brow. Over the five years he had spent in this world, he had come to learn much about the so-called Descent.

It was said that on that fateful day, mana arrived and transformed the Earth beyond recognition.

Animals underwent strange evolutions, and vegetation either became dangerously toxic or miraculously healing.

Some poisonous plants grew so potent that a single touch could kill a grown man, while certain herbs were said to regrow lost limbs or cure deadly illnesses.

But the most profound change occurred in humanity. A select few began to awaken supernatural abilities, and those individuals came to be known as

...the Awakened.

The world changed overnight.

Even the most ordinary people, like the neighborhood grandmother who had quietly nurtured resentment toward her rude neighbor, suddenly found themselves blessed with superhuman strength. She finally had the power to exact her long-awaited revenge.

But not all changes were for the better.

With the awakening came chaos. Criminals, lunatics, and those on death row suddenly gained the power to break free and fight back.

A wave of violence swept across the world. Blood was spilled in terrifying amounts. It was said that those in power barely managed to hold their ground.

Only their access to rare resources allowed them to become stronger quickly enough to suppress the threat.

Modret had heard many such tales over the years. He couldn't recall them all now, but the gravity of those stories always lingered in the back of his mind. Returning from his thoughts, he frowned again.

'That glowing number that appears every year… it can't possibly be a good thing, right?' he wondered silently. He already knew this world was one of abysmal sage-level difficulty. There was no chance things would ever be easy here.

Even though there had been no assassination attempts in recent years, a lingering sense of unease still haunted him. It sat in the corners of his mind, silent but ever-present.

"Class dismissed!" the instructor's deep voice rang through the classroom.

Modret blinked, shaken from his thoughts, and looked toward the departing figure of the instructor.

Leon had been their teacher for over a year now. He was the one responsible for teaching them about the Awakened world and its harsh realities. Modret slowly stood up, slipped one hand into his pocket, and calmly walked out of the classroom.

The other children stared at him with hesitant expressions. Modret was the only noble in the class. The others were children of servants or commoners, and they dared not approach him. No one wanted to risk offending a noble, let alone someone connected to the royal family.

'How lonely.' Modret exhaled a soft breath, his back straight but quiet as he walked away. He didn't mind their distance. After all, mentally, he wasn't their age mate—not even close.

As he stepped out of the classroom grounds, the sky suddenly darkened.

'A storm?' he thought, frowning as he looked up. But the next moment, his body froze. His expression turned pale as though he had seen a ghost.

Behind him, the faces of the other children turned just as pale. A suffocating wave of pressure descended from above, causing the air to tremble. Fear etched itself into every child's features.

'A… a dragon?' Modret whispered, his frame trembling.

High above them, a colossal creature hovered. Its gaze pierced the very soul. It resembled the Western dragons from the stories Modret had read in his previous life.

Its four legs were covered in thick, dark blue scales, and its massive body shimmered with otherworldly power. Its eyes were narrow green slits, glowing with predatory hunger. With a single glance, it made them all feel utterly helpless.

Modret had never experienced such paralyzing fear. His limbs refused to move. He couldn't even summon the will to run.

Then, a small figure stepped in front of him. The boy trembled, his knees shaking, but he stood firm, blocking Modret from the creature's gaze. His face was pale, but within his eyes burned an unshakable determination.

"Young master… please, stay behind me. I will protect you!" the boy said, voice quivering yet filled with conviction. His hand clenched tightly into fists, and his gaze stayed locked on the dragon.

Modret's eyes widened. The boy's courage shocked him. Even as someone mentally in his thirties, he couldn't muster the strength to face that terrifying creature. Yet this boy, a child who knew so little of the world, dared to stand his ground.

It was astonishing.

Modret slowly turned his head to look at the brave boy who had stepped forward.

Then, a chilling female voice echoed through the air.

"Beast, how dare you infiltrate the Axarel household? Are you tired of living?"

The air split open as a figure draped in flowing blue robes streaked across the sky. Her movement was a blur, almost impossible to follow, as she rushed toward the dragon.

She reached it in a heartbeat. With one graceful motion, she raised a hand and unleashed a powerful strike. White flames burst forth from her palm, roaring toward the dragon with intense heat.

The moment the flames touched it, the dragon's eyes flared with panic. The pressure and the energy radiating from the flames made even the mighty beast retreat. 

It gave one last glare toward the household before flapping its enormous wings and flying away, its form disappearing into the dark clouds.

As the beast vanished, the woman descended lightly and landed in front of Modret. Her lips curved into a gentle smile as she looked at him.

"Son, how was class today?" she asked softly, her voice laced with warmth and affection that had only deepened over the years.

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To Be Continued...

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