"Wake up, you lazy bum."
Orion jolted awake at the familiar phrase, his eyes snapping open.
His vision was hazy.
"Mom…?" he called out instinctively.
Smack.
"Ouch—! Why did you hit me?!"
"Who are you calling mom?" Ember snapped, her face twisted with anger.
Orion froze, then quickly softened his tone.
"I—I'm sorry. That's just how my mom used to wake me up," he said quietly.
His chest tightened.
He missed his mom. More than anything.
Ember noticed.
After all, Orion was still just a kid. Dying and waking up in a completely unfamiliar world—it was only natural that it had taken a toll on him.
In a rare moment of tenderness, Ember stepped forward and pulled him into a hug.
"Everything will be alright… okay?" she said softly, patting his head.
"You can't change what already happened. You died in your old world. All you can do now is focus on your new life here—build your own family."
"This is a second chance. Not everyone gets one."
Surrounded by her warmth, Orion's guard melted away. Tears streamed down his face.
After a while, he finally pulled back.
"… Are you alright now?" Ember asked with genuine concern.
"Yeah. Sorry."
"You don't need to be strong all the time," she said.
"Being vulnerable with the people you care about doesn't make you less of a man."
Orion's chest felt tight—overwhelmed by warmth.
"So… you love me?" he asked with a smirk, joking so they could return to their usual banter.
He had to ruin the moment.
"Love? You? Hahaha—what a good joke!"
Something stung in his heart.
"I'll admit I was joking, but you didn't have to laugh that hard," he muttered gloomily.
"I mean, we're friends, aren't we?" Ember said, still chuckling.
"So I'm allowed to make fun of you, no?."
Friends, huh?
He liked the sound of that.
After a bit more banter, they finally focused on training.
"Alright," Ember said. "Today will be different. We'll focus on your class and skills."
Orion's eyes lit up. Finally, proper training.
"I'll be honest," Ember continued thoughtfully.
"Your skills are… strange. I'm not very familiar with them. Show me each one so I can figure out how to train you."
"Okay. System—display my skill descriptions. Translate them into this world's native language."
Ember wasn't surprised anymore that the system could do that.
"Huh? can't you read it…? It's the native language of this world—the world you helped build."
Orion was dumbfounded.
"I could read it perfectly fine… did you forget that I died millions of years ago?"
"Languages change. They evolve over time."
"Ok, that makes sense."
Then something hit him.
"Wait—how can you understand me…? You don't know English, and I don't know this world's native language—let alone the one you speak."
"That's because of your class–Dragonborn," Ember explained.
"When you interact with any draconic being, your words are automatically translated into Draconic. And Draconic is an ancient language, so I understand it perfectly."
That's… insanely useful.
"Then I'll read the skills out loud."
As Orion scanned the screen, he realized that his Flash Movement skill had leveled up—and he had completely forgotten to check it.
Flash Movement leveled up… 200 meters… eight uses before cooldown?
That's huge.
He began reading his skills aloud. Ember didn't need him to repeat anything—she remembered everything after hearing it just once.
As expected of a godlike being.
"Skills with SSS+ potential… Aren't you just a newbie? Not to mention you've only been in this world for less than a week!"
Her gaze shifted to the floating system screen.
"This thing is almost like a mini god."
"And what's with the question mark in the potential of your Flash Movement skill?"
"I guess the system doesn't know its full limits."
"But wasn't it the one that gave you these skills?" Ember frowned.
"According to the system, I obtained this skill while I was in the reincarnation cycle."
Ember fell silent.
The will of the universe was mysterious—and absolute. That much, even she knew.
So she refocused her attention.
"Appraisal," she said. "It sounds simple, but it's terrifying.
Knowing your enemy's strength can decide battles before they begin."
She paused.
"The closest thing I know is aura detection. It isn't a skill—you have to train for it. You need both a strong sensitivity to aura and plenty of experience."
"What about Flash Movement?" Orion asked.
"Oh, that's your favorite skill, isn't it? I've seen you using it quite a lot…"
Right. She's been watching me since the beginning. Orion thought
"It's a deadly skill," Ember said seriously.
"Even assassins known for extreme speed would struggle against it."
"Yeah, but I get dizzy after using it. I can't fight properly unless I rely on instinct."
"You shouldn't rely on instinct all the time," Ember warned.
"It'll limit your growth—and using it too much will turn you into a creature of instinct, rather than someone who thinks for themselves."
Exactly what I feared.
"Okay, can you use your Flash Movement skill now? You're much stronger than before, so it should work better this time."
"Okay."
Orion activated Flash Movement.
In an instant, he appeared at the far end of the chamber.
"…Still dizzy," he muttered. "Probably because I'm traveling a longer distance now."
Ember thought for a moment.
"How do you decide where you land?"
"It's simple. I just look ahead as far as my eyes can see, and it takes me a hundred meters in that direction. I invented this method so I can travel the maximum distance. Yeah, I know I'm smart," Orion said with a smug grin.
Ember rolled her eyes.
"Then, now that your range is 200 meters, just look ahead about 100 meters. It doesn't matter if you travel a bit less than 100 meters when in combat."
"…Oh."
Orion tried again.
"Whoa. I barely feel dizzy now!"
"Obviously," Ember said flatly.
"You're just dumb."
"Alright," she continued.
"Now let's focus on what I am an expert in—your class."
She narrowed her eyes.
"It's been a long time since I've seen this class."
"Want to see the description?" Orion asked.
"No need. I know it plenty well," she said.
What Ember didn't know, however, was that Orion's class was unique.
"Oh… did you also know it has the potential to become an EX-rank class?" Orion smirked, knowing she had no idea.
Her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
"Did you just say EX-rank?!"
"How do you even know that exists?!"
"It's in my class description," Orion said nervously.
"The system showed me."
Ember grabbed him by the shoulders, deadly serious.
"Never tell anyone about this. Ever.
No matter who they are. Do you understand?"
"O-Okay! I won't!"
"You're terrifying," Ember muttered.
"Who even are you?" she asked, looking at him suspiciously.
She exhaled.
"Anyway… I've seen you use the Dragon Claw Method. That technique was quite popular back in my day," she said, staring into the distance. Her mind wandered back to the days when she had still been alive.
She stepped closer.
"Show me your stance."
Orion complied.
Ember shook her head.
"That's wrong."
She corrected his posture herself.
"Now—slash forward."
Orion obeyed.
Ember smirked. "Good. The real hell is only just beginning."