The First Dragon God

The morning sun filtered gently through the cracks in the window blinds, casting slanted beams of golden light across the modest room. Dust particles danced lazily in the light, drifting through the still air. The faint scent of damp earth wafted in from outside, a lingering reminder of the previous day's rain. The sound of distant birdsong mixed with the quiet rustle of leaves, creating a serene backdrop to the otherwise chaotic world beyond. Leo sat on the bed with his back pressed against the wall, her legs stretched out before him, and his gaze distant. His injuries were yet to heal, so he wasn't out of bed yet. Rather, he wasn't allowed to be out of bed yet. Leo was alone but the silence of the room was comforting, wrapping around him like a familiar blanket. His fingers drummed lightly on his thigh as he stared at the sunlit patch on the floor, lost in thought. The bedside table beside him held remnants of the night before: a half-empty glass of water, a folded cloth that Ms Ves had left for him to use, and four treasure orbs. The small, marble-like objects glowed faintly in the sunlight. But Leo's attention wasn't on the orbs yet. He leaned back, exhaling slowly, and summoned the system interface to check his unread notifications. The familiar translucent screen flickered to life before his eyes, illuminating the room with a soft, bluish glow. [You have acquired Level 18 Mutant Ape: Greyback Life Force.] [You have reached Level 10. You have received three stat points.] [You have reached Level 11. You have received three stat points.] [You have reached Level 12. You have received three stat points.] ... ..... Leo's eyes widened slightly at the notification. A Level 18 mutant creature! "Level… 18?" he whispered, the words barely audible in the quiet room. The realization hit him hard. The creature he had fought and barely survived against was twice his level during their battle. He clenched his fists, his mind racing as he processed the information. "Twice my level…" He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "I shouldn't have survived that fight." It wasn't arrogance that made him think that. It was cold, hard logic. A Level 18 mutant was beyond what he should have been able to handle. Yet he had stood his ground, fought through the pain and exhaustion, and somehow emerged victorious. His gaze shifted back to the system notifications before going down to his stat screen. [Name: Leo ****] [Level: 14] [Specie(s): Human, ****, ****] [Class: –] [Title: None] ______ [Strength: 21] [Agility: 21 (+15)] [Stamina: 20] [Intelligence: 13] [Mana: 100] ______ [Stat Point(s): 15] ______ [Skill(s): Regeneration (Innate), Beastmaster's Bond (Innate)], [Seismic Stomp] "Level 14." The double-digit number stared back at him, a stark reminder of how much he had grown in just a few days. His mind drifted back to that first battle—his first kill. The zombie outside the orphanage on the day the apocalypse began. He had been terrified. His hands had trembled as he gripped the makeshift weapon. The stench of decay, the hollow eyes of the undead—it was a nightmare made real. And now… here he was. Level 14. Standing over the corpse of a creature far beyond anything he could have imagined back then. "I've come a long way," Leo muttered to himself. "But I've still got a long way to go." "I should distribute my free stat points. It would help me heal faster," Leo said to himself. He was about to distribute his free stat points when he thought of something. He realised that he has always been increasing the same attributes every time: his Strength, Agility and Stamina. He also realised that he has always neglected his Intelligence attribute and Mana attribute. Realising this, he decided to increase the two attributes that he has always been neglecting. He added five stat points to his Intelligence but when he tried adding to his Mana, he couldn't. Not only that, he noticed that his Manq increased in its own immediately after he increased his Intelligence stat. His Mana pool increased from 100 to 125! It was an increase Leo didn't expect. "Wow. If I actually knew this, I would had added at least one free stat point to my Intelligence after each level," Leo said himself, while smiling wryly. From his calculation, he deduced that for each stat points he added to his Intelligence stat, his Mana pool increased by 5 points. Without a doubt, this was a lot! "Well, there's nothing I can do about it now. Rather, I should focus on increasing my Mana pool going forward. Though, I'm curious as to the relationship between my Intelligence stat and my Mana pool. I wonder if Tatiana has information on it." Leo muttered to himselfz before turning his attention to the treasure orbs on the bedside table. The soft glow of the morning light shifted, catching the polished surface of the four orbs. Leo's eyes drifted to them, curiosity flickering in his gaze. Three of the orbs are blue while the last is purple. Leo already knew that the blue colored orbs are rare rank but the purple colored orb got him very curious. He felt that it might be a higher rank than the blue but he wasn't sure. "I wonder what type of items might be inside? More skills or maybe even a weapon. I hope it's the two though," he murmured. Leo's curiosity burned but there were more pressing things on his mind. ... His thoughts drifted back to the battle with the mutant creature. Each moment played out in his mind like a vivid memory—the ground shaking beneath its feet, the terrifying speed with which it moved, the relentless strength it displayed. He could still feel the crushing force of its claws against his ribs, the searing pain of being thrown across the parking lot like a ragdoll. His body ached just thinking about it. But more than the pain, it was the creature's regeneration that had stood out to him. The way it healed its wounds almost instantly, draining its stamina in the process. That had been his key to victory. He replayed the fight in his mind, analyzing every move, every mistake. "I should have realized sooner," he muttered. "The more it healed, the slower it became." It had been a grueling battle, one that had pushed him to the brink of his limits. Yet, in the end, he had prevailed. And as much as the victory felt like an achievement, there was a nagging thought at the back of his mind. Would he have won if not for luck? If he hadn't been taken into that dark space and his injuries mysteriously healed completely? Would he had won if the creature hadn't tired out when it did, would he be lying dead in that parking lot? Leo shook his head, forcing the thoughts away. His gaze drifted to the window, where sunlight streamed in, casting warm patches of light across the floor. His mind wandered to the dark space he had been pulled into during the fight—the endless void, the swirling purple-golden sun, and the voice that had spoken to him. "Weak." The word echoed in his mind, sending a shiver down his spine. That voice… it hadn't just called him weak—it had made him *feel* weak. Leo clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms. "Why did it feel so real?" The suffocating presence, the overwhelming pressure. And that voice… "Who are you?" he whispered, his gaze distant. The more he thought about it, the more questions arose. Was the voice tied to his abilities? To the purple-golden sun? Was it something within him, or something watching from afar? There were no answers. Only questions. And that frustrated him. Leo let out a deep sigh, rubbing his face with both hands. "Enough." He couldn't keep overthinking everything. Ves had told him to rest, and for once, he intended to listen. He stretched out on the bed, staring up at the ceiling as sunlight continued to stream through the window. "I'll figure it out," he whispered to himself. "One step at a time." The weight of exhaustion settled over him, and slowly, his eyes began to close. As sleep claimed him, one last thought lingered in his mind. "I'm not weak. I'll prove it."