I coughed a bit of blood and managed to stand up. “What… What the hell was that speed?” The embarrassment from losing didn’t even appear in my mind, completely overshadowed by the grinding agony. I barely managed to say the words.

  “Dragon’s Might technique and my trait.” She said calmly and grunted from the pain in her shoulder. “Take care of Kory and Steel, Magnus Glanzvoll.” She rubbed her forearm, as if nervous.

  My hands were shaking too much. “Why are you talking like that?” I reached for the bottle in my pocket and took out a pill. The pain was growing unbearable.

  Restoration Panacea

  Description: Infused with Emerald affinity, allowing for accelerated regeneration.

  Struggling to hold the pill steady, I swallowed it. Immediately, a cooling feeling spread across my body, spinning in circles and numbing the pain.

  “As a class leader, I failed them.” She looked closer at the pills. “I hope you won’t waste my protection on trifling matters.” Ivaldie put her hands behind her back, looking at Steel, who appeared confused.

  My rib cracked as it fixed itself into the right place. I took a deep breath, and the air entered my lungs so easily. I tilted my head. Ivaldie was acting too suspiciously. “Why did you stand up to Varaxis?”

  Ivaldie shook her head. “A dragon’s dignity shall not be trampled.” She straightened her back. “You might not be a true dragon, but neither is anyone in this academy. It is the spirit that matters.”

  I couldn’t hold back the chuckle. “You don’t know me as well as you think, girl.” I took another pill and extended it to Ivaldie.

  She looked at it, a barely perceptible blush on her cheeks. I didn’t like that. “I know enough…” Ivaldie gulped and grabbed the pill. Her expression immediately stiffened. “If you want to win the tournament, you must join the ELEVATE course, as I will.”

  At the mention of a vaguely familiar word, I immediately recalled the Emission Level Enhancement via Augmented Training & Experimentation course… It was a mouthful, but it was one of the courses that promised high SE. I still wasn’t used to the memories in VITA.

  “Thank you.” I nodded.

  Without goodbye, she turned around and jumped out of the ring, walking out of the gym. Steel smiled brightly and approached the edge. “You won!” She looked happy.

  A sigh escaped my lips. “Clearly, I lost.”

  “Nuh-uh.” Steel grinned. “You injured Ivaldie, and that’s a win. No one in our class could do that!” Her thought process remained unassailable.

  “What do you mean, no one?” Steel scrouged her face in confusion. “You know what, no need to answer, I can guess it myself.” Ivaldie underestimated me, but if she used that speed from the beginning, I wouldn’t be able to even touch her. I straightened my back and jumped off. Already, all my injuries were healed. It was miraculous. “Let’s train.”

  “Draco’s tag or Flying in the Skies?” Her question left me even more confused.

  “What?”

  Steel’s face scrunched. “Your gestation must’ve been hard. I’ll help you remember.”

  “Humans don’t gestate.”

  Her expression froze in place. A bright smile spread across her face. “Then I’ll show you.” I didn’t want to ask. Steel ran towards the closest treadmill and jumped on. “Brother Draco chased me and I ran fast, fast!” She pressed the on button and started running, her aura growing brighter.

  “Who’s that?” Things were becoming more confusing by the minute.

  “You don’t even remember.” She panted. “Brother Draco.” Her smile disappeared as she focused on running. “Do you even remember Mother Sun?”

  I wasn’t even close to piecing what she was talking about. “I’m a human, I didn’t have gestation. I had my own parents.”

  Her mouth opened wide as she stood in place, sliding down the treadmill. “You? You had your own parents?” Her surprise was even more strange.

  “All humans have their own parents. That’s how it works. What are you talking about?” I scratched my head.

  “Are all humans true dragons?!” She shouted.

  “All humans are true humans. You are a dragon.”

  She stood still, simply staring at me seriously. She scratched the scales on her neck. “So you didn’t gestate. How do you know anything then?”

  Just as Ivaldie said, these girls lived a whole life before becoming themselves. I just had to ask to be sure. “Say, how long have you had your own body?” It would be an absurd question to everyone who wasn’t a reincarnator.

  A prideful smile appeared on her face. “I’ve been awake for a year. I even remembered most of gestation, unlike you.” She put a hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry you didn’t see Lord Rame’s life.”

  They are clones. Clones of that one fucking dragon. Clones with implanted memories of his life. The fact that they weren’t true children only seemed to sink in now, and even then, Ivaldie remained a mystery. She behaved too responsibly, could she be exactly like me?

  A bold idea appeared in front of me. If they had their own memories of a “past life,” maybe we weren’t so different… “I’ve seen the life of someone else. His name was Friedrich Spiez, and I remember everything about his life.”

