Chapter 129: Hidden In Plain Sight (Bonus)

Right as soon as he was done leveling up, Syra’s spirit manifested herself around him once more.

Aiden’s focus shifted from the system screens floating before him and towards her.

Syra floated closer and settled herself beside him on the stone block, her legs dangling off the edge in a casual manner. “So,” she began, tilting her head slightly, “are you certain it’ll work?”

Since she was part of him, she knew what he’d thought up as a plan to deal with the war. She had access to his thoughts, his strategies, and his doubts.

Aiden let out a long breath. “I’m not sure. But if it doesn’t work, I’ll go for the next plan.” He paused, then added with a slight grimace look on face, “And something tells me no one’s going to like that one.”

Syra laughed a bit, “Well, looks like you’ve got that handled then.” Then her expression shifted to something more mischievous. “But when are you going to handle the conflicting emotions between Laela and Arianna?”

Aiden’s face immediately contorted into a mixture of embarrassment and panic. “I… that’s… why would you bring that up right now?” He ran a hand through his hair, looking anywhere but at Syra.

Syra chuckled even more at his reaction, clearly enjoying his discomfort. “Oh, come on. You can’t avoid it forever.”

“I really love Laela,” Aiden said, his voice becoming more serious. “And I want to do right by her. But for Arianna…” He struggled to find the words, his brow furrowing. “I can’t put a word to what it is. But I am certain for sure that it isn’t love.”

Syra’s expression softened slightly, though still quite amused. “Then you need to resolve those feelings quickly.”

She leaned closer, her voice taking on a more serious tone. “Or better still, accept that you could be that type of man. Because sooner or later, your instincts as a dragon will start having more dominance.” She paused meaningfully. “And a dragon wants them all.”

Aiden opened his mouth to protest, then closed it again. The truth in her words settled uncomfortably in his chest.

He had felt it a bit the previous day, and maybe that even made a bit more sense because Laela was his woman.

But the possibility of having to feel that for Arianna too? The Dragon’s curse was beginning to feel like a lot more than he had anticipated.

Syra smiled knowingly. “Just something to think about, young dragon.” Then her form began to fade. “I’ll leave you to it.”

And with that, she disappeared, leaving Aiden alone with his thoughts.

Aiden sighed and afterwards said to the system, “show my current requirements”

[Exp Requirements]:

– 3,700,000 xp required to go up to Level 5 Wyrm

– 150,000xp required for Dragon’s Sight Lv.8

– 120,000xp required for Dragon Transformation Lv.7

– 90,000xp required for Dragon’s Fear Lv.6

– Experience Points required to raise Host Magic to Deity++ Rank [To be Assigned]

– Experience Points required to raise Destruction Authority to Deity++ Rank [To be Assigned]

– Experience Points required to raise Replication Authority to Deity++ Rank[To be Assigned]

– Experience Points required to raise Space Authority to Deity++ Rank [To be Assigned]

[Exp Balance: 1,995,350]

“Well the amount of experience points required stopped multiplying horrendously. Looks more random now, but experience points for the next authority levels are to be assigned?”

[Host is encouraged to exercise patience and focus on leveling up, as the required points will be assigned in due time]

Aiden shook his head, and then decided to do something else with his experience points. “Raise all dragon skills to their next level]

[Dragon’s sight lv7 → Dragon’s sight Lv8]

[Full Rotational view: 1700m → 2000m]

[Focused view: 17000m → 20000m]

[The System will now use the Kilometer range to scale]

[Full Rotational view: 2km]

[Focused View: 20km]

[Dragon’s Fear Lv5 → Lv6]

[Range has been increased from 1.7km to 2km]

[Dragon’s Transformation Lv6 → Lv7]

[New Upgrade: When host uses his dragon’s transformation skill to transform into a humanoid dragon, the range of your other dragon’s skills are increased slightly]

Aiden nodded his head approvingly seeing the Dragon’s transformation skill.

[Exp Balance: 1,635,350]

Aiden then made the screens disappear from his sight with a thought as he was currently satisfied.

Then he stood down from the stone block he sat down and warped away from his dimension.

—–

Much later that day, two men were seen walking through an underground pathway beneath the Academy.

The stone walls had torches lit on both sides.

The man leading the way was Conrad, the Head Scholar of the Research Room, and following behind him was Captain Cassian of the Fractured Stars.

They reached a heavy steel door at the end of the passage. Conrad produced a large key from his robes and unlocked it.

The hinges groaned as the door swung open, revealing a holding dungeon room.

The space was small with only a single torch providing light. And there, in the center of the room, was a figure chained to the wall.

The figure had pale skin, and two small horns protruded from its forehead, and its hair hung down, obscuring its face as it slumped forward.

Heavy iron chains bound its wrists and ankles to the stone wall behind it.

Cassian stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening with a startled expression. “Is that…?”

Before he could finish, Conrad replied with a scowl on his face, “Yes. That is a demon, but it has been tainted with human genes.”

Cassian stepped closer, studying the creature almost fascinatingly. “How long has this one been here?”

“It’s been a while,” Conrad answered. “Thamoryn brought the captive here when it was still a baby. She explained it was given birth to by a human female.” He paused, his scowl deepening. “A halfbreed, and she is making us study the workings of its body.”

“Hm,” Cassian muttered, offering no more words as he continued to observe the half-demon.

The creature didn’t stir, appearing unconscious or perhaps simply too weak to react.

Conrad turned to face Cassian fully, his voice dropping to a more urgent tone. “When will it be our time to strike? We’ve been ready for years now.”

Cassian’s expression remained calm, “Soon. So far, everything is going much better than expected.”

He gestured vaguely upward, indicating the world above them. “The human rulers are about to be their own undoing. But we also need to confirm that the dragon is truly no more in Dragonhold.”

He crossed his arms, his voice becoming more deliberate. “If this war succeeds without the dragon showing up, then the next phase of our plan shall continue in earnest.”

Conrad nodded excitedly, a zealous gleam appearing in his eyes. “Finally. After all these years of waiting, playing the role of loyal servants.” He looked back at the half-demon chained to the wall. “Our time is coming.”

Cassian allowed himself a small, cold smile. “Indeed it is.”

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