The voice spoke directly into his mind, clear and unmistakable.
'Master. You have returned.'
Mikail stood frozen in the courtyard, his brain struggling to process what had just happened. The massive white dragon loomed before him, her intelligent eyes focused entirely on him, and he could feel the presence of her consciousness touching his own.
The dragon could speak.
His mouth opened, then closed. No words came out. His thoughts, normally processing at speeds ten thousand times faster than normal, had apparently decided to take a vacation.
'Master?' The voice came again, concerned now. 'Are you well?'
Nothing. Mikail's violet eyes stared blankly at the dragon, his expression completely slack.
'Master, please respond. Have I displeased you in some way?'
Still silence. The dragon shifted her massive body, scales scraping against stone. Her head tilted, bringing one enormous eye closer to examine him.
'Master! Why do you not speak?'
When he still gave no response, the dragon made a sound that could only be described as a whine. Her tail began to swish back and forth, cracking the courtyard stones. Her wings rustled with agitation, creating gusts that made the watching servants stumble.
'Master, please! Say something! Anything! I have waited so long for you to summon me, and now you ignore me?'
The desperation in that mental voice was palpable. The dragon lowered her head even further, practically pressing her snout against Mikail as if trying to physically shake him from his stupor.
'MASTER!' The volume of the mental shout finally broke through his shock. 'Do not ignore me! I will not tolerate being dismissed! Acknowledge me this instant!'
The dragon reared back, her frustration mounting. She stomped her feet, creating tremors that knocked several servants off balance. Her tail lashed wildly, demolishing what remained of a stone bench. Her wings spread wide, casting the entire courtyard into shadow.
'I am the White Dragon Queen! The most powerful of my kind! You cannot simply summon me and then refuse to speak! Master, this is unacceptable! I demand you address me immediately!'
Behind Mikail, Teach had gone so pale he looked like he might faint. The maids clutched each other in terror. Even the footmen, trained to remain calm in crisis, looked ready to bolt.
But Mikail barely noticed any of it. His mind was still reeling from the impossibility of what he was experiencing.
The dragon's agitation reached a peak. Her eyes, each larger than his entire body, began to shimmer with what could only be described as tears.
'Master... please. I do not understand. Did I fail you somehow? Am I not as you remembered? Have I disappointed you?'
The sadness in that voice cut through everything else. Mikail blinked, awareness finally returning to his eyes. He saw the dragon's expression, the genuine hurt radiating from her massive form, and something in his chest tightened.
"I... I apologize," he managed to say, his voice rough.
The effect was immediate and dramatic. The dragon's entire demeanor transformed. Her head lifted. Her eyes brightened. Her tail began to wag with such force it created small whirlwinds in the courtyard.
'Master! You spoke! Oh, thank the ancient winds! I thought something terrible had happened! I was so worried!'
"No, nothing like that," Mikail said, raising his hands. "I was just... in shock. I did not know how to respond."
'Shocked?' The dragon's mental voice carried genuine confusion. 'But why would you be shocked, Master? I do not understand.'
Mikail took a breath, steadying himself. "I was shocked because you can speak. I did not know you were capable of communication."
There was a beat of silence. Then the dragon threw her head back, and Mikail felt rather than heard her laughter. It rippled through his mind like waves, pure amusement mixed with overwhelming pride.
'Of COURSE I can speak!' The dragon's mental voice practically dripped with smugness. 'What did you expect? That I was some mindless beast incapable of thought?'
"Well, I—"
'My kind is the most intelligent race in all of Infinity!' The dragon interrupted, clearly warming to her subject. Her chest puffed out with pride. 'We possess wisdom that predates civilizations! Knowledge that spans millennia! Cognitive abilities that put mortals to shame! We are superior in every measurable way!'
Mikail opened his mouth to respond, but the dragon was on a roll now.
'And even among dragons, I am the pinnacle! The absolute peak of what our kind can achieve! I was born to be great, Master! Born with power others spend lifetimes cultivating! Born with beauty that makes lesser dragons weep with envy! Born with intelligence that surpasses even the ancient wyrms of old!'
The dragon's laughter echoed through the courtyard, her pride so palpable it was almost physical.
'I am the Queen of Dragons! The White Dragon who stands above all others! My scales are the purest white, untainted by imperfection! My wings can carry me faster than any creature alive! My breath can freeze entire armies! My mind can grasp concepts that would break mortal comprehension!'
She continued listing her qualities, each declaration more grandiose than the last. Mikail stood there, already deeply regretting having said anything at all.
'Did you truly think me incapable of speech? Me? The greatest of my kind? Oh Master, that is quite amusing! Hilarious, even! As if I would be anything less than perfect in every way!'