  “Everything?!” Her mouth opened up again. “So you are a true human.” She nodded to herself. “Maybe you should’ve gone to that guy’s school instead.”

  Steel was confused, but I got the gist. “Let’s not focus on that. We should go back to training. Draco’s tag, you said? I’ll show you something humans can do well.” I stepped on the treadmill near her.

  “Let’s run!” Her smile widened again. “I’m not going to lose to a weirdo again.”

  “Don’t call me that.” I pressed the button and started running.

  “You’re weird!” She shouted, her aura glowing brighter.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  We ran on the treadmill until Steel overheated, then she showed me calisthenics, which she called flying in the sky. It was a pleasant day, especially after all the nonsense Varaxis put me through. When the internal clock of the VITA informed us of the approaching night, we went back to our dorms. I put my worries about Kory in the background and got to reading.

  I spent the night reading through the Fundamental Forms, trying to memorize the Freezing form and stressing about the pain that was going to await me. I hoped Kory was going to be alright... Avennture didn’t look like a trustworthy man.

  The next day, we met up in a cafeteria. Kory looked much better. She sat on one of the lonely tables, amidst the ruckus. It had a copper dragon biting a four-headed geist engraved on the surface. Kory’s eyes weren’t as sunken as before, and she appeared much fresher. Steel was near her, talking about me not being gestated.

  “Hello!” I waved at them. The dragons turned to me. Steel smiled, while Kory looked down at her sandwich. I placed my plate and sat down.

  “H-hello…” Kory refused to meet my eyes. “Steel told me about your spar with Ivaldie. You’re the only one who won against her.” Steel rapidly nodded to that absurd statement.

  “I didn’t win, only grazed her a little. She beat me immediately when she stopped holding back.” I sighed. “Steel, you should learn that strengthening technique - Dragon’s Might.”

  “I will!” Steel put a hand on Kory’s shoulder.

  “Which courses are you taking?” Kory looked at me, her eyes blazing with determination.

  “I wanted to try the Biocrafting and Technique Design courses, but I’ll have to take ELEVATE too.” I looked at Steel. “And so should Steel.”

  Kory nodded. “That’s good. Avennture said I should take the Restoration and Healing course, he said I had a talent.” She took a small bite out of her black burger-sandwich. “He was very helpful...”

  Steel laughed. “Can you believe it? She almost reached Baron on her technique!”

  I had to recruit this girl. If she managed to reach this level in a year, she would be invaluable. “I can. I need to eat faster; the courses are already open.”

  “That’s the spirit! I want to train already.” Steel's grin was infectious. And she already ate everything.

  “I’ll go to the R&H course. I know an upperclassman from there.” Kory said confidently. “She helped me before…” And she had connections.

  “Do your thing.” I nodded. “Steel, let’s go see what that ELEVATE is all about.” I couldn’t help but frown at that cheesy name. “Once I eat the marshmallow, of course.”

  “Can I have it?” She looked hungrily at the thing.

  “Nope.” I shook my head and swallowed the terribly sweet thing. It was very delicious, like a milkshake condensed into a square.

  “You can have mine.” Kory smiled, shoving the plate to the hungry dragon.

  “Yeah!”

  Once we finished eating, it was time to check out the whole schtick of the school. The famed courses.

  The door of the ELEVATE room was huge, bigger than any other door on the station. It looked like two heads of dragons breathing fire at each other. Even the details were more precise. Strangely, unlike the other course room, this one was barren. No upperclassmen walked around, no students talked. I curbed my nervousness.

  Taking a deep breath, I opened the door. I gasped in horror, witnessing the pandemonium within. A tall, bald dragon man stood on a glowing pedestal. Four students bombarded him with projectiles of fire and light. The man screamed while laughing. The air smelled thick with blood and rot. Each of his wounds was closing just as fast as it opened. The four students, each of a different age, continued peppering him with their techniques.

  Left of this show, there was a group of six mats placed in a circle, a blackboard on the wall, and desks with trinkets lined up against the walls away from the glowing altar. This classroom was a mess.

  “What the fuck is this?” I looked over the place, feeling doubt creeping in.

  His eyes snapped to us, and he flared his aura. It was like a thick blanket enveloped the whole room, the projectiles in the air ceased to exist, and my aura couldn’t even leave my body. So oppressive was his technique.

