The wilderness of Midgard was not kind to the weak.
Jagged cliffs split the earth into yawning chasms. Ancient forests whispered with hidden predators. The wind itself carried the scent of blood, as though the land had long ago learned to feast on trespassers.
Ryujin trudged through a narrow mountain pass, boots scraping against stone.
Nox padded beside him, each step unnervingly silent for a creature its size. The drake's molten eyes scanned every shadow, wings twitching as if anticipating danger.
Days had passed since the uneasy growl that first warned Ryujin they were being watched. Since then, an unseen predator seemed to follow their trail.
The sheer patience of his enemy left him unnerved.
At night, faint serpent-like hisses echoed through the trees. Small hunting traps appeared where there had been none the day before.
And worse, Nox's nostrils occasionally flared with human scent, carried on the mountain winds.
Psychologically, Ryujin felt like he was losing his mind.
That was no excuse though. Survival left no room for complacency. Even as he was on the edge for multiple days straight, Ryujin had thrown himself into relentless training still.
By dawn, he and Nox hunted dangerous prey, from scale-backed boards to wild serpentlings, even lesser wyverns that prowled the cliffs.
Each battle honed his instincts. He no longer moved like an academy dropout but like a man fighting for every breath.
Today's hunt had been brutal. A wyvern had ambushed them from a Cliffside perch, its wings blotting out the sun.
But Ryujin had adapted, baiting it toward Nox's shadowflame traps, spear in hand. Together, they brought it crashing down, and when the final blow struck, Ryujin received a flicker of system recognition.
DING!
~----~
[Progress Toward Rank E: 45%]
[Dragon Mastery Increased: 31% - 40%]
~----~
Ryujin was confused.
If enemies truly stalked him in the dark, why give him so much time? Why let him train to get stronger? Why let him rank up?
Was it just to observe him to know his strengths and weaknesses?
He was too tired to think deeper about it though. Exhausted yet exhilarated, Ryujin sat against a rock, blood smearing his torn tunic.
"That's it, Nox," he panted, glancing at the drake as it tore into the wyvern's carcass. "Each fight makes us sharper… deadlier. If we keep this up, nothing will stop us".
Nox lifted its head, black flames flickering from its maw, molten eyes glinting like twin suns. For the first time, Ryujin felt their bond deepen; not just command and obedience, but instinctive synergy.
Unbeknownst to Ryujin, high above on a rocky outcropping, Valtheris crouched low, serpent-mask blending into shadow.
His wyvern mount clung to the Cliffside like a massive hunting lizard, its forged tongue tasting the air.
Valtheris' eyes glowed faintly beneath his mask as he observed Ryujin's hunt through a long, curved spyglass. The boy was moving differently now; sharper, more in tune with his dragon.
"Now a coward," Valtheris murmured. "But skill won't save you".
He had observed enough. Now was the time to probe.
With a flick of his wrist, Valtheris signaled to serpent scouts slithering silently below. These were elite hunters bred for tracking; each scout carried venom-coated harpoons and wyrm nets enchanted to bind dragonkind.
Valtheris' plan was precise: observe, test the exile with serpent scouts, draw out weaknesses, then strike personally when the boy and his drake were at their most exhausted.
Call him cowardly, but that was the way of the assassin.
He was calculative, meticulous and precise, ruthlessly so.
…
By dusk, Ryujin guided Nox through a narrow ravine, its rocky walls painted crimson by the setting sun. The air was heavy, suffocating. Too quiet.
Nox stopped abruptly, head snapping toward the cliffs above. A guttural snarl escaped its throat.
Ryujin's hand tightened on his spear. "Show yourself," he called, voice hard.
A whisper of steel answered.
From the shadows of the ravine walls, three serpent scouts emerged, armored in dark scales, harpoons gleaming with poison-tipped runes. Their serpentine mounts hissed, slithering across the rocks with uncanny speed.
"Ryujin Jormungandr," one scout hissed, voice muffled beneath a serpent helm. "By decree of Lord Halveth, your life ends here. The drake dies with you".
Ryujin's jaw tightened. 'Father… so this is how far you'll go?'
The lead scout flicked his wrist. Nets flared with emerald light, whipping toward Ryujin and Nox.
Then…
Ryujin exploded into motion, moving on instinct. "Nox, Smoke Veil!"
BAM!
Black fire exploded outward, cloaking the ravine in a dense, acrid fog. The serpent scouts hissed in confusion as their nets tangled midair.
Shadows moved within the smoke.
From above, a harpoon whistled through the haze. Ryujin twisted aside just in time, the venomous tip grazing his shoulder and sizzling against stone. Pain lanced through him, but he gritted his teeth.
"Tail sweep!" he barked mentally.
Nox roared, tail whipping like a shadowed blade. One serpent mount screeched as bones cracked, throwing its rider into jagged rocks.
The second scout lunged forward, dagger flashing.
Ryujin parried with his spear, sparks flying. He ducked low, driving his weapon into the scout's leg before rolling to avoid another harpoon.
Nox struck like a thunderclap, pouncing on the wounded mount and unleashing shadowflame that consumed both beast and rider.
DING!
System notifications flared briefly.
~----~
[Combat Mastery Increased: 15% - 22%]
[Dragon Bond Resonance Strengthened]
~----~
The final scout attempted to retreat, serpent mount slithering frantically.
Ryujin's voice rang cold. "You'll tell my father nothing".
With a surge of shadowflame, Nox's Fear Roar echoed through the ravine. The mount froze, paralyzed, and Ryujin's spear ended the fight in a single strike.
Breathing hard, Ryujin wiped blood from his brow. "That wasn't random," he muttered. "Someone sent them… and they knew where to find me".
Nox growled low, molten eyes turning toward the darkening forest beyond. Ryujin followed its gaze but saw nothing, only swaying branches and dying light.
Yet he felt it. A presence watching from the dark, cold and serpentine.
…
From a distant ridge, Valtheris lowered his spyglass, expression hidden but voice a whisper of venom.
"Impressive, just as I'd expect from the son of the patriarch," he said softly. "But this is only the first coil tightening".
He stroked the neck of his wyvern mount, which hissed eagerly.
"We'll bleed him slowly. Let his fear ripen. When the time comes, the final strike will not miss".
…
That night, as Ryujin set up camp by a waterfall, unease gnawed at him. Every crack of a branch, every whisper of wind, felt like a serpent's tongue brushing his neck.
Nox curled protectively around him, shadowflame flickerin in its throat.
Ryujin gripped his spear tighter, whispering into the night. "I know you're out there… whoever you are. Come for me if you dare".
From the shadows, silent and unseen, Valtheris listened.
The assassin's serpent mask caught a silver of moonlight as he vanished once more into darkness, tightening the coils of the hunt.