Vlad, the blood dragon beside her, stepped forward and bowed deeply to the towering dragons.
His voice was calm, smooth, and just loud enough to carry.
"I have brought the Dead Eye."
The Ancient Dragons did not acknowledge him immediately.
Instead, their enormous eyes—slitted, ancient, and unreadable—focused entirely on Felix.
The silence stretched.
Then one of them spoke, his deep voice vibrating through the air like a slow earthquake.
"Kram, what do you think?"
The other tilted his massive head, studying her from head to toe. "Bram, she looks weak."
"Bram, I think the same."
Felix’s ears rang, then popped upon hearing their names.
Hot blood began trickled from her ears and nose.
She could taste the metallic tang.
She blinked through the pain and glanced sideways.
Vlad was gone. He’d left before they revealed their true names.
"Bram, she’s alive even after hearing our names."
"Kram, it seems not all the rumors about her being weak are true."
Felix forced herself to smile, even as her vision blurred.
Her jaw tightened, the smile fixed in place like armor while her body screamed from the strain.
’See? I told you it was a good idea to inject yourself with high-stage blood to keep yourself alive.’
’Yes, yes, thank you very much,’ she thought bitterly, holding the smile.
The dragons turned their focus to each other again.
"Kram, even if she can survive hearing our names, do you think she can complete our task?"
"Bram, I think we should ask her directly."
They looked back at her.
The combined weight of their gaze was only a little less worse than their voices.
It pressed down on her shoulders until she thought her knees might give out.
Still, she kept her head up.
"Dead Eye," Bram said, "we want to kill someone."
Felix bowed her head slightly. "Of course. I would be happy to make a contract with you, sir."
Kram’s eyes narrowed. "Can you kill a Stage 6? And what if it’s someone higher?"
She didn’t answer right away.
The question wasn’t one to be taken lightly.
"...If it’s Stage 6, I’d need to know about the target first. Only after hearing more could I give you a real answer."
"Kram, she says she can’t kill a Stage 6."
"Bram, she wasted our time. Should we kill her?"
Kram shook his head slightly. "Bram, we should not be hasty. Even if she cannot kill a Stage 6, it’s fine. We only need her to kill ’their’ reincarnations, which won’t be as strong."
Bram’s eyes brightened. "Kram, you’re a genius. I almost forgot about that."
Felix stayed silent, letting them talk.
Venyth, however, was not nearly as disciplined.
’Are these guys stupid? They talk like overgrown lizards rather than ancient dragons.’
She nearly coughed to cover a laugh, but forced herself to keep her mouth shut.
"Dead Eye," Kram continued, "we need you to kill two people. They will not be Stage 6. As for their identities, that you will have to find yourself."
"That will be no problem. But it will help if you any information I can use to locate them, or something that I can recognize them by."
Bram raised one massive claw. "Take this."
A sudden searing pain flared across her forearm. Felix clenched her teeth, looking down to see a tattoo forming into an ink-black dragon in mid-flight, its wings spread wide.
"That is a dragon mark," Bram explained. "It will allow you to use some of our power. It will also alert you if you are in the range of an Ancient Dragon. If those Ancient Dragons bear the name Hargraves, kill them. They are your targets."
Felix’s brows drew together before she could stop herself. "Hargraves?"
"Indeed," Kram said simply.
"What’s up, Amelia—"
"Come back to Earth," Amelia cut in. "A Stage 5 is coming."
Felix’s easy tone faded.
"...What kind of Stage 5?"
"Not much information can be divined yet. I’m waiting for Morrigan and Percival to return my call. Maybe they can get more read on this invader. But whoever it is, you need to come."
"Are you calling everyone?"
"Yes. It seems the invader is quite strong."
Felix’s eyes narrowed.
...
Jack’s POV
"I’m not coming," Jack said without hesitation. "Deal with it yourself."
On the other end of the call, Amelia stared at him for a few seconds. Her expression didn’t shift much, but she eventually gave a small nod. "Alright."
The line went dead.
Jack exhaled slowly and rubbed at his brows, leaning back in the worn pub chair. The wooden seat creaked faintly, but he didn’t care.
The place was busy.
This planet was a common stop for travelers of all kinds, and the pub reflected that.
Around him, countless figures moved about.
They had different builds, skin tones, and even species.
The low hum of voices blended with the clinking of glasses and the muffled beat of music from somewhere deeper inside the building.
"Are you sure about not going back?" a voice asked.
Jack glanced at his shoulder just in time to see a small black dragon hop down onto the table.
Nyxtharion’s tail curled neatly around its claws as it tilted its head at him.
"Yes," Jack said simply.
"What if Earth really is in danger?"

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