The interrogation was… gentler than Jax expected.
Llandra stood a little farther back now, arms crossed, posture straight but no longer confrontational. Her ears twitched faintly — a tell Jax suspected meant mortified.
"So," she said, clearing her throat. "Please… explain what happened."
Jax nodded slowly.
He considered his words carefully.
"I… arrived in your lands," he began, pausing just long enough to avoid mentioning light, portals, or anything that sounded too impossible. "Not long after, I was attacked. A red dragon came out of nowhere. Fire. Teeth. Very unfriendly."
The bunny girl nodded emphatically.
"They're usually like that."
"I didn't have a weapon," Jax continued. "So I lured it here. Used the lake. Waited for an opening."
"And then?" Llandra prompted.
"And then I punched it."
Silence.
Nyxian blinked.
Bunny's mouth opened slightly.
Zee tilted her head.
"…You punched it," Llandra repeated.
"Yes."
"And its head," Llandra said slowly, gesturing at the corpse, "exploded through the neck."
Jax rubbed the back of his head.
"Well. I punched it really, really hard."
Nyxian smirked.
"Maybe he didn't use his fist," she purred. "Maybe it was that third leg of his."
The world stopped.
Bunny choked.
Zee turned bright red.
Llandra made a sound somewhere between a gasp and a prayer.
Jax stared.
"…I am going to pretend you did not say that."
Nyxian laughed openly.
"Oh relax. If you're going to walk out of a lake naked in front of four women, you can survive a little commentary."
Llandra buried her face in her hand.
"I apologize for my companion," she said quickly. "She lacks restraint."
Nyxian grinned wider. "I lack boredom."
Llandra turned back to Jax, visibly trying to recover.
"What are your intentions for the dragon?" she asked. "Are you an adventurer? Do you intend to sell it in Solmere?"
Jax hesitated.
"…Is there value in a dead dragon?"
The silence that followed was heavier than the first.
Bunny stared at him.
Zee's eyes widened.
Nyxian let out a low whistle.
"You're serious," Bunny said softly.
"Very."
Llandra slowly exhaled.
"Yes. There is… considerable value. Scales. Bones. Core. Organs. A dragon like this could fund a town for years."
"Oh," Jax said. "Good to know."
He thought for a moment.
Power, he reminded himself, was never just about strength.
"Alright," he said. "Then let's make a deal."
Four sets of eyes fixed on him.
"Help me transport this thing. Show me the way to town. Help me sell it. In exchange—" he paused, then shrugged, "—you get twenty percent of the haul."
The reaction was immediate.
"WHAT?" Bunny yelped.
Nyxian straightened. "You're joking."
Zee blinked rapidly. "That's… that's a lot."
Llandra stared at him, incredulous. "Twenty percent? For escort?"
"I'm new," Jax said simply. "I don't know your land. I don't know your systems. And I don't know how one carries a fifty-foot dragon."
Bunny tilted her head.
"…You're paying us for information."
"And time," Jax added. "Both matter."
Zee stepped forward, voice gentle but curious.
"Why don't you just store it using your system?"
Jax froze.
"My… what?"
The four women exchanged looks.
Bunny's ears perked.
"…You do have a system, right?"
Jax hesitated — then nodded. "Yeah. I do."
Nyxian raised a brow. "Then open it."
Slowly, Jax did.
A translucent screen shimmered into view.
Bunny smiled brightly. "Yep. That's one."
"Select Beast Acquired Store," Zee said.
Jax did.
The dragon's massive body distorted, shrinking impossibly as it was pulled into the screen like smoke drawn into glass — scales, wings, bones and all — until the lakeshore was suddenly… empty.
Jax stared.
"…That would have been useful to know earlier."
Bunny laughed.
She stepped forward and offered her hand.
"My name's Aurabelle. Everyone calls me Bunny."
She gestured beside her.
"This is Zephrial — but just call her Zee."
Zee smiled shyly and gave a small wave.
Nyxian sauntered forward next.
"Nyxian," she said. "Gothic gloom. Demon girl. Occasional instigator."
"And," Bunny added, smiling warmly, "our leader—"
Llandra stepped forward, posture composed once more.
"Llandra," she said. "And we would be happy to escort you to Solmere."
Nyxian smirked. "For our twenty-percent finder's fee."
Llandra sighed. "Yes. That."
She glanced toward the forest path.
"It's about five clicks from here. Roughly a two-hour walk."
Jax nodded.
He looked at the four of them — demon, elf, bunny, healer — and felt something unfamiliar stir.
Curiosity.
Possibility.
"Alright," he said. "Lead the way."
As they turned toward the path, Jax couldn't help but smile to himself.
He had arrived alone.
Now he was walking toward town beside four extraordinary women… with a dragon in his inventory.
Whatever this world was—
He was ready to see it.