“How long will you pretend to be just an ordinary human… Kentro?”
His heart stopped for a moment.
His hand froze above the dagger, while his crimson eyes remained fixed on that massive shadow above the branches.
The cold wind was blowing through the trees, but Kentro did not feel it.
All he saw…
Were those piercing golden eyes.
He said in a cautious voice, his dagger clenched inside his fist:
“Who are you?”
Silence fell for a moment.
Then the deep voice repeated, as if enjoying the question:
“Who am I…?”
A low laugh emerged from the darkness.
“It’s been a long time since anyone asked me that question.”
The shadow moved slowly.
It was terrifyingly huge, yet it made almost no sound.
It leaped from branch to branch with eerie lightness, as if gravity itself did not affect it.
Then…
It landed on the ground suddenly.
The earth shook beneath Kentro’s feet.
The dragon appeared.
Completely black.
Its scales reflected the faint moonlight like black mirrors, and its golden eyes pulsed with a strange glow, as if they saw what others could not.
Its massive body was larger than any creature Kentro had ever seen inside the forest.
Yet…
He heard no sound as it approached.
Kentro stepped back unconsciously and whispered:
“You… are not an ordinary beast.”
The dragon laughed with a deep voice that shook the air around him.
“Beast… that’s a harsh word.”
He sat down on the ground calmly, his eyes still fixed on Kentro.
He showed no hostility.
He did not attack.
He just…
Was watching him.
Then he suddenly said:
“You’ve grown.”
Kentro’s eyes widened slightly.
The dragon continued in a calm voice:
“I haven’t seen you since… how long has it been?
Seven years?
Eight?”
Kentro’s body stiffened.
“You’ve been watching me?!”
The dragon replied coldly:
“From afar.”
Then he added:
“I watch everyone who enters this forest.”
His eyes stopped on Kentro.
“But you… were different.”
Kentro frowned cautiously.
“Different?
How?”
The dragon raised his head slightly toward the sky, then turned his gaze back to him.
“Because you have no magic.”
Silence fell.
But the dragon continued:
“And yet… you did not die.”
His golden eyes drew closer.
“And that alone… makes things interesting.”
Kentro gritted his teeth and said sharply:
“I didn’t die because I fought.”
He gripped his dagger tighter.
“Because I didn’t give up.”
A faint smile appeared on the dragon’s terrifying face.
“I know.”
Then he said with strange calmness:
“That’s why I’m here.”
The air was cold enough to be harsh, but Kentro’s forehead was covered in sweat.
The dragon sat before him like a giant black mountain.
Silent…
Heavy…
And terrifying.
Then he spoke again:
“Do you know why you don’t feel your true power, Kentro?” Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping.com.
He replied quickly, as if repeating the words he had heard his whole life:
“Because I have no power.”
His voice dropped slightly.
“That’s what everyone told me.”
And suddenly, the dragon’s gaze changed.
He said with a decisive tone:
“Everyone is wrong.”
Kentro froze.
The dragon continued:
“You have no magic… because your type of power cannot be measured by magical crystals.”
Kentro’s eyebrows slowly rose.
“What do you mean?”
The dragon pointed with his long tail toward his chest.
“What’s inside you… is not magic.”
Silence fell again.
Kentro felt his heartbeat become louder than the wind.
Then he said slowly:
“Then… what is it?”
The dragon smiled a mysterious smile.
“That… you will find out for yourself soon.”
He rose suddenly.
The ground shook violently beneath Kentro’s feet.
He turned around quickly, but the darkness between the trees seemed eerily still.
Kentro shouted:
“Wait!”
The dragon paused slightly.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
The dragon turned his massive head toward him.
His golden eyes carried something strange…
A warning…
And an ancient longing.
Then he said:
“Because… this is not our first meeting.”
Everything stopped.
Even the wind.
Even the sound of the fire behind Kentro.
He felt as if the world had frozen for a moment.
He tried to process the words, but he couldn’t.
He had never seen this dragon before.
He was sure of it.
Impossible to forget a creature like this.
He said in a slightly trembling voice:
“What does that mean…?”
The dragon turned slowly.
Then he said without looking at him:
“It means… I have known you for a long time, Kentro.”
A heavy silence fell.
“Since a time… you do not remember.”
And suddenly…
He vanished.
Without a sound.
Without a trace.
He was there…
Then he was gone.
Kentro remained standing in place for a long time, staring at the empty space before him.
His heartbeats were pounding violently against his chest.
“What… just happened?”
He couldn’t sleep that night.
At the same time…
Inside the human world.
The Grand Cathedral hall was submerged in darkness, while candles illuminated the faces of the high priests with a pale, terrifying light.
A tall man wearing a black cloak stood before them.
His face was partially covered, but his eyes were sharp as knives.
He said in a dry voice:
“I have news.”
One of the priests stepped forward and said:
“Speak.”
The man replied:
“While gathering information about demon movements near the borders… I detected something strange.”
Silence fell inside the hall.
Then he continued:
“Deep within the Dark Forest… there is a very strong presence.”
He paused for a moment.
Then he added:
“And not human.”
The High Priest raised an eyebrow.
“Then what is it?”
The man’s voice lowered slightly.
“Something… older.”
The hall exchanged glances.
Then he said:
“Completely black energy.
Dense to a terrifying degree.”
The faces of those present hardened.
“It cannot be explained.”
And in the back…
The mysterious old man stepped forward slowly.
Then he said one word:
“Dragon.”
Everyone turned toward him immediately.
The old man said calmly:
“Didn’t I tell you?”
He raised his eyes toward the darkness.
“Those thrown into hell… either die.”
Then he continued:
“Or return as monsters.”
Silence fell.
But the old man was not finished yet.
“However… this power does not return from hell alone.”
The High Priest’s features froze.
“What do you mean?”
The old man slowly raised his head.
“Sometimes… it is accompanied by something older than the demons themselves.”
Some priests’ eyes widened.
“A black dragon.”
Silence.
“Its eyes foretell death.”
Then he whispered:
“One of the ancient dragons.”
The hall immediately buzzed with whispers.
The High Priest raised his hand to silence everyone.
Then he said coldly:
“If this is true… then we must convene the Summit Council.”
Everyone stopped.
One priest asked in shock:
“Are we going to gather representatives of humans… demons… and fairies?”
The High Priest answered:
“Yes.”
Then he added:
“Not to make peace… but to find out why this dragon has returned after centuries of disappearance.”
The mysterious old man looked toward the distant window.
Then he whispered in a voice barely heard:
“Perhaps… it returned for the exiled heir of the demons.”
And the hall returned to its heavy silence.
In the Dark Forest…
Kentro was still sitting before the blazing fire.
The flames reflected inside his crimson eyes, while he remained lost in thought.
He whispered to himself:
“An ancient dragon… who knows me?”
He lowered his head slightly.
“What nonsense…?”
But he remembered the black book.
He remembered the whispers he had heard.
And he remembered the dragon’s gaze…
As if it had known him for a long time.
He raised his eyes toward the dark sky.
“Am I connected to this dragon?”
Silence fell.
“And who is he really…?”
He found no answer.
But deep within his heart…
Something began to change.
Something resembling fear…
Mixed with hope.
To be continued…