Alister's eyes snapped open, the white hospital room ceiling replacing the cosmic space moments before. Disoriented, he tried to recall where he was, the memory of the colossal dragon and the strange blue space swirling around him fading fast. But exhaustion overwhelmed him, his eyelids drooping shut once more.
"Mr. Hazenworth? Can you hear me?"
A soft voice cut through the fog clouding his mind. A woman in blue scrubs stood beside his bed, with a gentle smile on her lips.
"Nurse?" Alister rasped, his throat dry.
"What is it?"
"People from the Union are here to see you."
"People from the Union…?"
The nurse gave a small nod. "Yes, they've been waiting for you to wake up. Seems like they have some questions."
"Questions?"
Alister echoed, shocked. Before he could ask further, the door creaked open and two figures entered the room.
It was the same Union officers he encountered after he cleared the dungeon. Viktor with his usual stern demeanor and Celia, with a mischievous look in her eyes, stood beside him. They both walked up to the side of Alister's bed.
"You know…"
Celia said, leaning closer with a mischievous smile.
"You actually look kind of cute up close."
Alister flushed slightly, feeling awkward under her scrutiny.
"Thanks, I guess."
He mumbled, shuffling uncomfortably under the sheets. Viktor cleared his throat, his voice sharp.
"Celia, now is not the time to mess around."
"Oh alright."
Viktor turned his gaze towards Alister, letting out a sigh, he bowed his head.
"Mr. Hazenworth, I apologize for the delay in making the announcement before your dungeon raid. It was a grave oversight on our part, and we take full responsibility for the unfortunate loss of your teammate."
His actions were uncharacteristic of the usually stoic Union officers.
Alister shook his head weakly.
"There's no need to bow, sir. It's… tragic what happened, but none of us could have predicted it. We don't blame anyone."
Viktor nodded.
"Understood, I'll take that as your acceptance of my apology then."
Lifting his head back up he proceeded to sit besides Alister turning his head to face him slowly.
Celia did the same as well.
"Now then, to the reason we are here, there's a major uproar within the Union. An F-rank team clearing an A-rank dungeon is unheard of. We've interviewed your teammates, but they all claim to have lost consciousness during the raid. They have no recollection of how the dungeon was cleared."
He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Except for Lila. She claims to have seen you fight your way through the goblins with surprising ease. However, considering your talent – a summoner – such feats seem a bit hard to believe."
Viktor's words suddenly made the air feel heavy and Alister felt like he was finding it a bit hard to breathe.
"But."
Viktor continued, his voice softening slightly.
"it can't be entirely dismissed either. You were the one who carried your unconscious teammates out, and that speaks volumes, Mr. Hazenworth."
Celia leaned forward again, her playful smile spreading on her face.
"So, Alister, we want the full story. How did you, a summoner, clear an A-rank dungeon without any summons?"
Alister felt a bead of sweat roll down his face. Things were getting complicated, fast.
'I can't possibly reveal the existence of the system or the fact that I have something like another talent… a skill.'
'And there isn't any transaction history to suggest that I bought the necessary equipment to summon a monster.'
'So I can't use Cinder as an excuse.'
'Even if I wanted to, she wouldn't have been able to fit in a goblin cave, so saying she assisted me with the raid would be far from believable.'
As Alister's thoughts raced, Cinder could feel the unease her master was feeling, her voice suddenly echoed in Alister's thoughts as she offered a solution to his problem.
'My lord, if you find their presence disturbing, then I will be more than willing to incinerate them for you.'
'No! You won't be incinerating anyone!' Alister counters, taking control of the mana that nearly surged out of his body.
'Understood my lord.' Cider replied.
Alister then let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly, he was going to tell them what happened, more from an observer's perspective than the actual truth.
Alister cleared his throat, the weight of their stares pressing down on him.
"Honestly."
"I'm not entirely sure what happened myself. When we entered the dungeon, things got bad… fast. There were just too many goblins, and…"
"And I just didn't want to die down there."
Viktor's gaze remained sharp, but Celia seemed intrigued.
"So, you fought your way out? A summoner taking down an A-rank horde?"
Her voice held a hint of shock, but also a spark of curiosity.
Alister shook his head again.
"No, not exactly. I… well, I felt this massive surge of power. Almost like as if something inside me… snapped. Maybe it has something to do with my talent rank being SSS rank."
He knew it wasn't the full truth, but it was the closest he could get without revealing the system or Cinder. He hoped it would be enough to explain his sudden burst of strength, leaving the specifics open to interpretation.
Celia's lips twitched at the corners, a mischievous glint returning to her eyes.
"Something snapped, huh? That's totally believable." She giggled, finding his words hilarious.
"Viktor, maybe there's more to Mr. Hazenworth than meets the eye."
Viktor frowned, a muscle ticking in his jaw. As he replied reluctantly.
"Perhaps."
"However, Mr. Hazenworth, while your explanation is… unorthodox, it does explain how you emerged from the dungeon with your teammates."
Alister let out a relieved breath. It wasn't ideal, but it seemed like he'd managed to avoid immediate scrutiny.
Viktor let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly.
"We'll need a more detailed report once you're fully recovered, Mr. Hazenworth. But for now, get some rest. The Union will be in touch."
With that, he turned on his heel and strode out of the room, Celia following silently behind him.
The door closed with a soft click, leaving Alister alone in the sterile white space. He let out a long sigh of relief, the tension draining from his shoulders. He'd managed to make his way trough the initial hurdle, but the weight of everything that had transpired settled upon him.
"Once I'm back on my feet, I need to get some summoner equipment and register Cinder at the Union Office. Hopefully, they have a category for… well, Drake."
The Union office did more than oversee the running of every mega city they were found in; they were also the best at creating and selling equipment. Although most people tended to go with cheaper options like random blacksmiths and item crafters, it was widely known that the best equipment could only be found there.
Although Alister would have loved to go for a cheaper option but it was only the union that had the necessary tools it would take to craft summoner equipment, so he would have to buy them there.
It was also the place where summoners registered their summons. Due to the nature of the world, it was not completely impossible to find a stray monster roaming around after a dungeon break. So, it was always best for summoners to register their monsters with some sort of tag, collar, or marking. This way, if they were seen from afar, people would know not to be alarmed.
Alister placed his hand under his jaw as he thought futher, 'And considering it would be hard to explain how I summoned a monster without any equipment, I could also fake summoning Cinder there.'
A wry smile played on his lips.
Finally, his thoughts turned towards Miyu.
"I wonder how she's holding up?"
He knew he needed to check on her soon, offer his care and support.
A sudden yellow glow filled his vision, interrupting his thoughts. The familiar system interface materialized before him, with a new notification.
[Train your weak body (Daily)]
Details: Dragons are not feared only because of how powerful they are, they are more terrifying because they seem to always grow stronger over time, no matter how strong they were previously. As an overlord of all dragons, such is your fate as well.
[Chain-quest: The claws of an Overlord]
Details: You have come to realize, dragons fight better with their claws than weapons, so train yourself in the art of combat with clawed gauntlets.
Requirements: Master combat with the clawed gauntlet (0/1)
Penalty: Until the player completes this quest, they are not allowed to raid a dungeon. If they attempt to raid, they lose 10 random stat points.]
Alister stared at the notification, pausing in shock.
"Wait, what? Daily training? And a penalty for not using claws? This system is getting more demanding by the minute."
He groaned, rubbing his forehead. Looks like his days laying in bed were officially over. He was a dragon, apparently, and dragons had to train.