Blaze woke up feeling queasy. He was on a soft bed, and a hot fire crackled and gave him warmth. Blaze groaned and got up, disoriented.
“I would advise you to lay down. You have some broken bones.” Blaze rubbed his eyes and stared at the man. He was the lumberjack Blaze had met before the demon had shown up. Blaze sat back down, dizzy. The man couldn’t be any older than 19, Blaze realised. Then, he remembered the notifications and pulled them up.
Congratulations! Martial Artist (Tier 5) has reached Level 3.
Congratulations! Martial Artist (Tier 5) has reached Level 4.
You have discovered a new demon type!
Ghoul
Common
Demon
Most common type of demon. Ghoul’s power increases by the power of its enemy.
Smoke Bomb
Demon has been looted.
Demon (Ghoul) has been added to the Race Collection.
What were martial artist levels? As if he had asked, more messages popped up. Blaze discarded the old messages and read the new ones.
Martial Artist (Tier 5)
Race Ability
Demon
Get instant proficiency with all forms of melee combat. Level up skill to gain more knowledge.
So, the horns hadn’t been a bad idea at all. Damn all Demon Hunters. Shaking his head, Blaze looked up at the lumberjack.
“Who-” He cried out in pain as his backbone moved. “W-Who are you?”
“My name is Jack, Jack Stone.” The lumberjack raised his hand to shake.
“Blaze Draconis. Nice to meet you.” Blaze shook Jack’s hand. Then, he leaned on the cottage wall and groaned. Jack looked sympathetic.
“You should get yourself a doctor.”
“Doctor?”
“You don’t know who a doctor is?”
Blaze winced. “I’m… from somewhere else.”
Jack stared at him curiously.
“Right… oh, by the way, I looted the demon for you.”
Jack threw Blaze some copper coins, a gray shard and a hunk of flesh. Blaze stared at the piece of flesh with horror. He quickly stuffed the flesh in his bag.
“What do you mean looted?”
Blaze asked. Jack raised his eyebrows.
“You really aren’t from around here, aren’t you? You don’t even have a looting glove. Look, I will sell you mine for 8 coppers, deal?”
Blaze blinked, then counted his coins. He only had 4.
“What about bronze coins?” He held up one of the bronze coins. Jack’s eyes widened.
“That would do as well.” He reached out and grabbed the coin. Then, he pulled off his glove and threw it to Blaze.
Air Dragon Glove
Common
A glove made of a common air dragon. Has been enchanted. This glove has the ability to loot.
Blaze examined the glove and shoved it over his hand. Then, he stood to leave. Carefully walking without moving his backbones, he stepped towards the front door.
“Oh, just before I forget, what happened in the smoke? I saw a red light.”
Blaze froze. Before considering for a moment, he turned and beamed at Jack.
“Just a fire power of mine. Pretty mana hungry, sorry! Can’t demonstrate.” Then, he turned and fled.
****
“What do you mean, you gave him a bronze coin?!” Tom asked, incredulously.
“Uhh, isn’t a bronze coin 10 coppers?”
Tom eyes’ started twitching.
“A bronze coin is worth 100 coppers.”
“Ohhhh, oops.” Blaze said, sheepishly.
Tom ran his head over his face.
“Let’s get a doctor, you moron.”
“Also, I’ve got a quest.” Blaze said. Tom frowned.
“You sure?”
“How do you think I have these bronze coins?”
“Weird.”
****
“This is a serious injury, youngster.” Doctor Steven told Blaze. They had found a doctor in the higher section of the city. Blaze winced in pain and nodded.
“I got kicked pretty hard.”
“It was hard all right. You are lucky to have survived.” Steven reassured him. “If it had broken your neck, you wouldn’t be here with us right now.”
Blaze nodded and laid back on the medical bed. He was exhausted.
“How much?” Blaze asked.
“Three bronze coins and 2 copper.”
Blaze winced again, not in pain, but at the staggering price. He pulled out the coins and gave them to the doctor. Surprisingly, the doctor shrugged it off.
“I don’t take payment until my patient is healed, young man.”
Doctor Steven raised his hands over Blaze and started chanting. The language was unfamiliar and Blaze didn’t understand a thing. Green light came out of the doctor’s hands and shone down on Blaze. Blaze felt his bones move inside his body and energy surged through Blaze. He felt refreshed. Tom watched from the corner of the room and smirked, enjoying the astonished look on Blaze’s face.
