But he didn't scream.
Instead, he forced his legs into a meditative posture, focusing inward.
His breathing slowed.
His heartbeat steadied.
The pain faded—slowly. Steadily.
Moments later, drenched in sweat, he rose.
"Leo… we're going full speed."
The weights dropped with metallic thuds. He stored them in the bag.
Battle spirit flared—golden vapors swelling around his body.
Sword in hand, he launched toward the cave at maximum speed.
He glanced at his pocket watch—6:30. Dark was coming fast.
Pushing himself, every ounce of energy poured into his legs.
Footwork activated—insane speed, pure force.
As darkness swallowed the sky, they slipped inside the cave.
Alex spotted a big rock near the entrance, then shut the cave behind him with Leo.
Breathing hard, he sat down and drank water.
His muscles glowed red, strained from the exertion.
"No other way..." he muttered, pulling out an empty healing syringe.
He refilled it with the glowing elixir and laughed.
"Welcome to hell, Leo."
Injecting first his left leg, then the right, he collapsed onto the ground.
Intense pain clawed at his legs—sweat poured, body trembling.
He leaned against the wall, fighting through it.
Slowly, the agony faded. Healing surged through his limbs.
Alex took out the egg and warmed it gently with his golden flame.
"Hey, sword... what's your name?" he asked with a smirk.
"I have no name, Master," the sword's voice echoed in his mind, respectful but faintly sad. "I was never forged by a smith."
Alex scratched his head, then smiled. "You were born from a powerful dragon, right? Then let's give you one."
He paused, then declared, "Brave."
"Thank you for the name, Master," the sword replied, a new warmth in its voice.
Later, he built a small campfire, sticking meat chunks onto skewers and planting them firmly in the ground beside the flames.
As he turned back to the egg, he muttered, "Hey, Brave... why isn't it hatching?"
"For that," the sword said, "you need to drop a bit of blood on the shell."
Without hesitation, Alex bit his finger and let a single drop fall onto the egg.
The shell began to tremble. The golden fire faded as Alex stepped back.
Crkkkt!
A crack spread across the egg's surface. Slowly, shards began to split.
Golden and white light spilled from within.
"Leo," Alex warned, glancing at his furry companion, "Whatever comes out of that—don't eat it. It's basically your sister."
A small claw poked through the shell. Alex and Leo's eyes widened.
In a sudden burst, the egg shattered.
Out emerged a tiny dragon, glowing softly, staring at Alex with curious golden eyes. It fluttered upward, wings delicate as silk, and landed in Alex's arms, nuzzling into his palm.
Alex couldn't help but laugh, overwhelmed, patting the newborn dragon gently.
Leo tilted his head, growling with confusion and awe.
The baby dragon turned to him—and let out a tiny, squeaky roar.
Suddenly, his back began to burn.
Golden flames erupted, tearing through his jacket like paper. He grit his teeth.
"Damn it! Why does it hurt even worse than before?!"
The pain spiraled, forming a circular pattern across his back as radiant light poured from him—golden, divine, untamed.
"Leo!" Alex shouted, voice strained, "Get out! Block all the stones around the cave core—don't let the light escape!"
Leo bolted outside, sealing the entrance with a wall of fire.
Inside, Alex floated in the air, fists clenched, eyes shut. He was breathing heavily, channeling the agony through sheer force of will.
After what felt like hours—but was only minutes—the pain subsided. He slowly descended to the ground.
The little dragon still slept soundly in his hands.
"Why the hell does my back keep hurting like this?" he groaned, staggering slightly.
He picked up his sword and sliced away the molten edges of the stone that had warped the cave. Leo peeked through the flames, hesitant and wide-eyed.
"Come in, you mutt. It's safe now."
Leo reentered, shaking off the ash.
The baby dragon stirred, yawned, then promptly devoured both meat skewers meant for it and Leo.
It curled up on Alex's shoulder and drifted off again.
Alex chuckled. "You're getting way too comfortable, baby dragon. You'll be stealing Leo's bed next."
Curious, he turned the reflective surface of his sword toward his back—and froze.
A glowing golden dragon mark had formed, etched in light, surrounded by a faint white halo.
"…Great," he muttered, "Now my back has a tattoo with a god complex."
He threw on a clean T-shirt, then pulled out the saber-tooth pelt he'd skinned earlier. Using his golden flame, he cooked the rest of the meat, peeled it, and handed Leo his share.
After eating, he used water magic to cleanse the hide and hung it near the campfire to dry.
Later, he pulled out an old scroll and started reading about elemental magics—absorbed in the mysteries of power, nature, and balance.