  Professor Siege

  Species: Dragon-Tiershen (Improved genome)

  Standing Emissions: 421

  Age: 42

  Affinity: Onyx

  “O-ho-ho! New students. What a pleasant day.” He retracted his aura, and I could take a breath again. He was bald, his head was covered in silver scales, and he moved like a slinky. His VITA glowed with black lines, constantly pulsing as if under pressure. Unlike other dragons, his suit looked like it was made out of cloth instead of metal.

  “Sure...” I nodded, trying to calm myself. The four others glared at me and Steel like haws. “I’d like to join the course.”

  “I want to join too,” Steel added confidently.

  Siege grinned, snapping his fingers. Immediately, the four students stood in a line. From tallest to shortest. He put his hands together, staring at me like a slab of meat. “Are you willing to die for power?”

  Steel raised her hand. “Yes!” There wasn’t a shred of hesitation in her voice; she really cared about Kory.

  What was this guy getting at? What was a man even doing here? He’s the first one I’ve seen in this place, other than myself. I scoffed. “That’s a stupid question. What’s the point of power if you’re dead?”

  Second from the start, a teenage dragon with black scales and white hair took a step out of the line. Gretchen of 100 SE. She stared at me like a ghost haunting its victim, empty eyes filled with nothingness. “Insult the professor one more time and I will eat your soul.” I glared at the woman, trying to figure out what was wrong with everyone here.

  The room descended into silence, when suddenly Siege started cackling. “You are accepted, Magnus! You are not, Steel.” His grin reached his ears. “You’re the kind of energy this little group needs. After all, you really don’t want to die, little human.”

  Gretchen nodded and stepped back. Siege approached me and put his hands on my shoulders. “You don’t want to die, right, little onyx?” His manic eyes drilled into my face; his hands and body were covered in blood.

  “Do you want to die!?” I snapped at him. Why was every mentor I met a freak?

  “Assuredly not.” He smugly said.

  “Why am I not accepted?! I’m stronger than Magnus?!” Steel growled at the professor, showing her sharp fangs.

  Siege scratched his head and pointed a finger at her. Waggling it around, starpower suddenly erupted from it and shot right at her. She became still. Then, she turned around and calmly walked out.

  My mind stopped for a second. This guy just made her leave like that. That felt wrong. “Did you just mind control her?” I asked the dragon freak. It was concerning.

  “It was a suggestion. Mind control is harder.” His voice was so squeaky and wiggling that it was hard to listen to him. Still, everyone in this group had much higher SE than their contemporaries. It was certainly alluring, even to the point where I might ignore the violation of free will...

  Surely the class leader won’t associate herself with bad people. “Ivaldie said I should join ELEVATE. Does anyone know her?” I looked at the line, slowly retreating away from the creep.

  Ocoz, third in the line, stood forward. She had an additional eye on her forehead, and she was bald too… Ocoz spoke, her voice didn’t sound serious at all, “Ya, she joined earlier, Louize here brought her, said she’d be a good fit! Professor liked her, stern type and all that.” What a weird trend! “Nice to meet ya, ally in suffering.” Her long gray tail wrapped around her leg. None of my classmates had long tails…

  Louize was the shortest out of them all; her expression showed nothing. Her copper hair was tied into a ponytail.

  “You’re with the soldier-girl!” Siege raised his hands, letting out a squeal. “Truly, the copper descendants keep on giving. I’ll turn you into a fine warrior.” I had far too many concerns to count, but I definitely didn’t want to be a warrior.

  If there was a way I could speak up, without being mind-controlled, this might be it, “I don’t want to be a warrior. I’ll become a wizard.”

  His mouth opened wide, and he covered it with his hand. “Another human becoming a wizard? That surely didn’t lead to a calamity last time. Uh-huh! Yep, you’ll be a great fit, future calamity.” He showed his fangs. “If you survive.” He looked at the line. “Mousei, tell him the ropes. Gretchen, try to eat the invisible geists. Ocoz, tell me Magnus’s future. Louize… Go sit on the tribulation altar, you’re far too weak! I’ll be meditating.”

  The whole line shouted, “Yes, professor!”

  Siege shrugged and pointed at the first in line. “She’ll take care of you… Oh, and if you ever feel like leaving. Go ahead. We don’t need cowards here.” He cackled like a madman, running towards the field of mats in the corner of the room.

  A tall, beautiful, red-haired dragon woman walked to me. Mousei, 144 SE. Each of her steps was sharp and precise, her eyes sparked with mischief, and her huge tail swung behind her. Even her VITA looked different; she had drawings of fire on it… There was a certain feeling of danger in her stance, as if she were always ready for a fight. “Hey, new blood.” She waved at me. “Let me get you up to speed.” Her voice was relaxed and upbeat, but something was wrong. For once, I felt fear.