When the figure appeared across the bridge, Emery felt a surge of emotion rise within his chest.
For a moment he simply stared.
The man standing before him was taller and broader than he remembered, his once youthful frame now tempered by decades of battle and training. His physique carried the refined strength of a seasoned warrior, every movement calm yet filled with restrained power. Faint crimson scales could be seen along the edges of his skin, glimmering beneath the arena light.
There was no mistaking him.
"It's really you… Zach."
Zach Talon.
The Dragon Prince of the Zodiac faction.
During their academy days, Zach had been Emery's greatest rival—the one person who had pushed him to his limits again and again. Their competition had forged both respect and rivalry between them, and although decades had passed since their last encounter at the Celestial expedition.