'I have made a terrible mistake,' Mikail thought, watching the dragon bask in her own superiority.
He cleared his throat loudly. "Yes, well, I understand now. You are very impressive. Truly."
'I know!' The dragon preened, her pride radiating like heat from a furnace.
"Now, I summoned you because I need to travel somewhere."
The dragon's laughter cut off instantly. Her entire focus shifted, and Mikail suddenly had her complete and undivided attention.
'Travel?' Her mental voice filled with eager excitement. 'You wish to use me? For my intended purpose? Oh Master, I have waited SO LONG for this moment! Finally! Finally I will be useful to you!'
"I need to reach the Silvermont Tower. It is located west of here."
'The Silvermont Tower! Yes! I shall take you there with all haste!' The dragon practically vibrated with happiness. 'Oh Master, you have no idea how long I have waited for this! Ever since you tamed me, I have been hoping, praying that you would call upon me! And now at last the day has come!'
Mikail felt a small pang of guilt. He had captured her and then essentially forgotten about her, leaving her stored away like a trophy he never looked at.
'We can arrive by tomorrow morning if we depart now,' the dragon continued. 'The journey is considerable, but I am the fastest flyer in all of Infinity! No other creature can match my speed in the air!'
Mikail blinked. "Tomorrow? It will take an entire day?"
'Yes, Master. The Silvermont Tower is quite distant. But do not worry! I will fly as swiftly as possible! We shall arrive before the sun rises on the second day!'
A full day of travel. At dragon speed. If he had tried to use a carriage as Teach suggested, it would probably take three days minimum. Maybe even five, depending on what was pulling it and the condition of the roads.
The Silvermont Domain was truly massive. When he had claimed this territory in the game, the description had called it one of the Imperial Domains of Atrios, belonging to the Imperial family. It spanned for miles and miles in every direction.
If he were to compare it to Earth, the Silvermont Domain alone probably covered an area equivalent to half that planet. And Infinity as a whole was far, far larger than Earth had ever been.
He had erected his castle here, hidden away from prying eyes. He had done the same with his towers, scattering them across various domains and disguising them with magic to keep them secret. The Silvermont Tower was somewhere west. That was all he knew. No precise location, no map coordinates. Just west.
'Past me thought he was being clever,' Mikail thought with mild annoyance. 'Present me is realizing that was stupid.'
"Very well," he said aloud. "Let us depart."
'Yes, Master! Please, you must climb onto my head! That is the most stable position for a rider!'
Mikail looked up at the dragon's head, easily twenty feet above the ground. In the game, mounting had been a simple button press. But this was real now.
He bent his knees, tensed his legs, and jumped.
The world blurred. One moment he was standing on cracked stone, the next he was sailing upward with absurd ease. He landed on the dragon's head with perfect balance, his feet finding purchase on the smooth white scales as though he had done this a thousand times.
The ease of the movement shocked him. He had just jumped twenty feet straight up and landed without any effort at all.
'My stats are absurd,' he thought, staring at his own hands. 'I knew the numbers were high, but experiencing it is something else entirely.'
"I am ready," he called out.
'Hold on, Master!'
The dragon's wings spread wide, casting an enormous shadow over the courtyard. The servants below scrambled backward, some grabbing onto posts and walls to brace themselves.
Mikail looked down at them one last time. Teach bowed deeply despite the chaos. The maids waved, holding onto each other for support. The footmen saluted.
He smiled and raised one hand in farewell.
Then the dragon's wings beat down with tremendous force.
The acceleration was instant and brutal. Wind roared past his ears. The castle fell away beneath them, shrinking to toy size in seconds. The ground became a blur of colors.
And yet, despite the incredible speed, Mikail felt perfectly stable. The dragon's head moved with such precise control that he barely needed to shift his weight. It was steadier than standing on solid ground.
They shot into the sky like an arrow, climbing higher and higher until the castle disappeared behind them entirely.
Below, Teach began shouting orders to the scattered staff, directing them back to their duties with the practiced efficiency of a man who knew his job well.
But Mikail saw none of it. There was only sky and clouds and the rushing wind as they flew west toward the Silvermont Tower.
They traveled for hours.
Mikail stood on the dragon's head, watching the world pass beneath them. Forests and rivers stretched as far as the eye could see. Mountain ranges rose in the distance. Small villages dotted the landscape like toys. Roads connected settlements in winding paths.
It was beautiful. The world he had helped create, spread out before him in all its glory.
The dragon flew with powerful, steady beats of her wings. She maintained incredible speed, making the landscape blur beneath them. Occasionally she would comment on landmarks they passed or adjust their course to avoid storm clouds.
