Grey could not move.
Every instinct inside his body screamed at him to run, yet his legs refused to obey, and for once he couldn’t blame fear alone for his paralysis because the pressure radiating from the enormous creature before him was so overwhelming that even breathing felt like an act of defiance.
The ancient dragon remained partially concealed within the cavernous formation of stone, her enormous crimson body disappearing into the darkness behind her while only her head and the upper portion of her neck remained visible, but even that small glimpse was enough for Grey to understand that he had wandered into a world far beyond his current level.
Her golden eyes remained fixed upon him.
Grey swallowed and glanced toward the system interface hovering at the edge of his vision. "System..."
The familiar blue window appeared almost immediately.
[Target analysis initiated.]
[Analyzing...]
[Analyzing...]
[Analysis failure.]
[Target’s biological structure exceeds current analysis capacity.]
Grey’s mouth went dry as he stared at the final notification.
That wasn’t reassuring in the slightest, because the system had already identified creatures that were stronger than him, including the Feral Thornwolf that had nearly killed him during his first night, yet this creature was apparently beyond even its ability to analyze.
The dragon inhaled, and the tremendous gust of air that followed swept through the clearing hard enough to pull Grey several inches forward.
His body tensed as he realized what she was doing, because her nostrils flared while she drew in his scent, studying him in a way that made him feel less like a person and more like some strange object she had discovered.
Her golden eyes narrowed as the pressure surrounding Grey suddenly increased.
[Danger.]
[Hostile intent detected.]
Grey clenched his fists and forced himself to remain still. Running would probably provoke her, while fighting was so obviously impossible that he couldn’t even pretend otherwise, leaving him with only one reasonable option: stand there and hope the ancient dragon wasn’t interested in killing him.
The enormous creature slowly lowered her head until one golden eye was almost level with Grey, and the sheer scale of her body became even more terrifying from such a short distance.
Her eye alone was larger than his entire body, while the vertical pupil within it seemed to contain an unfathomable depth that made Grey feel as though he were standing before something ancient enough to have watched civilizations rise, flourish, and vanish.
Yet there was something strange about her expression.
Grey had expected hatred, hunger, or perhaps simple curiosity, but instead the dragon looked confused.
Her nostrils flared again as she inhaled deeply, and then, without warning, she froze.
For several seconds, neither of them moved.
The tension in the dragon’s face slowly disappeared, replaced by an emotion Grey couldn’t identify, and when her golden eyes opened again, something about her gaze felt different.
Recognition.
Grey frowned and instinctively took half a step backward.
"Grey."
Grey froze.
The voice was feminine, deep, and impossibly beautiful, yet the sheer age contained within it sent a chill down his spine.
He stared at her in disbelief. "How do you know my name?"
The dragon didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she lowered her head until her enormous snout hovered only a few meters away from him, her golden eyes remaining fixed upon his face as though she were comparing the creature standing before her with a memory that had existed for far longer than Grey could comprehend.
"I have waited..."
Her voice became quieter as she studied him.
"...for so long."
Grey’s confusion only deepened. "I think you have the wrong person."
The dragon’s pupils contracted sharply.
Grey immediately realized that might have been the wrong thing to say.
The enormous creature shifted her body, and the forest trembled beneath the movement as her massive wings unfolded from behind the stone formation, revealing enormous crimson membranes that briefly blocked the moonlight above them.
Grey’s instincts screamed at him to run.
He took another step backward.
"Do not."
The command was quiet.
Grey stopped.
The dragon lowered her head until her snout was almost touching him, and for several seconds she simply stared at him before slowly inhaling once again. This time, however, something changed in her expression.
"You don’t remember."
Grey swallowed and shook his head. "No."
The dragon’s eyes closed for a moment.
Then she spoke with a strange calmness that somehow frightened Grey more than anger would have.
"My name is Seraphina."
The moment he heard the name, the system reacted.
[Unique existence detected.]
[Race: Ancient Crimson Dragon.]
[Rank: SSS.]
Grey’s eyes widened.
The system continued.
[Threat classification: Catastrophic.]
[Current relationship with host: Unknown.]
Grey stared at the final line before slowly looking back at the dragon.
"Unknown?"
Seraphina noticed his expression and tilted her head slightly. "What is that strange light?"
Grey immediately closed the system window. "Nothing."
Her golden eyes narrowed.
"You are hiding something from me."
"I’m not hiding anything."
"You are."
There was no accusation in her voice, only certainty, as though she already knew the answer regardless of what Grey said.
Grey hesitated before finally deciding that arguing with an SSS-ranked dragon was probably not the wisest thing he could do with his second life.
Seraphina lowered her head again, bringing her enormous face closer to him. "Come closer."
Every instinct Grey possessed told him not to obey, and his common sense was in complete agreement, but curiosity eventually overcame caution as he cautiously stepped forward.
Seraphina remained completely still until Grey stood within reach, after which she gently lowered her snout until it touched his chest.
Grey stiffened.
The dragon inhaled deeply, and something changed within her expression.
"Impossible."
Grey looked up at her. "What?"
Seraphina didn’t answer immediately. She smelled him again, this time with a strange intensity that made Grey wonder whether she could somehow detect something beneath his physical body.
Then her eyes widened.
"You really are him."
Grey’s heart skipped. "Him?"