The night was silent—too silent.
Even the wind seemed to pause when he walked through the forest, golden eyes scanning every shadow. Stage Two mastery hummed quietly through him, a restrained storm of dragon energy flowing just beneath his skin. He could feel it now, alive in ways he had never felt before—controlled, precise, lethal.
But something else stirred. Something old.
A faint pulse, far away, rippling across the world.
He stopped mid-step, senses flaring.
[System Alert: Unknown Presence Detected]
[Signal Strength: Low]
[Note: Traces of Ancient Mana]
He frowned. Ancient mana wasn't just rare—it was dangerous. Few beings in this world could touch that level, and those that did left marks for centuries.
He crouched, fingertips brushing the cold grass, and listened.
The pulse came again. Stronger. Clearer.
Not hostile… but deliberate.
Watching me, he realized.
He exhaled slowly. His dragon instincts tingled.
"I wondered when someone would notice," he murmured.
It wasn't a thought from the system. It came from deeper inside him—from the part of him shaped by dungeons, survival, and power forged in fire.
And then it happened.
He dreamed.
Not asleep. Not unconscious. But somewhere between—a vision that hit him like a lightning strike.
White scales stretched as far as the eye could see. Wings like glaciers spread across the sky. Eyes like frozen stars bored into his soul. He felt power, but not just raw strength—intelligence, calculation, an awareness older than the world itself.
[Vision: White Dragon Detected]
[Presence: Overwhelming]
"You've grown," a voice thundered in his mind, deep and eternal.
He fell to one knee, unsteady—not from fear, but from the weight of the presence.
"Who… are you?" he whispered.
The vision rippled like ice across water.
"I am the one who created the path you walk," the dragon said. Its voice filled every corner of his consciousness. "The trials, the power, the system you have mastered… all of it is mine."
The dragon's gaze pierced him. Not angry. Not cruel. Curious.
"You were summoned, not reborn," it continued. "Your strength is mine to guide… if you are worthy."
He clenched his fists. His heart raced—not in fear, but in exhilaration.
"I didn't survive all of that… to serve anyone," he said quietly, though the words echoed in the vision.
The dragon's wings shifted, sending gusts of wind across a sky that wasn't there.
"Then prove it," it said. "Prove that you are more than a tool."
The pulse faded. The vision vanished.
He gasped, golden eyes scanning the empty forest. No enemies. No monsters. Only wind whispering through the trees.
[System Message: Unknown Presence Confirmed]
[Note: Entity Power Level Exceeds Maximum Detectable Limit]
He smiled faintly.
"So… that's who's been watching," he muttered. "The one behind everything."
For the first time, he felt truly… challenged.
Not by dungeons. Not by kings. Not by monsters.
But by someone—or something—older than the world itself.
Somewhere deep inside, he felt the spark of excitement.
Good.
"I'll find you," he whispered. "And when I do… I'll decide the terms."
The forest was silent. The stars above shone brighter than ever, and far away, a faint ripple of power spread across the land.
Somewhere, the Great White Dragon had acknowledged him.
And nothing in the world would ever be the same again.