Mikail found himself relaxing into the experience, enjoying flight in a way his previous body never could have managed.
Then something changed.
It was subtle at first. Just a feeling. Like eyes on the back of his neck. An instinct that whispered something was wrong.
Danger.
He was sensing danger.
His Cosmic Awareness activated automatically, scanning the area. At first he detected nothing unusual. Just wind, clouds, distant wildlife and settlements.
But the feeling persisted. Grew stronger.
"Master," the dragon's voice cut through his thoughts, urgent. "Something is wrong."
"I feel it too," Mikail said, his eyes scanning the horizon. "Do you see anything?"
'No, Master. But there is a disturbance ahead. Something violent.'
Shortly after departing, Mikail had cast a veil over both himself and the dragon. A concealment spell that made them invisible and undetectable to most forms of observation. No one should be able to see them or sense their presence.
So whatever was causing this disturbance was not aimed at them.
Then he felt it.
A surge of power. Violent and uncontrolled.
An explosion.
The sound reached them a moment later. A distant BOOM that echoed across the sky. Even from miles away, Mikail could see it. The ground imploding, earth and stone crushed inward by invisible force, creating a crater visible even from this height.
Then he heard it.
A scream.
Faint but unmistakable. His enhanced hearing picked it up clearly. A cry of terror, raw and desperate.
Someone was dying down there.
"Stop," Mikail commanded.
The dragon halted instantly, wings spreading wide to arrest their momentum. They hung in the air, hovering effortlessly.
Mikail activated his Cosmic Awareness fully, focusing on the area below. His perception expanded, sharpened, and suddenly he could see details that should have been impossible from this distance.
Two figures. Running across open ground. Fleeing from something.
Another surge of power.
Another explosion.
One of the figures disappeared in a flash of light and debris. When the dust cleared, there was only a crater where they had been standing.
The second figure kept running. Their movements were frantic, uncoordinated. Pure terror.
A girl, he realized. Young, maybe late teens.
"Get me down there," Mikail said.
'At once, Master!'
The dragon dove. The world became a blur of motion, and then Mikail was standing on solid ground. The dragon had descended with impossible speed and precision, depositing him at the scene in seconds.
He could see the girl clearly now. Her clothes were torn and burned. Her face was streaked with dirt and tears. She ran with the desperation of someone who knew death was right behind her.
Mikail scanned the area with all his enhanced senses.
There.
Behind the girl. Invisible to normal sight, but his Cosmic Awareness detected it clearly. A force. Compressed air or pure kinetic energy. Moving fast. Aimed directly at her back.
If it hit, she would die. Instantly. Just like her companion.
Mikail stood there, watching, and felt his thoughts split in two.
'This is not my problem,' one part of him argued coldly. 'I came here to live peacefully. To enjoy the life Damien never had. To build my harem and relax. Getting involved in random conflicts defeats the entire purpose. I should let this play out and continue on my way.'
The girl stumbled, exhaustion making her clumsy.
'But she will die,' another part countered. 'If I do nothing, she dies in seconds. I have the power to prevent that. Is it not the duty of the strong to protect the weak?'
The force was closing in. Seconds away from impact.
'I did not ask for that duty. I did not come here to be a hero. I came here to be happy. If I start helping every person in danger, where does it end? Do I become some wandering savior, solving everyone's problems?'
The girl's foot caught on a root. She pitched forward.
'But what kind of person am I if I just stand here and watch? I have more power than almost anyone in this world. With power comes—'
'Damn it.'
Mikail moved.
One instant he was standing near the dragon. The next he was in front of the girl, his body positioned between her and the incoming attack.
The force hit him.
The explosion was massive. The ground beneath his feet cracked and cratered. Debris erupted in all directions. Dust and smoke billowed outward, obscuring everything.
The girl stopped running. She stood frozen, staring at the explosion with wide, terrified eyes.
When the dust began to clear, she saw him.
Mikail stood exactly where he had been. Completely untouched. His clothes were not even dirty. His skin showed no marks. He looked like he had been standing in a gentle breeze rather than at the center of an explosion capable of pulverizing stone.
Their eyes met. His violet gaze glowed in the settling dust, otherworldly and beautiful and terrifying.
The girl's lips moved.
"My... village..."
Then her eyes rolled back and she collapsed forward.
Mikail caught her before she hit the ground, his reflexes almost too fast to see. One moment she was falling, the next she was cradled in his arms, unconscious but breathing.
He stood there in the middle of a crater, holding an unconscious girl, with no idea what had attacked her or why.
'I have been in this world for less than a day,' Mikail thought, staring down at her face. 'And I have already entangled myself in god knows what.'
The peaceful life he had planned suddenly seemed a lot more complicated.