After the last battle, one that I knew I might not win, I regained consciousness in my main body. What I saw was rather unexpected: traces of explosions surrounded me, and everyone kept their distance. Security soldiers formed a perimeter around me, while drivers who were about to enter or exit the tower paused, seemingly avoiding the threat of danger.
"Fajar, are you okay?"
I couldn't immediately answer that question because my vision felt strange. For some reason, my eyes were filled with vibrant colors, creating a peculiar sensation. When I blinked, it felt as if I wasn't fully closing my eyes; even though I blinked, I could still perceive my surroundings.
"Fajar?"
My grandfather approached me and gently shook my body.
"Fajar, are you okay?"
"Huh? Yes, what? Oh, yeah, I'm fine, Grandpa. How long have I been unconscious?"
"You seem a bit confused. We'll talk later. For now, put on this jacket—you're completely naked."
I glanced down and realized that my entire body was exposed in front of a crowd. To make matters worse, I noticed that on the other side of the road, several women were staring at me with flushed faces.
As I took the jacket from Grandpa, I quickly covered myself and hid behind his large frame.
"Grandpa, what happened? Why am I suddenly completely naked?"
"That's a long story. Let's just walk to the tower for now, before this place gets too chaotic."
Grandpa glanced at the side of the road, then lowered his head and continued speaking.
"I'm sorry for the commotion that occurred."
The main driver of our family was still in shock at the sight of the luxury car, which had never been destroyed even during an A-level monster attack, suddenly exploding due to a 15-year-old boy.
"Don't worry about it. We've been using that car for three years; we can use another one later. Besides, there are still many better cars in the garage than that one."
After hearing my grandfather's reassurances, we continued our journey to the tower on foot.
"You've been looking confused. Do you want to tell me why?" he asked, concern etched on his face. I looked down for a moment before responding.
"Hm, I don't know where to start the story, but I can say that I met a figure known as the 'Blind Old Creature' while I was unconscious. He explained his purpose and told me that I was one of the few who could become a vessel for the creature he worships. However, to do that, I must first learn to control all of Fafnir's power completely. The real Fafnir is still out there, and if he discovers that I possess his Special Core, he will undoubtedly try to kill me. Therefore, I need to master this power as soon as possible."
I paused for a moment, collecting my thoughts. "When I was unconscious, I had a duel with that figure. But as you can imagine, if he had used all his power, I would have died instantly—even just a light wave of his hand was enough to demonstrate his strength. So, I was just about to regain consciousness when he did his best to avoid any lethal strikes, blocking and delivering the weakest attacks possible so that I wouldn't die. However, I still perished when one of his attacks connected. Now that I'm awake, everything feels strange. I can see colors emanating from every human body that enters my sight. It's not just humans—the sky, plants, and even the stones along the roadside each have their own colors. When I look at people, I can clearly see lines resembling fine veins all over their bodies. Even when I blink, it feels as though my sight is penetrating through my eyelids. I'm getting used to it, although it still feels a little strange at times."
Hearing my story, which was a mix of half-truths and half-lies, Grandpa began to ponder. He seemed to grasp some parts of what I had shared.
"For your last question, you might find the answer by looking at your reflection in a mirror. Use this to check for yourself."
My grandfather handed me his phone. I opened the camera and activated the front lens, quickly noticing something strange.
"My eyes?"
'Mr. Ancient Being, can you explain to me why my eyes look like this?'
'Hm? Ah, that? Just think of it as a gift from me. I destroyed your real eyeballs in your last battle, so that damn Dragon Core helped by giving you new ones so you won't go blind. So really, you should thank me; I've been quite generous in helping you gain a cheat power like the Eyes of Fafnir.'
'Is that so? In that case, I will accept this gift and thank you for your assistance.'
'Haha, as usual, you're amusing. Of course, I'm here to assist in your development. If you grow stronger, others will come as well, so don't be surprised if it gets crowded here someday. But that's a long way off—very far away—before you'll even think about avenging "HIM."'
"Is this a lizard's eye? Why does it look like a reptile's eye?"
My grandfather, taken aback by my comment, never expected me to compare dragon eyes to those of a reptile.
"You're not wrong; dragons still carry a hint of reptilian bloodline."
As we chatted, we finally arrived at the gate of my destination. Our driver handed over my documents, which he had stored in his storage skill.
"Fajar Dharma Hartono, Difficulty 10, Grade S+?"
The doorman was taken aback to see a 15-year-old boy who had passed the tower test and was allowed to enter.
"Yes, that's me."
"And Mr. Soedarmo?"
My grandfather nodded, and we were immediately granted entry into the tower.
"I'll take you to the mission location where you can earn some money. After that, you're on your own, okay? Use this if you want to contact us at home. Tomorrow, I'll return to begin your training. Now, go buy some clothes for inside the tower and get some rest. You'll undergo intense training with me starting tomorrow, so be prepared."
Grandpa handed me a crystal ball and a cloth bag. Meanwhile, the driver retrieved a suitcase containing my Arc and Arch weapons, as well as the armor set given to me by my grandfather.