Eventually, he drifted off, lying on the cave floor.
The dragon and Leo both curled up beside him, like living blankets made of fire and fur.
The next morning, around 6 AM, golden sunlight filtered faintly through cracks in the cave.
Alex yawned, sat up, and looked around.
The dragon was gone.
"Where's the little dragon?" he muttered, grabbing his sword. "Brave, did you see it?"
"Master, it's sleeping in Leo's wings," the sword responded calmly.
Alex crouched beside Leo and lifted a wing gently.
The baby dragon was snoring loudly, nestled against the warmth like a spoiled child.
Alex chuckled. "What fools I've ended up with…"
He pulled on a new jacket, rolled aside the cave's entrance rock, and stepped outside.
A gentle mist danced across the forest floor, slowly fading in the golden light of morning.
Alex stretched his limbs, cracked his neck, and took in a deep breath of crisp air.
With a branch from a nearby delicate tree, he brushed his teeth methodically—an odd moment of normalcy in a world of chaos. Afterward, he strapped a weighted band to his leg and began his training.
He followed the sword's movements carefully, mirroring each swing with focus. At first, he used a thick wooden trunk as a dummy, but after a few strikes—
Crack!
The trunk split in two, collapsing with a dull thud.
Alex tilted his head. "Huh. Guess I'm getting stronger... or these trees are getting weaker."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe I need to switch up the technique."
Without missing a beat, he jumped over a low wall of stone and began wandering through the forest, scanning for larger, sturdier trees. He found one—thick, ancient, and towering.
He took a stance, tightened his grip on the sword, and unleashed a full-force swing.
Ssshhkt!
The sword sliced clean through the massive trunk.
He blinked, watching the top half fall away in silence. "…Okay. So training with trees is officially a no-go."
He looked down at his sword, raising a brow. "Brave, got any bright ideas?"
As he casually swung the blade through the air, deep in thought, the sword replied,
"Master, why not use the mammoth bones as dummies?"
Alex paused, eyes lighting up. "Ohhh… You brilliant little chunk of metal. That's actually a great idea!"
He grinned wide. "Next hunt, we bag ourselves a mammoth."
"Won't be late!" Brave chirped proudly.
Alex burst into laughter. "We've already got an extra mouth to feed. Hope it doesn't eat the whole damn mammoth before we get to train!"
Alex walked back to the cave and stopped at the entrance, blinking in disbelief.
Leo and the baby dragon were having a full-blown roaring competition.
The baby dragon roared—high-pitched and enthusiastic.
Leo responded with a low, gravelly growl that shook a pebble loose from the ceiling.
"…What am I even looking at?" Alex muttered.
He sighed, placing a hand on his sword. "Brave, do you have any idea how to raise that tiny chaos goblin?"
The sword responded in its usual dry tone, "Once you reach the advanced stage of magic, you can form a Spiritual Link with it."
Alex raised an eyebrow. "What's that do?"
"Simple. You'll be able to share thoughts, memories, sensations. You'll feel what it feels. It'll understand your emotions, and you'll understand its… unfiltered baby brain."
Alex blinked. "So... like co-parenting, but psychic?"
"Exactly. Congratulations, Master. It's like adopting a child who can breathe fire on your bed."
He groaned. "Great. Add a third book to its schedule. We're raising a scholar, not a flying menace."
He clapped his hands and plopped onto a flat stone.
"Oi! Leo! Firecracker! Get over here!"
They both looked up mid-growl—then ran over, tumbling like puppies.
"Time to give the little rascal a name," Alex declared.
The baby dragon tilted its head, tongue sticking out.
He paused. "Her mom had some ancient, cryptic-sounding name I can't even pronounce... So let's go with something bold. Regal. Unmistakably dramatic…"
He struck a pose. "Unicos Darcy."
The cave went silent.
Brave echoed with approval, "Master, that name is… unnecessarily fabulous. I like it."
The baby dragon sneezed a puff of smoke and blinked, then immediately started gnawing on Leo's wing again.
"They're not even paying attention," Alex muttered.
He stood, spread his arms wide like a theatre actor, and declared grandly, "Welcome to my journey, Unicos Darcy! May your fire never burn my eyebrows again!"
At that exact moment, both Leo and Unicos let out simultaneous roars—ignoring him entirely—and went back to wrestling.
Alex deadpanned. "Am I being ignored by my own companions? Seriously? I'm the main character here!"
Brave snorted in his head, "Master, perhaps begin training. You clearly have no authority here."
Alex flopped dramatically onto the stone. "Fine. Training it is. But I want respect from at least one of my pets by the end of this month!"