Zael stood before the dying dragon silently.
The Blood Thunder Dragon breathed heavily beneath him, its enormous body twitching occasionally while crimson lightning flickered weakly across shattered scales.
Even now—
Its aura was terrifying.
But it was fading rapidly.
Zael looked at it quietly, still considering whether killing it outright or attempting to tame it would be more beneficial.
Then—
He felt it.
A strange instinctual pull deep within his body.
Not from his mind.
Not from the system.
From the Origin bloodline itself.
It was subtle.
Yet overwhelming at the same time.
Like hunger.
Like recognition.
Like something inside him was staring directly at the dragon and saying—
Take it.
Zael's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Absorb?"
The feeling intensified immediately.
No hesitation remained afterward.
He stepped forward and placed his hand directly against the dragon's head.
Then willed it.
"Absorb."
The reaction was instant.
BOOOOM!!
Crimson-black energy exploded outward violently from the dragon's body as the Origin bloodline activated automatically.
The dragon roared in agony.
And then—
Pain hit Zael.
Pure agony.
It felt like molten lightning was being forced directly into every nerve in his body simultaneously. Blood thunder energy surged through his veins violently, trying to tear him apart from the inside.
Zael's muscles locked instantly.
Veins bulged across his arms and neck while crimson lightning crackled across his skin uncontrollably.
"…Tch—"
Even with his pain resistance—
It hurt.
Badly.
The dragon's bloodline fought back instinctively as absorption began.
[Origin Trait — Assimilate Activated]
[High-Level Bloodline Detected]
[Absorption in Progress…]
The battlefield around him slowly went silent.
Everyone stared.
Because the dragon's body was shrinking.
Its bloodline essence.
Its lightning.
Its draconic energy.
Everything was flowing into Zael.
Thirty seconds passed.
Thirty extremely painful seconds.
Then suddenly—
Silence.
The dragon stopped moving completely.
Its body crumbled apart afterward into ash-like particles that scattered into the air.
At the exact same moment—
Golden-black system notifications exploded across Zael's vision.
[High-Grade Bloodline Successfully Assimilated]
[Bloodline Source: Blood Thunder Dragon]
[Generating Compatible Traits…]
[New Trait Acquired: Blood Thunder Manipulation]
[New Trait Acquired: Draconic Pressure]
[New Trait Acquired: Partial Dragonization]
[Stat Growth Increased]
[Lightning Affinity Greatly Increased]
[Physique Strengthened]
[Origin Bloodline Compatibility Increased]
[New Skills Generated]
[Skill Created — Blood Thunder Domain]
[Skill Created — Dragon Burst Movement]
[Skill Created — Crimson Thunder Breath]
Zael's eyes widened slightly.
Then another notification appeared.
One that made even him pause.
[Sub-Bloodline Generated]
[Sub-Bloodline #1: Blood Thunder Dragon Bloodline]
A pulse erupted from his body afterward.
BOOOOM!!
Crimson-black lightning exploded outward around Zael while abyssal energy mixed with draconic pressure simultaneously.
The sky trembled.
And for a brief moment—
Behind Zael—
A massive draconic shadow appeared silently.
Extremely faint but there.
——
The battlefield fell into stunned silence.
Smoke drifted upward from the massive crater while faint traces of crimson-black lightning crackled around Zael's body intermittently.
The dragon was gone.
Completely gone.
And that alone was enough to leave everyone shaken.
Nobody understood exactly what had happened at the end. Most only saw Zael place his hand on the dying dragon before its body started collapsing apart strangely.
But one thing was clear to everyone present—
Zael had killed it.
The same creature that had nearly wiped out every awakened inside the dungeon.
The same monster that had evolved into a dragon before their eyes.
Dead.
And Zael was still standing.
Whispers slowly spread across the battlefield.
"…He actually won."
"That thing was impossible…"
"A dragon…"
"No way that was still a level sixty creature…"
Several awakened stared at Zael with obvious disbelief while others simply looked relieved to still be alive.
One man laughed weakly before sitting heavily against broken ruins.
"I seriously thought we were dead."
"You were dead," another replied immediately. "That guy just refused to let it happen."
Nearby, Auralis blinked repeatedly while staring at Zael.
"…Okay."
She pointed toward him.
"I officially take back every crazy thing I've ever said about him."
Lily glanced sideways.
"You've said a lot of crazy things about him."
"Exactly my point."
Even Lily looked shaken despite trying not to show it openly.
Because no matter how strong they knew Zael was—
This was still absurd.
A dragon.
He had fought a dragon directly and won.
Meanwhile Aurelia remained unusually quiet.
Her sharp eyes lingered on the faint traces of draconic lightning occasionally flickering beneath Zael's skin before disappearing again.
Subtle.
Almost impossible to notice.
But she saw it.
And more importantly—
She understood what it implied.
Not fully.
But enough to realize something terrifying had happened.
Her expression tightened slightly.
"…Impossible."
Lily noticed immediately.
"What?"
Aurelia stayed silent briefly before shaking her head.
"…Nothing."
But inwardly her thoughts churned violently.
Because she had seen ancient records before.
Forbidden theories.
Concepts involving supreme bloodlines devouring and assimilating lesser ones.
Most were considered myths.
Impossible abilities belonging only to beings from forgotten eras.
Yet standing there—
Watching Zael calmly step out of the crater—
Aurelia suddenly wasn't so sure anymore.
Meanwhile Zael stretched lightly before glancing around at the destroyed battlefield.
"…Well."
He looked toward the others casually.
"That was annoying."
Several awakened nearby stared at him blankly after hearing that.
Annoying?
That entire fight nearly became a massacre.
Auralis burst out laughing suddenly.
"You know what? I'm not even surprised anymore."