“First time seeing healing magic?” Steven asked kindly. Blaze just nodded and moved his wrist. It felt perfectly fine. Blaze got up from the bed and touched his back. It was perfectly fine.
“Tom, you need to learn some of this.” Blaze told Tom with a grin. “This is great! Thank you, Mr. Steven.”
“Learn it yourself.” Tom grumbled.
Blaze grinned widely and paid Steven. Blaze left the clinic wondering about everything magic could do. Tom was checking a map.
“We need to get going. We should go to Angel’s bane.”
“Angel’s bane?”
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“A big town with a lot of angels, despite the name. Angel’s give quests, remember?”
Blaze nodded.
“How do we get there? By carriage?”
Tom shook his head and grinned.
“You have bronze coins, right?”
Blaze narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
“What are you planning?”
****
“What are they?”
Blaze asked. Tom had led him to a tavern and led him to the bartender. He had asked for quick travel and the bartender and brought them to the back. In the stables were horses, but the horses had wings.
“Griffins, perfect to get to Angel’s Bane.”
Tom explained, with a grin. “I always wanted to ride one.”
Blaze glanced at him with weariness.
“Aren’t you scared of falling off?”
“I have telekinesis, I’m fine.”
“What about me?”
Tom didn’t reply. That made Blaze anxious and punched Tom in the shoulder.
“Stop tapping me.”
“I punched you!” Blaze said, offended.
“How weak are you?”
“Rude! I will let you know, I beat a demon.”
“A common ghoul. The weakest demon possible.”
“Just… get on the griffin.”
****
Blaze clung with all his strength on the neck of the griffin.
“This is the worst!” He cried.
Tom laughed, but Blaze could barely hear it over the whistling wind. Blaze has never flown before. That wasn’T a surprise, since he had lived all his life in a small cabin in a forest.
“I’m going to end you, you damn…”
He didn’t finish because his mouth became dry. He glared at Tom and closed his eyes, which were also becoming dry.
“Happy thoughts.” Blaze thought. Instantly, ideas about annoying Tom popped up and Blaze grinned. Blaze straightened and flew steadily.
“I’m getting good at this.” Blaze thought. Suddenly, the griffins started shaking and making distressed sounds.
“What’s going on?” Blaze asked, nervous.
“I don’t know. They’re scared of something.” Tom answered, looking worried.
Then, he squinted in the distance.
“Is that…” Then, Tom paled. “It’s a dragon.”
Blaze stared at Tom, then groaned.
“I wish I stayed with Blackthorn.”
Tom threw him a disbelieving look.
“Ok, maybe not.” Blaze confessed.
Then, a gust of wind threw Tom and Blaze straight off the griffins.
****
Blaze was falling. They had been blown off the griffins, which had flown away in fear. Blaze twisted in the air to face the ground. Tom wasn’t far behind, only a few meters away. Blaze looked around, trying to find the source of the wind.
“It’s a wind dragon!” Tom shouted, trying to be heard through the wind.
“Great! Just great!” Blaze grumbled. “I faced a demon on my first day outside and now, I also have to fight a dragon. I’m going to die.”
“Stop complaining!” Tom shouted and squinted. “I see it, it’s coming our way!”
Blaze turned to look where Tom was squinting and saw the dragon. It was fully white, with occasional gray scales that looked like dots. And it was big. Massive.
“Which rank?” Blaze asked, shouting at the top of his lungs.
“Not sure, maybe common or uncommon!” Tom answered.
Blaze sighed and started strategising. If it was uncommon, Blaze had barely any chance to beat the big dragon. But if it was common, Blaze had a plan.
“Tell me if it gets close.” Blaze ordered and pulled up a screen message.
You have absorbed the Star Set Fallen Demon (Legendary, Demon/Dragon)
Do you want to unlock the Dragon trait: Dragon wings (Tier 5, optional)
Yes / No
Blaze accepted the screen message and it disappeared from his vision, getting replaced with another message.
You have activated the Demon trait: Dragon Wings (Tier 5) You have received increased Aerial Acrobatics. Power increases over time. You start at Tier 1. You have unlocked the optional skill: Dragon Flight (Tier 5, optional)
Dragon Flight (Tier 5, optional)
Race Ability
Dragon
This is an optional skill. Users can activate and deactivate wings. Wings allow the user to glide. Upgrade to gain additional effects.
