Chapter 4: The Dragon's Tale
The shadows whispered a warning as Halmeoni approached, but not of danger—of power. Ancient, familiar power that tasted like starlight and endings.
[Entity Analysis in Progress]
[Warning: Power Level Exceeds System Parameters]
[Classification: Celestial-Class Being]
[Recommendation: Truth Protocol Initiated]
She stepped into my sphere of awareness, and the humble appearance of the pojangmacha grandmother melted away like morning mist. In her place stood a woman of impossible age and grace, her silver hair floating in an unseen wind. The dragon ouroboros pendant at her throat pulsed with living light.
"You're not surprised," she said, head tilting. "But then again, you've seen the end of the world. Little things like ancient dragons in disguise probably don't shock you anymore."
I straightened, letting the shadows gather around me protectively. "You're one of the Seven."
"No." She smiled, and in that smile I saw galaxies turn. "I'm what came before them. Long before them." She settled onto a bench that hadn't existed moments ago, her power reshaping reality with casual ease. "I am Yeong, the Void Dragon, and I've been waiting a very long time for someone like you."
[Historical Archive Accessed]
[Information: Yeong, First of the Void Dragons]
[Status: Previously Believed Extinct]
[Warning: Timeline Stability Fluctuating]
"The Seven Generals," I said slowly, "they're not really dragons, are they? They're something else, something that stole dragon power."
"Clever boy." Yeong's eyes shimmered with approval. "The creatures you know as the Seven Generals were once human awakeners, like yourself. They found one of our dying elders and... consumed her essence. Corrupted it with their sins. The power drove them mad, transformed them into the monsters you remember."
The shadows around us rippled with the truth of her words, showing me fragments of that ancient crime. I saw seven figures standing over the broken body of a great dragon, their hands dripping with golden blood that burned like starfire.
"But you're different," I said. "You've been watching over Earth, hiding as Halmeoni, serving ramyeon to F-ranked students. Why?"
[New Quest Chain Unlocked: The Dragon's Legacy]
[Objective: Uncover the True History of Earth's Elements]
[Reward: ???]
"Because I made a promise," she said softly. "To Gaia. My sister."
The world seemed to stop.
"Gaia... was a dragon?"
"The Earth Dragon. The youngest of us, the most beautiful, the most loving." Yeong's voice held millennia of grief. "She chose to bind herself to this planet, to become one with it, to gift humanity with the seven elements. Her power flows through Earth's ley lines, through every awakener's abilities." She fixed me with an ancient stare. "And now, through you most of all."
[Critical Lore Unlocked]
[Understanding: Source of Awakener Powers]
[Warning: Knowledge May Alter Timeline Significantly]
"In my original timeline," I said carefully, "when Pride summoned the asteroid, Gaia used her last strength to send me back. But that's not all she did, is it?"
"No." Yeong reached out, her fingers brushing my forehead. At her touch, the system's interface exploded with new information. "She gave you something no human was meant to have: direct access to dragon essence. The power to manipulate not just shadow, but all seven elements. The ability to see and navigate timelines."
My head spun with revelations. "Is that what this system is? Dragon essence?"
"It's a framework, created by Gaia's dying consciousness, to help your human mind process and control powers it was never meant to contain." She withdrew her hand. "But it's killing you."
[Status Update]
[Physical Integrity: 97.3%]
[Estimated Lifespan at Current Power Usage: 9.7 Years]
[Critical Warning: Host Body Requires Modification]
"I don't care," I said immediately. "If I can save everyone—"
"You'll die before the Seven Generals even arrive." Yeong's voice cracked like thunder. "Unless you let me help you."
The shadows between us danced with possibility. I thought of Yeong-suk's laugh, of Joon-woo's sacrifice, of Pride's cruel smile. "What kind of help?"
"Training. Protection. Knowledge." She stood, her form shifting between human and something far more vast. "And most importantly, the truth about what the Seven Generals are really after. It's not Earth they want, Eun-sang. It's what's sleeping beneath it."
[New Information Available]
[Warning: Revelation Will Alter Understanding of Primary Mission]
[Accept Dragon's Knowledge? Y/N]
I looked at the prompt floating before me, understanding that this was another turning point. Another moment that would reshape everything I thought I knew.
"Show me," I said.
Yeong smiled, and the shadows around us deepened into something older than darkness itself. "Then let me tell you about the Eighth Sin, and why your shadow powers are the key to everything."
The subway tunnel disappeared, replaced by visions of a truth too terrible for human minds to comprehend. And as Yeong spoke, I realized that saving Earth was just the beginning.
The real war hadn't even started yet.