Memories of another life instantly flashed into Luke's mind.
The influx of numerous thoughts and emotions kept invading his brain, threatening to overwrite his pre-existing consciousness. However, Luke maintained his identity as he absorbed these new memories.
They belonged to someone he was already familiar with: Draco.
Draco was adopted by a loving family after his parents perished in a Dragon Tide. Afterwards, his adopted father perished in a Dragon Hunting mission, leaving him in the care of his adopted mother.
That was merely a tip of the iceberg, as numerous tragedies seeped into Luke's head.
In that moment, he felt like he knew Draco as much as he knew himself: as if the two were one and the same person. It didn't feel like he was a simple game avatar with a backstory, but an actual living entity.
Draco… the entire world of Te'rah… suddenly felt real.
"Ahh… haaa…" Luke let out turbid air as he gained control of his body, feeling slight throbbing in his head and chest.
His heart was racing rather quickly, feeling restless as he picked himself up from the hard floor.
"With this, I've gotten the confirmation I need." He whispered. "Hunters & Dragons is the real deal, and if this is real… then the rewards and everything else I read on the Forum must also be legitimate."
That meant he could use this game to earn the money he required for his expenses.
'Then… what am I waiting for?'
Upon asking himself that question, his eyes hungrily glanced in the direction of the VR Pod that stood some steps away from him. Just one stare at the mechanism, and his racing heart pumped faster—revealing a strong desire in him to return to the game.
Luke pushed himself back up, his blond hair dancing as he swiftly set himself up for his return to Te'rah. For starters, he made sure his door was locked from inside. Afterward, he set up a timer on his very rusty watch—one of the only few pieces of technology he owned.
It had very little value on the market, and it evoked sentimental memories, so he had already decided to keep it.
Once he was done with all his preparations, Luke took off his shirt and trousers, leaving him with just boxer shorts as he stepped into the machine.
His hands trembled as he picked up the VR Helmet and wore it over his head.
Then—
[Welcome back, Player!]
—Luke was instantly assailed with a System Notification, prompting him to accept another invitation into the unknown.
'Even though we all get transported to Te'rah when playing this game, every Player's experience is different.' He reasoned internally. 'I have no idea what to expect once I return.'
Still, he refused to hesitate.
"Yes!"
BZZZTTTZZ!
His vision immediately shut down, engulfing him in perpetual darkness.
Then, someone else's eyes opened up.
"Haaa…" Draco sighed softly as he regained consciousness, feeling an influx of memories that weren't his.
However, he calmly analyzed these memories as he rose to his feet.
"So this is a game, and I am the avatar of Luke Scofield from Earth… how very strange."
Not only was he able to fully comprehend the scope of what was happening to him, but he could understand terminologies he would have previously considered foreign. The mysterious world of Earth suddenly felt familiar to him, and Luke was suddenly an integral part of himself.
Draco was Luke… and vice versa.
After mulling on this thought for a moment, Draco decided to put it on hold as he took a good look around him. Much to his surprise, the cave that had previously shone with bright white and gold lustre no longer existed.
Instead, he was standing in a similar-sized cave, but seeing none of the glamour.
Its floors and ceilings were considerably smoother than the rest of the Cave of Trials, but that was where the difference stopped. The earth maintained its dark and rough texture, and the cave walls gleamed with eerie death.
His hair and eye color had also returned to normal, with no sign of the tattoo marks that he had previously awakened; almost like none of the events he experienced with the white dragon was real.
Draco looked around him and quickly realized he was the only one in the massive clearing.
"Where did the Dragon go?" He whispered under his breath.
Right as he pondered on this, something popped up in front of him, causing him to halt his cognitive process and rather pay attention to the floating panel instead.
[Welcome Back, Legendary Dragon Tamer!]
"Ah… the System." Draco naturally blurted out despite having almost no idea what the mysterious phenomenon was. However, based on everything he gleaned from Luke's memory, he felt a sense of familiarity with the concept.
"Yes."
Immediately, another panel—this time much larger than the first—appeared in front of him.
It shone bright gold, yet it strangely had no blinding effects on Draco, nor did it offer any kind of illumination to the darkness surrounding him. It almost felt like an illusion, but the boy knew it to be very real.
As real as Luke… and as real as the world of Earth.
[STATUS WINDOW]
- Name: Draco (Lvl: 1)
- Race: Human
- Class: Dragon Tamer (Legendary)
- Integrity: 1
- Physique: 1
- Aptitude: 1 (100% Essence)
- S Points: 0
- Quest Completion Rate: 10%
[Current Quest Information]
Primary Quest: Complete the Cave of Trials (Ongoing)
Secondary Quest: Kill every Dragon you encounter (Failed)
Hidden Quest: Defeat the Champion of this Dragon Nest (Not Started)
[Synchronization Rate: 5%]
"Hmm…" Draco took his time to observe the Status Window before him, swiftly comprehending the details that were outlined there thanks to his memories as Luke.
It almost felt like having two separate lives, so there was no problem disseminating the information that Luke had already studied from the Hunters & Dragons online forum. In no time at all, he was completely up to speed.
'Looks like I'm really weak from what I can see.' He frowned deeply. 'I despise weakness.'
This instantly motivated him to get stronger.
He completely forgot about the compassion he felt for that wounded Dragon that he spared, and also negligently ignored the new Class he had just obtained—especially since there was nothing about a Legendary Dragon Tamer Class in Luke's memory.
What concerned him at the moment was strength.
And what better way to get stronger than to kill Dragons? He already knew this was how the System worked thanks to the online forum, so he had no doubts in his mind that killing the Dragons outside the cave would enable him to get stronger.
'Okay! Let's do it!'
Without wasting a single second in the clearing, Draco hurriedly charged back into the main cavern grounds—grabbing his gleaming spear on his way out.
**********
'Ever since I was a child… I mastered the spirit of the hunt.'
Draco's azure eyes burned bright as he stared into the darkness, feeling a creature slithering a small distance from him. The tip of his spear gleamed bright as he licked his lips, his heart racing with anticipation as he readied himself to pounce.
'Now!' He told himself, leaping forward as he thrust his spear, intending to drill a perfect hole into the monster's heart.
However, right as he went for the kill… something strange happened.
[Your Action Has Failed]
'H-huh…?!'
Draco's face contorted into one of both confusion and shock as he saw this System Panel flash before his eyes as his body instantly became paralyzed. He could not push himself forward to stab the creature, and his muscles felt great pain due to how swiftly he had halted his rapid movement.
To make matters worse, the Dragon he targeted as prey noticed him and instantly chose to retaliate.
"Skrriiiaakkkk!" It screeched loudly, rushing towards Draco with nothing but a pure intention to kill.
As he witnessed the creature charge at him, Draco could not help but shudder in disbelief.
'I can't kill them, but they can kill me? How is this a Legendary Class?!'