Wings started growing out of Blaze’s back. Tom watched, then crouched in the air, which looked ridiculous. Angel wings formed on his back and Tom uncrouched. At lightning speed, Tom shot forward, wings propelling him. Blaze wings finished sprouting and Blaze stopped falling, instead hovering. Blaze unsheathed his sword, watching the dragon carefully. Blaze had heard of dragons before, but had never faced them. They were apparently dangerous, no surprise. The wind changed, rushing at him. Blaze was no idiot and he understood instantly that the dragon was attacking. As the dragon dived to snatch Blaze, Blaze turned in the air, ramming his sword in the dragon’s claw. The dragon roared and started twisting in the air, trying to yank the thing of its claw.
Congratulations! Martial Artist (Tier 5) has reached Level 5.
By reaching Level 5, you have gained minimal strength.
Blaze started clawing his way up the dragon’s arm, while Tom landed on the dragon’s back. Tom started making hand gestures and tried to pull a scale off. It wouldn’t budge. Tom was experienced in fighting however, before his capture. Tom rammed his foot through two gaps in the dragon’s scales and started moving his foot around, loosening the scale. Then, he made a pulling gesture and the scale ripped off, showing raw flesh. The dragon roared and its scales started shaking. Then, they exploded with gusts of wind, throwing Tom straight off the dragon. Blaze clung with all his life as wind started pushing against him. He pulled himself on the dragon’s back and crawled towards the exposed flesh.
Blaze got to his feet, holding his ground by grabbing the scale. He pulled himself to the scale and laid his fist on the flesh.
Blaze activated his ability and he shot forward, punching the wind dragon. The dragon screamed with rage and started blasting Blaze with wind. Finally, Blaze let go and shot off the dragon’s back. Blaze spread his wings and started gliding towards the ground. When he landed, the dragon was already on the ground, dead. The scales were burnt and blackened. But to Blaze’s horror, there was no flesh. There were no burn marks, instead getting replaced with nothing, the body mostly gone. When Blaze looked through the body, he saw no organs. He threw up.
****
Blaze had looted the dragon and found Tom, who was laying in the grass, panting.
“It’s fine, it was only a common dragon. Easier than I thought” Blaze told him. “It’s dead.”
Air Dragon
Common
Dragon
Air dragons have air and water affinity. Has accurate flying.
Dragon has been looted.
Dragon (Air) has been looted. You have obtained:
* Wind Set Star Gem (Common)
* 15x Copper coins
“Apparently, monsters drop star sets. That damn lumberjack has scammed me!” Blaze growled.
Tom shook and sat up.
“Commons mostly don’t drop star sets. You are lucky, as always.” Tom told him.
Blaze puffed up in indignation. “I lived in a cottage for my entire life and was enslaved. And I fought a dragon!”
“It was only common.” Tom answered, still smirking.
“It’s still a dragon!” Blaze told him.
“Sure.” Tom said and Blaze laughed. Then, he looked at the gem in his other hand.
“What should I do with this?” Blaze asked.
Tom got up and inspected the gem.
Wind Star Gem
Common
This Star Gem awakens the Star Set: Wind. This will take a spot on your star deck.
“Simple description.” Tom noted. “I think it would be a good power. You shouldn’t use your other powers just yet. Blackthorn is still chasing us. You can’t have a good job without a star gem’s strength. Even one as common.”
Blaze stared down at the gem then nodded and pushed it into his chest.
The Star Set Wind (Common, Dragon) is available to put in your star deck. Do you wish to awaken Wind Rider?
Yes / No
Blaze accepted and the gem melted into his chest.
“You know, it’s crazy that the guy that didn’t even know a lot about star gems and was a servant gets two sets in a…” Blaze cut off when a system message showed up.
Wind
Common Set
Dragon
This Set grants the user the agility of a wind dragon. User gains increased attack speed.
Current powers: 1/3
1.Wind Release
You have absorbed the Star Set Wind (Common, Dragon)
You have unlocked the Wind ability: Wind Release (Common, Demon/Dragon)
“Wind Release?” Blaze grinned. “Release the storm.” Blaze started pulsing.
“Huh, I wonder…” Blaze was cut off as wind exploded from his body. Tom flew back a few meters before breaking, using his rank’s agility to land on his feet. Blaze tumbled over, exhausted.
“So much mana…” Blaze groaned.
“Maybe, that wasn’t the best power.” Tom told him.
“You little bast–”