26 Breaking an Egg
The crazy Nefion taught him skills coming from a dragon. Was he a dragon? Or did he learn it using other methods? Arthur couldn’t find the answers to that question, just like he couldn’t move inside the eggshell.
All kinds of information started to pop up for him. Most of these were about the new skills acquired after unlocking his bloodline.
[Placidusax Devouring(Legendary): It allows you to devour anything on your path to improve your body. Depending on what you eat, you’ll get different bonuses.]
[Cost: 0 mana.]
Arthur lost the previous ability that allowed him to absorb mana. His new skill, Placidusax Devouring, worked the same way, but it could devour anything, not just mana. It was like an upgraded version of his old ability.
But the next thing he read shocked him. It was the primary skill from his bloodline and the most powerful.
[Draconic Transformation(Legendary): It allows you to tap into your true self.]
[Level 1-50: Some dragon aspects, doubling all of your stats and granting you unique skills while in dragon form.]
[Level 51-99: Half-dragon appearance. It triples your stats and adds other unique skills during your dragon form.]
[Level 100-???: You can turn into your true form, and return to your past glory, Placidusax.]
[It multiplies your stats by ten times and adds tons of new skills you can use while in your dragon form. You’ll need to devour worlds to improve after getting into this stage.]
[Cost: It does not cost mana, but after the transformation ends, you’ll enter a weakened state(only for the first two forms.)]
[Duration: As long as your body endures.]
“Damn. It is my triumph card, and I’ll need to be careful while using it. If I’m not mistaken, humans killed almost all dragons in the past. Using this skill meant no one can survive to tell tales.”
When Arthur thought it was over, yet another notification popped up for him.
[Ding]
[New Skill Unlocked]
[The Eyes of Truth(Legendary): You can see the level of any creature in this world, up to fifty levels higher than you.]
[This skill is passive, but you can activate it once three days to get all the information about your enemy. Such as their attributes, skills, and more.]
Arthur was sure that no one else in this world could see their stats. It was like a piece of invisible information for all of them. But that did not mean Arthur could not see it using The Eyes of Truth. It was a life-saving skill that would surely avoid fights against powerful enemies.
[Ding]
[New Skill Unlocked]
[Dragon Senses(Legendary): There’s no need to explain it to you. You have the senses of a dragon.]
“Huh? Did my system make fun of me? What the hell is this?” thought Arthur as he angrily read the skill’s description.
~~~~
The next three days had been a pain in the ass for Arthur. He could sense everything outside but couldn’t move. It was as if he was back when he was a baby, not that he knew how it felt anyway.
But, after these three days, he could move. First, it was only his fingers, but eventually, it was all of his body. Arthur waited for everyone to leave the house, so he could break the eggshell without anyone seeing it.
Ior and Rauk went fishing, just like always. Kayara also left the house, which turned out to be favorable for Arthur.
The sound of an egg breaking echoed, followed by a strange liquid that wet the floor of Rauk’s room, giving a nasty smell.
It was an unknown place for Arthur, but with his heightened senses, it was easy to scan it. The first thing he did was to make sure no one was inside the house. Once he checked that, he went to Ior’s room, looking for some clothes.
“I’m sorry for stealing this. I’ll repay everyone’s kindness for taking care of me. Not now, because I’m poor, but I’ll.”
Arthur grabbed some clothes made of unknown fabric. They were simple clothing, but it was better than being naked. And Arthur was never fond of these luxurious clothes anyway.
“It does not matter. It is all destroyed after the battle, so why spend my precious money on useless things?”
Before he left the house, Arthur thought of a problem. The island was enormous, but the people lived near the shore. It was a small village, so everyone knew each other. There was no way a new face like Arthur’s would pass by unnoticed.
“I have no idea if I’m far from the kingdom or if they are still looking for me. I should quietly move until I learn more about the situation.”
Arthur was strong now. But he wasn’t dumb to think he was unbeatable. Humans killed dragons before, and these dragons surely were stronger than Arthur.
Before leaving the house, Arthur wrote a letter for Rauk, the kid. He was quite attached to the beast egg and took care of him while he was in there. It seemed Arthur’s learning capability improved a lot. He learned their language while stuck inside the eggshell, which was an impressive feat.
“Dear Rauk. I’m sorry about the mess inside your room. It wasn’t my fault. I’m no beast, but a man called Arthur. The eggshell was my secret magic which healed my body.
I don’t know if we will meet again, but if we do, I promise to teach you how to become a warrior, just like you dream of becoming one.
Please, don’t share this letter with anyone, and take care of your family.”
“This should be okay.”
Arthur was not worried about Rauk leaking this information. Firstly because it contained only his name, which was common. Secondly, he was certain Rauk would keep the letter hidden. He was a good kid, after all.
With that, he left the house. He planned to enter deeper inside the island, far from the village, and plan out his escape.
Once he left the house, Arthur was stunned after witnessing his new dragon senses. He could hear everything around him and could see away further than before. Arthur’s body also changed drastically, and he was faster and more agile.
He wanted to use the skills Nefion taught him, but these required a small amount of mana, which he didn’t have. So, he tried to use his new devouring skill, which turned out to be more overpowered than he thought.
All mages regenerate mana by getting it from the atmosphere. It was as if they borrowed it to use, and their mana core served as a place to store the mana for longer periods. Arthur, on the other hand, could directly devour the mana from the atmosphere.
Arthur opened up his mouth, and his teeth grew larger. He bit the air, devouring the mana. He could now get mana almost the same way as mages, but that destroyed the mana from the atmosphere.
“I should not go around devouring the atmosphere mana. I do think if I do this enough, then the place will no longer have mana and will turn into a desolate area,” thought Arthur.
Now, with his newly acquired mana, Arthur focused on his legs and vanished using his Draconic Burst. He was so fast no one could see him leave the house. In seconds, Arthur was inside the island’s forest, away from the village.
~~~~
The forest had types of trees Arthur had never seen, and unknown species of animals. It was proof that he was far from the kingdom he used to live in.
Arthur walked deep inside the forest, moving the branches with his hands to avoid scratches. He searched tirelessly for a temporary home. The only thing on his mind was finding a cave somehow. That would be perfect. He would call it a dragon’s lair.
And luckily, after walking for thirty minutes, Arthur found exactly what he was looking for.
A small mountain. Grasses grow around it, making the place somewhat hidden.
There was a hole in the mountain, which would be the cave where Arthur would live for a while.
In front of this small mountain was a crystal clear lake. It was a perfect place to live.
“Well, it would be better to live in a house and not a cave, but at the moment, I can’t choose much.”
With quick steps, Arthur headed towards the cave. He was pretty sure other creatures might be sheltering there, but in his mind, there was no way these creatures could win a fight against a dragon.
Arthur’s draconic eyes allowed him to see in the dark, so scanning the cave for hostile creatures was easy. He looked and looked but couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. It looked like a great cave, and it was strange that no animals lived there.
The cave was bigger than he had expected, and after going deeper, Arthur noticed a mysterious door.
He walked towards the door and tried to open it, but it was locked.
It was at that moment that he heard voices coming from outside the cave.
“Is the ritual complete? I can’t wait to sacrifice this shit village.”