The city skyline glowed faintly under a dim, polluted sky. Neon signs flickered between half-destroyed buildings, some still bearing the scars left behind by recent beast attacks and sorcerer battles. The world had not recovered from the chaos of the Slaughter Manifesto. It only learned how to live with it.
On top of a forty-story building, Kenzuko sat at the edge of the roof, legs hanging over the abyss.
The wind brushed against his coat, his black aura faintly leaking into the air like mist. From this height, the city looked small. Fragile. Easy to crush.
"So this is the real world again…" Kenzuko muttered.
Ever since his resurrection, everything felt slow. Weak. Predictable. The game world had forced him to evolve, to adapt to endless slaughter, but Earth felt like a cage made of glass.
He extended his hand slightly, feeling the mana currents of the city. Thousands of people. Hundreds of sorcerers. A few strong ones.
None interesting.
Then suddenly…
A presence.
Not violent. Not chaotic. But heavy. Dense. Like compressed gravity made of pure energy.
Kenzuko's eyes narrowed.
He turned his head.
On the opposite building, across the street, stood a man.
He wore a loose Japanese-style shirt with wide sleeves, baggy black pants, and wooden sandals. Over his right shoulder, wrapped around his body like a living tattoo, was a glowing golden dragon made entirely of mana. Its eyes shined like molten gold.
The man was standing casually, hands in his pockets.
Smiling.
"Yo," the man said calmly. "You're Kenzuko, right?"
Kenzuko slowly stood up.
"Who are you?"
The man stepped forward, the golden dragon shifting along his shoulder, scales clinking softly like metal.
"Name's Yearn Hikaru."
The air around him distorted.
"Master Rank sorcerer."
The moment those words landed, Kenzuko felt it.
Pressure.
Not killing intent.
Authority.
The kind that only came from someone who had survived countless battles and was still standing at the top.
Kenzuko smirked.
"Another hero type?"
Yearn laughed lightly. "Nah. Just someone who hates unstable variables walking around."
The golden dragon opened its mouth.
Gold mana poured into the air like liquid sunlight.
Kenzuko's black aura flared instantly.
"So you came to erase me?"
Yearn tilted his head. "More like… test you."
The wind exploded.
Kenzuko vanished from his spot, the concrete roof cracking where he stood a split second earlier. He reappeared behind Yearn, his fist already coated in Domination energy.
But the punch never landed.
CLANG.
A golden claw intercepted it.
The dragon's arm had extended on its own, blocking Kenzuko effortlessly.
Kenzuko's eyes widened slightly.
Fast.
Yearn turned his head slowly. "You're strong. But your movement is too linear."
The dragon's tail whipped around.
BOOM.
Kenzuko was sent flying across the street, smashing through two buildings before stopping inside a collapsed office floor.
Glass rained down.
Dust filled the air.
Kenzuko stood up slowly, brushing debris off his shoulder.
"…Gold and Dragon magic?"
Yearn floated above the street now, standing mid-air as golden runes formed beneath his feet.
"Hybrid magic," Yearn said. "Gold controls structure and value. Dragon controls instinct and dominance."
The dragon roared.
The sound alone shattered windows across several blocks.
Kenzuko raised his hand.
Black energy expanded outward.
Domination Field.
The space around Yearn warped as Kenzuko's ability tried to seize control of all mana in the area.
But…
Nothing happened.
Yearn's aura didn't move.
He looked down at the black field, unimpressed.
"…That's your main ability?"
Kenzuko frowned.
Impossible.
Everything obeyed him.
Magic, beasts, even concepts bent under Domination.
Yearn snapped his fingers.
Suddenly, the black field cracked like glass.
Gold light flooded in, overpowering Kenzuko's control entirely.
Yearn's voice echoed calmly.
"Gold doesn't submit. It defines."
The dragon lunged.
Kenzuko barely reacted in time, summoning a black shield that shattered instantly under the impact. He was slammed into the ground, creating a crater that swallowed half the street.
Yearn landed inside it.
Kenzuko coughed, blood dripping from his mouth for the first time since his resurrection.
"…You're not normal."
Yearn smiled.
"Good. Means you're worth punching."
Kenzuko roared, his black aura exploding outward violently.
He dashed forward, this time his movements unpredictable, warping space itself as Domination tried to override reality.
He landed three hits.
One to Yearn's ribs.
One to his shoulder.
One to his jaw.
The city shook.
But Yearn barely moved.
His body glowed gold, absorbing the force like a divine statue.
"…That tickled," Yearn said.
Then he punched back.
No technique.
No magic blast.
Just a single, clean, dragon-empowered punch.
BOOM.
The impact folded space.
Kenzuko's entire body bent unnaturally as he was launched across the city, skidding through buildings, highways, and finally stopping miles away in the middle of an abandoned district.
He lay there.
Stunned.
His vision blurred.
He tried to stand.
Failed.
Yearn appeared above him, floating calmly, dragon coiled around his body like a divine guardian.
"You're strong," Yearn said. "Stronger than most Masters I've fought."
He landed beside Kenzuko.
"But you rely too much on control."
Yearn looked down at him.
"Real power doesn't dominate."
The dragon's eyes glowed.
"It overwhelms."
Yearn raised his hand.
Gold and dragon mana fused together into a massive glowing fist shaped like a dragon's head.
Kenzuko tried to activate Domination again.
Nothing responded.
For the first time…
He felt suppressed.
The fist descended.
BOOM.
The entire district collapsed into a massive crater.
When the dust settled, Kenzuko was lying at the center, unconscious, his black aura completely extinguished.
Yearn stood at the edge of the crater, hands in his pockets.
"…You'll live," he said. "But you're not ready to walk this world freely yet."
The golden dragon dissolved into light and returned to his shoulder.
Yearn turned away, walking into the night.
"Tell Avery if he sends you again…"
His voice echoed across the ruins.
"…I won't hold back next time."
The wind blew through the destroyed city.
Kenzuko lay there, defeated.
Not dead.
But for the first time since his resurrection…
He had lost.
Very much.
BONUS: Yearn is the guy in the book cover!!